New York Yankees

Trophies, Rings, And More At Upcoming Sports Memorabilia Auction

Which is worth more, a 2007 Boston Red Sox World Series Trophy or a 2000 New York Yankees World Series Trophy? We'll get a chance to find out when the Grey Flannel Holiday Auction sells off both trophies along with a whole plate of sports memorabilia on December 8. The auction includes plenty of championship jewelry such as J.R. Redmond's diamond-covered 2001 New England Patriots Super Bowl XXXVI player's ring and a 1984 Boston Celtics Championship ring that belonged to Red Auerbach's personal attorney, Bob Richards, and a 2009 Yankees World Championship ring.

The auction also features soccer memorabilia with a jersey worn by the great Brazilian striker Pelé during his tenure with the New York Cosmos and a jersey from German superstar and two-time European Footballer of the Year Franz Beckenbauer.

"If there is a single sport where ground-floor opportunities still exist, it's horseracing," said Richard E. Russek, Grey Flannel Auctions' president. "A thoroughbred horse runs in only so many races, and there are only so many blankets or halters per race. The blanket worn by a prize-winning horse is much rarer than a modern-era baseball jersey." This auction includes a collection of blankets, halters and other items from a long-held collection such as the blanket Big Brown wore when he won the 2008 (134th) Kentucky Derby. The white fleece blanket is adorned with a bouquet of red roses, the words "Kentucky Derby 134," the official Kentucky Derby symbol, and an embroidered patch with the race date and the image of a jockey on his horse. It opens with a $2,500 minimum bid.

[via Worthpoint]

Tags: boston red sox, championship ring, kentucky derby, new york yankees, sports memorabilia, trophies, world series

Honus Wagner Card Earns Thousands For Nuns' Good Works

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Charity, Sports

Last month we learned that a rare Honus Wagner baseball card was up for sale. The Baltimore-based School Sisters of Notre Dame put the card up for sale. The card is part of the T206 series, produced between 1909 and 1911. The T206 Honus Wagner, was made by the American Tobacco Company in 1909. Part of the mythology surrounding this legendary collectible is that Honus Wagner himself didn't want his image to be used to sell tobacco and stopped production of his card.

The card that the Roman Catholic nuns were auctioning off through Heritage Auctions was in poor condition and only expected to bring in between $150,000 and $200,000. The card sold for $262,900. Antiques Trader reports that the winning bidder is a card shop owner who was touched by the story and bought the card even though the total price was probably more than the damaged card was worth. Heritage Auctions also donated its standard 15 percent seller's commission to the cause, as well. Money earned will benefit the nuns' ministries in 35 countries around the world.

The nuns came into possession of the card because the brother of a nun who died in 1999 left all his possessions to the order when he died earlier this year. The man's lawyer told the nuns that he had a Honus Wagner card in a safe-deposit box. Inside the box they found the card along with a note that said: "Although damaged, the value of this baseball card should increase exponentially throughout the 21st century!" The man had owned the card since 1936. In February 2007, a 'near mint-mint' Honus Wagner sold for $2.8 million.

The Heritage Auctions' Signature Sports Collectibles Auction on November 4 and 5 also included the sale of a New York Yankees home jersey worn by Hall of Fame first baseman Lou Gehrig during his first MVP season. It sold for $717,000, the highest price ever paid at auction for New York Yankees pinstripes.

Tags: baseball collectibles, baseball memorabilia, Honus Wagner, Lou Gehrig, new york, New York Yankees, sports memorabilia

A-Rod's $100,000 Baseball

by Deb West (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Sports

On February 4, 2010 an on-line auction was concluded for the baseball Alex Rodriguez hit to secure his 500th career home run. A-Rod was the youngest player to do so and only one of a total of 22 players to ever attain the distinction of hitting that many homers. The ball in question brought in $103,579.00. The only other Yankees to achieve the goal are two of the greatest, Babe Ruth and Mickey Mantle.

The auction was conducted by SCP Auctions who stock their auctions with quality baseball memorabilia and cards. They are also responsible for the successful sale of Barry Bonds record breaking 756th home run ball for $752,467 in September of 2007. The company has over the years partnered with Sotheby's to sell some of the most important items in baseball history including the bat Babe Ruth used to hit the first home run in Yankee Stadium ($1.265 million) and the original contract for the sale of Babe Ruth from the Red Sox to the Yankees in 1919, as well as private collections of other sports superstars such as Ernie Banks, Honus Wagner, Casey Stengel and Pee Wee Reese.

The fan, supposedly a New York area college student, who originally caught the ball on August 4, 2007 had kept the ball in good shape and you could even see where A-Rod's bat connected with the ball. Also, MLB had in expectation of the important at bat pre-marked the ball "A 107" and then after the home run placed a hologram with a serial number on the ball. This insured that the anonymous Internet buyer is assured that they are receiving the real deal. There was some discussion by the New York Daily News that the ball was sold for much less than it might have garnered due to steroid use by baseball players. It also could just be the economy, still not a bad take for a fan just out for a day at the game.

Tags: A-Rod, alex rodriguez, AlexRodriguez, auction, baseball, baseball memorabilia, BaseballMemorabilia, home run ball, HomeRunBall, memorabilia, New York Yankees, NewYorkYankees, sports memorabilia, SportsMemorabilia

Phillies Win Game One: Get Your Team Memorabilia Now

by Deb West (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Decor, Art, Sports

phillies memorabilia

While the New York Yankees might be thought of as favored to win the 2009 World Series, we can all use a healthy reminder that the Philadelphia Phillies mean business. After all they are the 2008 defending champs, talented and hungry for the title too. The Game 1 win might be a sign of things to come.

Already the Phillies are ahead of the game compared to the prior match up between these two teams. The last time these two teams met in the World Series, in fact the only other time, was in 1950 when the Yankees swept the Phillies 4-0. That was when the Yankee dynasty was in full throttle and their triumph over the Phillies was just the second win in what would be a streak of 5 consecutive World Series titles.

If you need a physical reminder of the success experienced by last year's Phillies team just check out the collectors' items and memorabilia offered for sale by Steiner Sports. A signed photograph of the team celebrating their 2008 victory is a great image of the joy the whole city experienced. This was the first major championship win for any Philadelphia team in any sport for over 30 years. The 16" x 20" 2008 team signed photograph has 20 signatures from the 2008 championship team. A limited edition of 100 retails for $2,500 each.

Ryan Howard, the National League MVP, hit two doubles an drove in the final run of the first game of the series. I bet some little league player would love a chance to swing an autographed bat in the privacy of their own backyard. Howard has signed a black game model bat that can be picked up from Steiner Sports for $700.

Given the bat is black, some lucky fan might even be able to win the argument that it qualifies as home decor and hang it in the living room as an elegant piece of art.

Gallery: More Phillies Memorabilia

Tags: autographed, baseball, memorabilia, New York Yankees, NewYorkYankees, Philadelphia Phillies, PhiladelphiaPhillies, world series, WorldSeries

Yankee Stadium Sod Up For Auction

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Sports

Yankees fans can have a piece of the old stadium in their own back yard. Steiner Sports is selling the 20' x 20'; plot of sod from the area behind home plate that was used in the Yankees old stadium. The lot comes with the Yankee stencil, white sod paint, lawn flag, special grass seed and a letter of authenticity. Delea Sod Farms, the official sod farm of the NY Yankees™ will provide instructions to properly transplant the living sod into your own yard or local ball field and maintain it for years to come. The auction notes that the actual turf will be coming from northern New Jersey and will be shipped via a freight company which charges a steep $7.50 per mile away. Ten percent of the proceeds benefit Family Services of Westchester which provides social and mental health services for more than 30,000 people a year. The auction has a starting price of $15,000 and ends on July 9th.

[via The New Jersey Star-Ledger]

Source

Tags: new york yankees, NewYorkYankees, sports collectibles, SportsCollectibles, yankee stadium, YankeeStadium

Buyer Up! Yankees Auction Off Stadium Memorabilia

by Paul Rogers (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Sports

Let's get this straight. First the New York Yankees build a taxpayer-supported new stadium which, after cost overruns, comes to a whopping $1.5 billion. Then they charge $2,500 a game for the best seats in the house (a price they cut in half when the tickets embarrassingly weren't selling). And now they've begun auctioning off artifacts of the old stadium at exorbitant prices to earn back the $11.5 million the team paid the city to be able to dismantle the publicly owned ballpark.

Now that we've got all that squared away, here's a sampling of the items that went on offer this week from Yankees' partner Steiner Sports. A pair of seats (pictured), made of royal blue plastic and dating from the old stadium's renovation in the mid-1970s, begins at $1,499. A 2x2-foot chunk of freeze-dried sod starts at $280. A square of outfield turf ten times that size costs $10,000 and up. Getting sticker shock? Compared with the original price of top-of-line season tickets this year--$202,500--it's a veritable bargain.

Tags: baseball memorabilia, BaseballMemorabilia, new york yankees, NewYorkYankees, Steiner Sports, SteinerSports, Yankee Stadium, YankeeStadium