Items from the estate of Mel Ott and the collection of Dick Groat were among the big sellers at the 15th annual Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory Auction.
The auction, which closed with a live session inside the museum on Saturday, included over 500 lots of primarily historic baseball memorabilia.
The top price went to what’s believed to be the only documented autographed Ott game bat. Presented to Charles “Chub” Feeney, who would later become National League president, the bat sold for $88,125 including the 17.5% buyer’s premium. Ott’s 42nd home run ball from 1929, signed by the Hall of Fame slugger, went for $25,850. Numerous signed personal checks and photographs were also consigned by family members.
Former Pittsburgh Pirates star Dick Groat consigned several important pieces to the sale including two uniforms from the team’s 1960 World Series season, his 1960 National League MVP award and his ’60 Silver Bat. The home uniform attributed to World Series use soared to $61,688 against a $10,000-$20,000 pre-sale estimate; the MVP trophy went for $40,567 while the Silver Bat went for $22,325.
A rare Joe Jackson autographed baseball, signed in the late 1930s, netted $75,611 while a Ted Williams autographed glove reached $70,500.
The auction also included a remarkable collection of World Series programs and tickets pieced together by a collector in the Mid-Atlantic. The top seller was a 1915 World Series program at $30,550. A 1917 World Series scorecard from Chicago went for $19,975 while a scarce 1906 World Series ticket stub reached $18,800.
A 1951 Joe DiMaggio World Series bat sold for $30,550 while a 1966 Roberto Clemente All-Star Game bat reached $32,900 and a 1911-1915 Fred Merkle game model bat landed at $21,150.
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