Babe Ruth’s 60 home run season of 1927 included a whopping 17 clubbed in the month of September alone—a feat no left-handed hitter in the American League has been able to meet. Now, one of those baseballs the Babe torched during his the height of his slugging prowess is on the auction block, where it could bring $300,000 or more.
Heritage Auctions says the official A.L. (Ban Johnson) ball is one of only two known self-authenticated Ruth home run balls and the only one that dates to his record-setting 1927 campaign.
Just to the right of Ruth’s bold black fountain pen ink sweet spot signature, he wrote: “48 Home Run, Sept. 7, 1927.”
The handwriting has been authenticated with a full letter from PSA/DNA, James Spence Authentication and SGC Authentic.
The date corresponds with a homer Ruth belted in the first inning at Fenway Park, the first of two he hit that afternoon.
Ruth was on quite a roll indeed. In a doubleheader the day before, he had launched three out of the yard. The Babe’s big bat helped the Yankees clinch the pennant by the end of that week.
Heritage calls the ball “the most important Ruth home run baseball to cross the hobby’s auction block since his 1933 All-Star Game model commanded over $800,000 a dozen years ago.”
Bidding is set to conclude Saturday night as part of the company’s two-night Summer Platinum Auction.