Babe Ruth earliest-known jersey could swing to 'seven figures' in US auction

The earliest-known jersey worn by NY Yankees legend Babe Ruth could bring seven figures in April

David Kohler, President and founder of SCP auctions, recently took time out to chat to us about his experiences as a top sports collectibles auctioneer - including selling Muhammad Ali's match-worn 'Fight of the Century' trunks for a World Record $173,102.

Now David has again been in touch to tell us about SCP's upcoming sale of one of the most valuable sports memorabilia pieces ever auctioned. "This is the best piece we have ever handled," David tells us.

The earliest-known jersey worn by New York Yankees legend Babe Ruth will auction on Monday, April 30. The circa-1920s road jersey was worn by Ruth shortly before he switched from Boston Red Sox to arch rivals the Yankees.

The shirt was previously exhibited at the Babe Ruth Birthplace Museum in Baltimore, Maryland, US. This exceptional sports memorabilia jersey is fresh to market, and is expected to bring a seven-figure sum.

The earliest-known jersey worn by Yankees legend Babe Ruth

"This is simply the finest sports artefact we've handled in our 30-year history," says David.

"It has it all. You would be hard pressed to dream up a more desirable baseball artefact. The historical impact of Ruth's emergence in the Big Apple in the early 1920s, combined with the jersey's superb original condition, makes this a sports treasure of the highest order."

A seven-figure sum would make this piece one of only a handful of baseball sports memorabilia pieces to have exceeded the $1m mark. At the top of this list is the 'holy grail' T-206 Honus Wagner tobacco card, sold by SCP Auction for $2.8m in 2007.

We, and other industry experts, wouldn't be surprised if this Ruth jersey raises the bar even higher beyond the Honus Wagner card's $2.8m. One thing's for sure, the sale of this rare Ruth item will be quite an event.

SCP will start taking bids on April 30. The auction will offer 1,000 lots of sports memorabilia and runs until Saturday May 19. Online bidding is also available.

Watch this space for more news on the sale.

Recent and related articles

  Babe Ruth/Lou Gehrig baseball memorabilia goes under the hammer in Florida | 10 February 2012

  HA.com sells baseball collection of Dr Mark W Cooper - 'history's best-known' | 28 December 2011

  Historic Bobby Orr jersey passes $34,000 in online auction | 22 October 2011

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Images: SCP Auctions