Anson-signed ball headlines Coach’s Corner May auc

A Cap Anson signed baseball, a ball signed by Christy Mathewson and a cut signature of George Washington top a list of items for sale in Coach's Corner Sports & Celebrity Auction, which ends May 26. Online and fax bidding is currently available. In all, there will be more than 3,900 items up for grabs.

The Anson-signed, red-and-blue-laced baseball is shellacked. Ten years ago the ball was won by the consignor in a Robert Edward auction and comes with the tagging. The ball is worn and the signature, dated 1904, is hard to read and grades at a 2.5. Also in this auction is an Anson cut signature.
A Mathewson-signed Andia Official League baseball is easier to read, but it also has some fading and shows wear. It is signed on the sweet spot in black ink and comes with COAs from three authenticators. The signature was graded a 6.

This auction features a Washington signature cut from a vintage document on textured rice paper. It is slightly faded with some minor blemishes, but is neatly cut and in very nice shape. It is signed in black ink and is very ornate and flowing. The signature was graded a 7.

Of equal interest to collectors will be a Babe Ruth signed Ford Frick National League baseball, a side-panel signed Lou Gehrig Playwell American League baseball, a Joe Tinker signed B, R & K baseball, a Jimmie Foxx signed Wilson Official League ball and a Nelson Fox signed Official American League ball.

Other interesting and significant signed baseballs offered in this auction include a Ty Cobb Official AL ball, a Honus Wagner red-and-black-stitched all-purpose ball and a ball signed by Ruth, Gehrig, Tony Lazzeri and Miller Huggins that came from the collection of former umpire George Magerkurth.

This auction features some noteworthy cuts, books and signed photos such as a signed 8-by-10-inch Ruth black-and-white photo of him in a suit holding a CBS microphone; a "Baseball Kings" autographed and limited-edition lithograph (120 of 1,560) signed by Nolan Ryan, Hank Aaron, Pete Rose and Rickey Henderson; a Cal Ripken Jr. signed 16-by-20 photo; a Ripken-Derek Jeter signed 16-by-20 photo; a Jackie Robinson signed 1951 personal check; a 500-Goal Scorer signed Ron Lewis print; a Michael "King" Kelly signed cut; a Dale Earnhardt signed die-cast race car; a signed Tiger Woods 8-by-10 and a Mantle-Aaron signed Score Board photo.

A signed Walter Johnson baseball cap from the early 1920s also will be offered in the auction. The cap has a blue brim and white top with blue pinstripes (Senators, likely). It is just in fair shape, but the signature shows nicely on the right front panel.

Other signed uniforms, memorabilia and equipment pieces include a Ted Williams signed Cooperstown Collection 1939-style Red Sox jersey, a signed Williams Family Enterprises Mitchell & News jersey and a 2005 Donruss Williams jersey and bat card (limited to 50). Also a Gehrig-signed Louisville Slugger bat, a Joe Montana-Dwight Clark signed "The Catch" 49ers jersey, a Mickey Mantle-signed H&B bat, a Ben Roethlisberger signed full-sized Steelers Super Bowl helmet, a Jeter-signed Majestic Yankees jersey, an Edgerrin James signed Indianapolis Colts jersey and a Sidney Crosby signed Penguins jersey.

Also a Steve Carlton game-worn 1970s Phillies jacket, a 1970s-80s signed Flyers hockey stick, a Montana-signed 49ers jersey and a Roy Campanella signed bat.

Card collectors will seek out a 1958 Topps Mantle card graded pristine 10 by Gem and valued at $12,000, a 1966 Topps Mantle card graded pristine 10 valued at $10,000, a 1986-87 Fleer Michael Jordan rookie card graded pristine 10, 16 relic cards including items from Jackie Robinson, Roy Campanella and Bill Dickey, a 1984 Fleer Update Baseball uncut press sheet, two unopened T205 packs in their original tin and a lot of more than 1,000 signed baseball cards spanning 1972-2004.

From the art and entertainment world comes a signed Elvis Presley "Double Dynamite" LP, a Sopranos signed 16-by-20 photo, a Steven Kauffman original Marilyn Monroe piece of art, a P. T. Barnum cut signature and a piece of Peter Max signed artwork (numbered 144 of 300).

From the pages of history comes an Abraham Lincoln cut signature on a piece of textured paper, an Andrew Jackson signed parchment paper 11-by-14 land grant document, a baseball signed by John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy, a JFK signed photo (plus a letter from his secretary, Evelyn Lincoln), a Booker T. Washington signed Tuskegee University document and a Franklin D. Roosevelt signed first-day cover.

The Coach's Corner complete auction listings appear on pages 39-55 in this issue of SCD. Bids will be accepted online at www.myccsa.com, by phone at 215-721-9162 or by mail prior to the auction date.
- Ted Taylor