On Thursday, December 2, 2004 Sotheby’s and SportsCards Plus
will offer "The Holy Grail" of sports memorabilia,
the bat with which Babe Ruth slammed the first home run in the
new Yankee Stadium on April 18, 1923. After having been used
in one of the most famous moments in baseball’s history, the
bat was signed and donated by Ruth to a newspaper contest as
the top prize for a high school home run hitting competition
and was won by a young boy who carefully preserved it for more
than eight decades. Upon his death, he willed the bat to his
caretaker who has kept it in her possession until now. The bat,
which is estimated to bring in excess of $1 million, will be
the highlight of a sale of approximately 250 items devoted to
the history of baseball in New York that will include many rarities.
Ranging from the finest known 1927 New York Yankees Signed Team
Photo, to the personal collection of Pee Wee Reese including
his 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers World Series Ring, to Derek Jeter’s
2001 World Series Signed Walk Off Homer Bat, the sale spans
the 20th century.

The bat, along with a selection of highlights, will be exhibited
at The National Sports Collectors Convention in Cleveland, Ohio
from July 22nd to July 25th. Prior to the December 2nd auction
at Sotheby’s in New York, there will be a public exhibition
of all of the items, also at Sotheby’s, from November 27-December
1, 2004.

The Ruth bat is expected to join the Honus Wagner T-206 and
Mark McGwire’s 70th home run ball as the only other pieces of
sports memorabilia to fetch over $1 million at auction, and
some industry experts believe it could make sports memorabilia
history as the most expensive single item ever sold.

Said
to be "simply the finest piece of sports memorabilia in
the world" by SportsCards Plus President David Kohler,
the bat will be put up for auction after resting undisturbed
for the past eight decades.
"It is unanimous. The authenticity, provenance, and condition
are beyond reproach. Virtually everyone who sees it is simply
blown away, not only by the mere existence of the bat, but also
by its incredible beauty. It has a definite aura about it. We
are very excited about partnering with Sotheby’s to sell this
remarkable treasure."

SportsCards Plus Auction Director Dan Imler, said, "It
is hard to put a value on an item of such singular importance.
Ruth was a man of mythic proportions. More than any other man,
he transcended sports, achieving a nearly unrivaled status as
an American icon. This bat, the ultimate tool of his trade,
is the finest sports artifact we’ll see in our lifetime."

Marsha Malinowski, Senior Vice President of Sotheby’s, added,
"This bat christened Yankee Stadium "The House that
Ruth Built" making it one of the most exciting pieces of
sports memorabilia history ever to be auctioned. Sotheby’s is
thrilled to be involved with a sale of this magnitude."

THE OPENING DAY HOME RUN
The Babe’s spectacular home run in Yankee Stadium’s first game
is often recalled as one of the most dramatic moments in sport’s
history. Known as "The House that Ruth Bui lt," the
most revered venue in sports, Yankee Stadium opened amidst great
fanfare with a game against the Boston Red Sox that historic
day. An unprecedented crowd of 74,000 were on hand with nearly
25,000 more fans being turned away at the gates. All eyes were
on the great Bambino, who upon emerging from the clubhouse and
taking the field for the first time, proclaimed "This is
some ball yard!" Prior to the game, Ruth set the stage
with his famous quote, "I’d give a year of my life if I
could hit a home run in this new park." In the third inning,
Ruth, true to form, gave the fans and the rest of the world
exactly what they wanted with a blistering line drive shot into
the right field bleachers. The jubilant crowd erupted as Ruth
rounded the bases, completing the baptism of Yankee Stadium
in storybook fashion. "The House that Ruth Built"
has since been the home of 25 championship teams and 98 World
Series games in the 20th century.

To
many, he was "The Sultan of Swat," the "Bambino."
To his teammates, he was "Bam" and "Jidge."
Regardless of his current handle, fans, peers, and historians
alike remember Babe Ruth as a larger-than-life figure whose
charisma and unequaled prowess on the baseball diamond propelled
him to a level of popularity in American society that had never
before been realized.

Ruth’s majestic home run on the Grand Opening of Yankee Stadium
marked the beginning of an era. The three-run blast propelled
the Yankees to a 4-1 victory that afternoon, prompting legendary
sportswriter Fred Lieb to dub the newly built park, "The
House that Ruth Built."

"Once the Babe homered, the fans cheered forever,"
said Bob Shawkey, the winning pitcher that afternoon. "Can
you imagine anyone paying attention to me that day? Babe owned
the day. That was just fine; he was born to be in the spotlight.
It was his day from beginning to end."

The Yankees’ opponent that day, the Red Sox, have entertained
a less enchanting run through the past 80 years, making this
bat a tangible artifact relating to a popular bit of Boston
folklore known as "The Curse of The Bambino."

THE
HISTORY OF THE BAT SINCE APRIL 18, 1923

After his home run, Ruth, always supportive of kids and young
ball players, donated the bat to The Los Angeles Evening Herald

newspaper to be awarded as the top prize in a high school home
run hitting contest. On the bat, the Babe inscribed, "To
the Boy Home Run King of Los Angeles ‘Babe’ Ruth, N.Y. May 7,
1923." The bat was awarded to Victor Orsatti by the Los
Angeles Herald on June 7, 1923. Upon his death in 1984, Mr.
Orsatti willed the bat, along with all of his personal effects,
to his caretaker. She kept it in her possession, under her bed,
until now. Together with the bat is a telegram from Ruth congratulating
Orsatti on his win as well as an album of newspaper cuttings
and other mementoes relating to the contest.

Two months prior to Ruth’s passing, he returned to Yankee Stadium
for the last time on June 13, 1948 for the park’s 25th anniversary.
Frail and ailing with throat cancer, the weakened Ruth was announced
by Mel Allen to a raucous ovation. Draped in his old uniform,
he struggled over to a microphone near home plate using a bat
as a cane, while the crowd of 49,647 sang "Auld Lang Syne".
In a gravelly voice the Babe proclaimed how proud he was to
have hit the first homer in Yankee Stadium and ad ded "…lord
knows who’ll hit the last".

OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
Additional highlights of the December auction will feature Mickey
Mantle’s First Major League Home Run Baseball, Lou Gehrig’s
1936 New York Yankees Signed Contract from his MVP Season, Ball
Hit by Ruth for his 48th Home Run of the 1927 Season (inscribed),
the largest signed Babe Ruth photo known to exist (1920) and
an Exceptional Signed Mickey Mantle Game Used Bat, circa 1958.
Items from other sought after players such as Ty Cobb, Yogi
Berra, Derek Jeter and other New York baseball greats will also
be offered in this extraordinary multimillion dollar sale. Sotheby’s
and SportsCards Plus are still accepting consignments for the
auction through September 1st.

For more information visit WWW.SOTHEBYS.COM

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