Lot # 287: Superb 1936 Lou Gehrig & Joe DiMaggio “ROOKIE” PSA Type 1 Encapsulated Associated Press Photo – Taken on March 16, 1936 during Spring Training - March 2, 1936! - Measures Approx. 6-5/8” x 8-1/4”

Category: Photos

Starting Bid: $500.00

Bids: 26 (Bid History)

Time Left: Auction closed
Lot / Auction Closed




This lot is closed. Bidding is not allowed.

Item was in Auction "Spring 2021 Rarities Auction",
which ran from 2/27/2021 10:00 AM to
3/20/2021 7:00 PM




(LOT 287)
Superb 1936 Lou Gehrig & Joe DiMaggio "ROOKIE" PSA Type 1 Encapsulated Associated Press Photo – Taken on March 16, 1936 during Spring Training - March 2, 1936! - Measures Approx. 6-5/8" x 8-1/4"

By the time the 1936 season commenced, Babe Ruth was long gone from the New York Yankees, with the "Iron Horse", Henry Louis Gehrig, left to toe the line for the storied New York franchise. Fortunately for the Bronx Bombers, a young rookie sensation from the San Francisco Seals was tearing up the Pacific Coast League the past two seasons including a record 61-game consecutive game hitting streak, with this superstar batter being the iconic Joseph Paul DiMaggio. Indeed, the 1936 season would mark the unprecedented emergence of the immortal "Joltin" Joe DiMaggio, and the highly touted Yankee rookie sensation would certainly not disappoint his newly fascinated fan base, clouting 29 round trippers and knocking in 125 runs while leading the Bronx Bombers to their first World Championship in four years. Teaming up with the iconic Lou Gehrig to form a dynamic slugging duo, the "Iron Horse" would add 49 dingers, 152 R.B.I.'s, an amazing 1.174 OPS and a sensational .354 batting average to claim the American league's MVP that 1936 campaign.

This absolutely remarkable 6-5/8" x 8-1/4" 1936 offering portrays the 21-year old Yankee Clipper kneeling alongside the iconic Yankee captain Lou Gehrig in a leisurely moment during their Spring Training tour in St. Petersburg, FL. Taken on March 16, 1936, it arguably resides as the earliest known image of Joe DiMaggio taken with his hallowed teammate Lou Gehrig, truly standing as a landmark Yankee Clipper rookie photo. Other than some stray light wrinkles, the classic illustration is in stellar condition, exhibiting world-class contrast and clarity as both Cooperstown inductees don their classic Yankee pinstripes while Gehrig also sports a period-style windbreaker jacket. The verso includes a faint Associated Press credit stamp as well as a clipped newspaper caption that is stamped MAR. 16, 1936, reading as follows: "It took Lou Gehrig (left) to get a smile out of Joe DiMaggio, ace rookie of the Yankees up this season from San Francisco. DiMaggio has earned a reputation in training camp for being caught very rarely with a smile. Maybe the former sensational outfielder of the Coast league has just discovered his prospects are looking up."

Well, that last sentence turned out to be the "understatement of the century" for "Joltin Joe", along with Ty Cobb and Willie Mays, is widely regarded as one of the three greatest centerfielders in baseball history. In 1969, sportswriters voted DiMaggio the greatest living ballplayer; with that being no small feat considering Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Mickey Mantle, Ted Williams and Stan Musial were all alive when that renowned vote was cast. We cannot imagine any player who commanded the unparalleled respect of this baseball icon, who via his incredible baseball prowess and marriage to Hollywood bombshell Marilyn Monroe, will forever stand as an embodiment of a National hero. Add in the fact that the incomparable Henry Louis Gehrig is situated right alongside DiMaggio, with these two dynamos pacing the Yankees to four consecutive World Championships from 1936-1939!

MIN BID $500
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