(LOT 304)
1941 World Series – Commissioner Judge Landis Throws Out the "First Pitch" - Original PSA Type 1 Encapsulated Underwood & Stratton Photo - Measures Approx. 8" x 10"
LANDIS FIRST PITCH!!!... The 1941 Fall Classic would see the New York Yankees best their cross-town rivals the Brooklyn Dodgers in five games, with the opening game played on October 1, 1941 at Yankee Stadium. The immortal baseball commissioner Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis would throw out the first pitch before game one, with Landis in the midst of serving his 21st season as our National Pastime's commissioner (Landis would ultimately end his 24-year tenure after the 1944 campaign). This esteemed 8" x 10" Underwood & Stratton PSA Type 1 offering reveals Landis about to toss that first ball in his formal attire, as he cocks his right arm backwards for the historic throw. Other than a few stray light scratches barely visible to the naked eye, no noteworthy blemishes are apparent, with the world-class contrast and resolution literally stealing the show.

The verso includes a pencil notation indicating Landis is throwing the first ball of the '41 World Series, with the critical Underwood & Stratton credit stamp situated in the middle of the photo. Landis Type 1 images are few and far between, and he doesn't require any introduction as to his immense impact on baseball due to previously banning eight White Sox players (including "Shoeless Joe" Jackson) for "throwing" the 1919 Fall Classic. In lieu of banning these eight "Black Sox" players, Landis would release this legendary statement that stands the test of time: "Regardless of the verdict of juries, no player who throws a baseball game, no player who undertakes or promises to throw a baseball game, no player that sits in conference with a bunch of crooked gamblers where the ways and means of throwing a game are discussed and does not promptly tell his club about it, will ever play professional baseball".

MIN BID $100
_