(LOT 1747)
Johnny Bench Signed Near-Mint/Mint Target Model Mitt USA – Signed "Johnny Bench -#5" - TRISTAR/Fanatics Certification #8302683 – Includes Both the Premium & Inscription TRISTAR Tickets
Considered by most historians as baseball's greatest all-time catcher, Johnny Bench played his entire 17 years in the Queen City, leading the Reds to two consecutive World Championships (1975/'76), belting 389 lifetime homers, and being selected to 13 consecutive NL All-Star teams (1968-'80). The Cooperstown Inductee's combined offensive and defensive dominance placed him as one of baseball's finest players of the 1970s, with Bench capturing two MVP Awards in 1970 and 1972 as well as claiming the World Series MVP in 1976, when his two home runs and incredible .533 average spearheaded Cincinnati to a four-game sweep over the Yankees. His unparalleled catching prowess is truly rekindled via this ultra-scarce c.1970s Johnny Bench "Target" model mitt that has been signed "Johnny Bench - #5" in bold black Sharpie.

Al Campanis, the former general manager of the Dodgers, thought that sewing a strip of material painted fluorescent orange around the perimeter of a catcher's mitt would provide a better target for pitchers, and Rawlings went ahead and manufactured and patented his clever idea. It caught on among various catchers, including Johnny Bench on occasion. This Near-Mint/Mint and extremely rare USA K3 Johnny Bench version was top of the line for just two years (1977-'78), when an unsigned example sold for $65 (the equivalent of $320 today). Recently signed at the 2022 Atlantic City National directly across the fluorescent orange surface, Johnny Bench himself marveled at the immaculate condition of this extremely scarce mitt. A spectacular display piece from arguably the greatest catcher in history, the critical TRISTAR sticker is affixed within the mitt's lower interior portion. - TRISTAR/Fanatics Certification #8302683 – Includes both the Premium & Inscription TRISTAR Autograph Tickets

MIN BID $300
__