This lot is closed. Bidding ended on 6/12/2023.
Though he was posthumously inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2001, Hilton Smith's Negro Leagues prowess has largely been overlooked in favor of his more flamboyant Kansas City Monarchs teammate, Satchel Paige. Considered a better hitter than Paige and as good as, if not better than, his Hall of Fame teammate on the mound, Smith never played in the Major Leagues, retiring in 1948 at age 41, a year after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier. This is a rare single-signed baseball and very rare in this condition as the Official International League baseball features a large signature in blue ballpoint pen on the sweet spot and has been graded an 8 by PSA. Smith played all but two of his professional games with the Monarchs, accumulating a 70-39 record with a career 2.89 ERA. Accompanied by a full LOA from PSA.