This lot is closed. Bidding ended on 5/26/2016.
One of baseball’s greatest players that played behind the dish, Roy Campanella was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1969. Campanella was named National League MVP three times during his career and won a World Series championship in 1955. Campanella and the Dodgers reached the World Series in 1952, but fell to the New York Yankees. During this season, Campanella had 22 home runs and 97 RBI. Campanella has his No. 39 retired by the Dodgers franchise. On the front left tail reads, “R. Campanella 52” embroidered in blue chain-stitching. Inside on the rear collar is a “Rawlings” manufacturer’s tag with a size “44” flag tag attached. Across the chest reads, “Dodgers” and on the back is the player number “39”. These are done in blue felt lettering. The player number “39” appears on the front in red felt lettering. All numbering and lettering are sewn directly onto the cream-colored flannel jersey. This jersey is properly tagged, was presented to us as game-used and in our opinion, shows outstanding use. The inside front area surrounding the red felt “39” shows some slight red color transfer from the numbers. This is attributed to heat, moisture, and surface contact with the chest protector worn by Campanella. As a point of reference, Campanella caught 1,057.2 innings in 1952. The wear to the fabric of the body is uniform. There are vertical friction induced abrasions between the numerals on the back, and this would be consistent with surface wear and contact with the center rear strap of a catcher's chest protector. These position specific attributes make this one of the best Campanella's in the hobby.