This lot is closed. Bidding ended on 12/4/2008.
One of the most storied teams in the history of baseball and arguably the greatest team to ever take the field, the 1927 Yankees roster featured an unprecedented roster of six Hall of Famers: Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Tony Lazzeri, Waite Hoyt, Earle Combs and Herb Pennock. Known as "Murderer's Row," six Yankees batted over .300 that year: Gehrig (.373), Ruth, Lazzeri, Combs, Meusel and Paschal. Winning 110 games, a record setting performance at the time, they went on to beat the Pirates 4-0 in the World Series. 1927 is also the year that Babe Ruth hit 60 home runs, a record that would last for decades before Roger Maris hit 61 in 1961. Just think that in 1909, Ty Cobb had led the A.L. in home runs with a whopping total of nine! This large black and white photo measures 16” x 20” and is mounted to wood. It pictures the 1927 Yankees World Championship team, including Ruth and Gehrig. Minor paper loss with some wrinkling throughout, two mounting holes on the upper corners, overall EX condition with remnants of blue paint from the Stadium's walls. What makes this particular photo unique is that, as our consignor advises, for decades it hung in Yankee Stadium, ostensibly in or near the locker room. Subsequent to its hanging, players would touch Ruth or Gehrig with their thumb, for good luck, as they emerged to approach the field. Fingerprints can be clearly seen on Ruth’s chest, with some discoloration from the constant and countless “thumbing.” Who knows how many legendary Yankee thumbs are intimately familiar with this photo, from Joe DiMaggio to Mickey Mantle to Roger Maris and beyond. Wow!