Brooklyn Dodgers Baseball Signed By Robinson & Cobb
Watch
HOST: America's love of baseball goes back to the late 1800s, but until Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in the major leagues in 1947, teams and fans were mostly segregated. From 1920 to the early 1960s, teams of African American and Latino players participated in what is now called the Negro Leagues. The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City has an amazing collection that showcases the legacy of black athletes' contributions to the sport before and after integration. Leila, there are so many amazing things to see here at the museum, but this ball is absolutely a standout. Tell me about this.
APPRAISER:
This ball dates from 1953. We have four 1953 Dodgers on here. We have Jackie Robinson, we have Roy Campanella, we have Joe Black and we have Junior Gilliam. All of them had gotten their start in the Negro Leagues before they were signed by the Dodgers. With the integration of Major League Baseball, it took a lot of the best Negro League players out of the mix and into the major leagues. Consequently, they lost a lot of their following. By the early '60s, the Negro Leagues were no more. In 1953, the Dodgers played the Cubs at Wrigley Field. John Moore, Jackie Robinson's friend, happened to be there that day and he had all four of them sign. These gentlemen were all true pioneers. You have Jackie Robinson, after he left the military in 1945, he actually signed with the Kansas City Monarchs, one of the greatest Negro League teams, and played with them for a season. April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson became the first black ballplayer to play for a major league team in the modern era and had a phenomenal career. Then you've got Roy Campanella. He came up with the Dodgers in 1948 and made an immediate impact. He is considered today one of the greatest offensive and defensive catchers of all time. Then you have Joe Black, not as well known but Rookie of the Year in 1952 for the Dodgers. And then we have Junior Gilliam, who had a great career for the Dodgers and went on to coach for them until he passed away in 1978. In 1953, the Dodgers had the most black players on their team. They had the four players and five, if you included Don Newcombe, who was in military service at that time. There were 16 major league teams in 1953. Only eight of them were integrated. It took until 1959 for the major leagues to be fully integrated, with Pumpsie Green going to the Red Sox.
HOST: Tell me about the other name on the ball.
APPRAISER:
On the other side, we have Ty Cobb.
HOST: Which some people would say is very ironic because there are many who have said that he was somewhat of a bigot.
APPRAISER:
That's right, Mark. I mean, Ty Cobb, one of the greatest players of all time from the Dead Ball era, his career is 1905 to 1928, and one of the most controversial as well. To see him here at this ballgame is fascinating. We know that John Moore went to Ty Cobb, who was sitting in the stands. He had Cobb sign the ball. We assume that after that, he went to the four Dodgers-- Robinson, Campanella, Black and Gilliam-- and had them all sign the ball. I've never seen this combination of signatures before, and I'd place an insurance value of $15,000 on the ball. The true value here is the history that it represents and symbolizes in being the transition from the Negro Leagues to the integrated major leagues.
HOST: Absolutely, and this is just one of the amazing things to see here at the museum, and thanks for sharing it with us.
APPRAISER:
Oh, happy to be here.
Appraisal Details
Executive producer Marsha Bemko shares her tips for getting the most out of ANTIQUES ROADSHOW.
Value can change: The value of an item is dependent upon many things, including the condition of the object itself, trends in the market for that kind of object, and the location where the item will be sold. These are just some of the reasons why the answer to the question "What's it worth?" is so often "It depends."
Note the date: Take note of the date the appraisal was recorded. This information appears in the upper left corner of the page, with the label "Appraised On." Values change over time according to market forces, so the current value of the item could be higher, lower, or the same as when our expert first appraised it.
Context is key: Listen carefully. Most of our experts will give appraisal values in context. For example, you'll often hear them say what an item is worth "at auction," or "retail," or "for insurance purposes" (replacement value). Retail prices are different from wholesale prices. Often an auctioneer will talk about what she knows best: the auction market. A shop owner will usually talk about what he knows best: the retail price he'd place on the object in his shop. And though there are no hard and fast rules, an object's auction price can often be half its retail value; yet for other objects, an auction price could be higher than retail. As a rule, however, retail and insurance/replacement values are about the same.
Verbal approximations: The values given by the experts on ANTIQUES ROADSHOW are considered "verbal approximations of value." Technically, an "appraisal" is a legal document, generally for insurance purposes, written by a qualified expert and paid for by the owner of the item. An appraisal usually involves an extensive amount of research to establish authenticity, provenance, composition, method of construction, and other important attributes of a particular object.
Opinion of value: As with all appraisals, the verbal approximations of value given at ROADSHOW events are our experts' opinions formed from their knowledge of antiques and collectibles, market trends, and other factors. Although our valuations are based on research and experience, opinions can, and sometimes do, vary among experts.
Appraiser affiliations: Finally, the affiliation of the appraiser may have changed since the appraisal was recorded. To see current contact information for an appraiser in the ROADSHOW Archive, click on the link below the appraiser's picture. Our Appraiser Index also contains a complete list of active ROADSHOW appraisers and their contact details and biographies.
