Game used bat, used by a second player

I’ve never posted here before, and I would be thrilled if you guys could take a moment to give me your opinion on a game used bat related question.

I recently read Joe Orlando’s article “The Five Most Frequently Asked Questions About Professional Model Game Used Bats”. In the article Mr. Orlando addresses the topic of players using other players bats. He states that use was typically limited to a brief period, and that if a player liked the bat they would typically order a bat for themselves matching the original bat’s specifications.

Having said that, there is an order in Charlie Gehringer’s bat ordering records showing that he ordered bats for himself based off of a Babe Herman model bat which was returned to the Louisville Sugger factory in 1937. Charlie Gehringer and Babe Herman were teammates on the Detroit Tigers in 1937, and my assumption based on this information is that Gehringer likely used Herman’s bat at some point while they were teammates, Gehringer presumably liked the bat, and knew that Herman had sent the bat in question back to the factory after it eventually became cracked from use. Subsequently Gehringer ordered Bats for himself as a result.

I happen to own the Babe Herman bat off of which Gehringer ordered his own copies. The bat is factory side written, and the writing on the bat is still clear and legible. It bears the date of return (matching the notation in Gehringer’s ordering record), player name (Babe Herman), and team information (Detroit American League).

Based on all of this information, would it be reasonable to think that the Babe Herman bat I own was used (although briefly) by his teammate Charlie Gehringer, thus resulting in Gehringer ordering his own copies?

I don't have an answer for you but it sounds like an incredible bat! Any pictures?

Attachment 89210

heres a pic of Roberto Clemente circa 1960's

In 1966, when Braves pitcher Tony Cloninger hit 2 grand slams in one game, he was using an H&B bat of teammate Denis Menke. This was on display quite a few years ago at Cooperstown.


Dave Miedema


https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/uvYAA...pR/s-l1600.jpg

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Originally Posted by kvothe.tk

Based on all of this information, would it be reasonable to think that the Babe Herman bat I own was used (although briefly) by his teammate Charlie Gehringer, thus resulting in Gehringer ordering his own copies?

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I would say that its probably a solid theory at least.

Additionally, even though one player using anther players bat usually happens for a small period of time before they order a similar bat. I have seen as recently as last season where one player used another players bat for nearly the entire season.

In 2017 Eric Hosmer of the Royals used teammate Mike Moustakas bats in nearly every at bat throughout the season. Eric never ordered his own bats based off of Moustakas bats. He almost exclusively used Moustakas bats with Mike Moustakas name label and handle knob decal with Moustakas' #8 on it. The main difference in the bats was that the ones Hosmer used were generally all black, while the ones that Moustakas used were nearly always natural handle/ black barrel. Hosmer would also use Lizard Skin on the handle and use a lot of pine tar while Moustakas didn't use Lizard Skin and used very little pine tar.

Guess my point here is that perhaps looking at any use traits the two players had would help you to determine which player used the bat for sure, or if both players maybe used the bat.

I have an Eddie Murray bat that was used by Chris Gwynn (Tony's little brother.) He got it when they were both with the Dodgers and Chris brought it down to Albuquerque (then LA's AAA team) where my friend who worked for the Dukes got it... sadly I have no idea if Eddie actually used it first or Chris just took a new one from Eddie.

Attachment 89227Heres a pic of Richie Hebner using a Manny Sanguillen bat.

Attachment 89441
Heres a cropped shot of Gene Alleys 1968 Sports Illustrated poster showing him using a Manny Mota bat

I don't remember the exact year, but in the mid-1980s, when they were Cubs teammates, Ryne Sandberg used a Davey Lopes Rawlings/Adirondack bat.
I owned one such bat over 30 years ago.

Dave Miedema

heres some shots of a Clemente /Groat bat signed by GroatAttachment 89462Attachment 89463