Shoeless Joe Jackson’s $1M bat “Black Betsy” was hand-carved by a fan in 1903
In 1903, a 15-year-old Shoeless Joe Jackson didn’t own a proper bat. A local furniture maker in Greenville, South Carolina - a fan impressed by the boy’s raw talent - hand-carved one from hickory and stained it dark with tobacco juice.
Jackson nicknamed it Black Betsy, and carried it from mill-town diamonds into the Major Leagues, even sending it back to Louisville Slugger in 1911 for repairs so he could keep swinging it.
After his death, the bat stayed in the family until 2001, when it sold for $577,610 - the most expensive bat in history at the time.
Today, it would likely sell for well over $1M.
In 1903, a 15-year-old Shoeless Joe Jackson didn’t own a proper bat. A local furniture maker in Greenville, South Carolina - a fan impressed by the boy’s raw talent - hand-carved one from hickory and stained it dark with tobacco juice.
Jackson nicknamed it Black Betsy, and carried it from mill-town diamonds into the Major Leagues, even sending it back to Louisville Slugger in 1911 for repairs so he could keep swinging it.
After his death, the bat stayed in the family until 2001, when it sold for $577,610 - the most expensive bat in history at the time.
Today, it would likely sell for well over $1M.
Shoeless Joe Jackson’s $1M bat “Black Betsy” was hand-carved by a fan in 1903 🤯
In 1903, a 15-year-old Shoeless Joe Jackson didn’t own a proper bat. A local furniture maker in Greenville, South Carolina - a fan impressed by the boy’s raw talent - hand-carved one from hickory and stained it dark with tobacco juice.
Jackson nicknamed it Black Betsy, and carried it from mill-town diamonds into the Major Leagues, even sending it back to Louisville Slugger in 1911 for repairs so he could keep swinging it.
After his death, the bat stayed in the family until 2001, when it sold for $577,610 - the most expensive bat in history at the time.
Today, it would likely sell for well over $1M.
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