Walter Johnson Signed 1920’s Baseball With Beckett COA

From 1904 to 1907, Nick Altrock was one of the best pitchers in baseball as he helped lead the Chicago White Sox to the World Series in 1906. The great Walter Johnson debuted for the Washington Senators in 1907 and quickly took the reigns as the top hurler in the American League. Unfortunately, an arm injury derailed Altrocks pitching career. By 1909 he found himself sharing the same dugout as The Big Train, initially as a player and eventually in a pitcher/pinch-hitter/coaching role for the Sens a tenure that lasted until 1953! Together, the two men shared in the glory of Washington winning the World Series in 1924, a dominant campaign for Johnson in which he went 23-7 and was named AL MVP.

Single-signed Walter Johnson balls are extremely hard to come by, yet this Johnson/Altrock pairing measures up to most with each fountain pen autograph displaying separately. On a side panel, Walters is a clearly legible 5/10. Altrock took the sweet spot with a solid 6/10 in our book. According to noted Spalding historian Jeff Mann, the Spalding Official League baseball dates to the 1917-21 era. Its rubber core and horsehide components are identical to Official National League balls from 1878-1911.

The provenance of this ball is intriguing. Our consignors grandmother, born in the late 1800s, was an avid baseball fan from New England area who attended many Boston Red Sox games as a kid with her father. Includes LOA from Beckett.

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