On Saturday, Alex Rodriguez became the youngest player to reach 500 home runs, Barry Bonds tied Hank Aaron when he hit his 755th career home run and last night Tom Glavine joined the 300-win club at Wrigley Field. What are mementos from these events worth? Since Bonds just tied the record it will take his record-breaking 756th home run to matter. The bat and ball from the record-breaker, A-Rod's bat and ball and Glavine's 300th win baseball will be sold to the highest bidder this year. Bond's 756th home run ball should fetch from $400,000 to $500,000 but 10 years ago (in the pre-steroid Bonds accusations era) it would have sold for a cool million. Since A-Rod's 500th home run has been exceeded by several sluggers with Jim Thome (499) and Manny Ramirez (489) soon to join him, it won't be worth as much as Bond's record breaking ball. Tom Glavine was preceded by 22 other pitchers, 4 left-handers, so his ball won't be as valuable as Bonds' ball either...
How quickly values change when it comes to milestones. When Mark McGwire hit his 70th record-breaking home run, that ball sold for $3 million. The alleged use of steroid-like (andro) supplements by McGwire started the slide for sports memorabilia. Says David Kohler of SCP Auctions, "The economy can change very quickly." Kohler told New York Post business reporter Richard Wilner "the market is very fickle for recent sports memorabilia." A ball signed by Yankees ace Chien-Ming Wang can sell for up to $300, double the price of a signed ball by former Yankees Hall of Famer Yogi Berra but the Wang ball is not a good investment because its worth can drop quickly...
The value of some baseball memorabilia are safe bets for investors. A game bat used by Babe Ruth or a Honus Wagner card fit that category. They have and will continue to rise in value over the years and appear to be immune to a volatile and fickle market. Gee I wonder what the Shea Stadium Big Apple that bobs up and down after a Met hits a home run will be worth if they don't bring it to the Mets new Citifield in 2009???
10 Timeline Memories:
- 1890] One down, 510 to go: The great Cy Young makes his debut a successful one, pitching a 3-hit shutout. What would that ball be worth???
- 1890] Guilty as charged: Convicted murderer William Kemmler becomes the 1st person to be executed in the electric chair. The execution takes place at Auburn State Prison (NY)...
- 1926] In the swim: Gertrude Ederle becomes the 1st American woman to swim the English Channel. The 19-year old completes her swim in 14 1/2 hours...
- 1945] Dropping A bomb: The Enola Gay, an American B-29 bomber drops the 1st atomic bomb. The bomb, nicknamed "Little Boy" is dropped over the center of Hiroshima, Japan. An estimated 140,000 people are killed...
- 1965] No exceptions to the rule: President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the "Voting Rights Act" giving every American the right to vote by law with no exceptions...
- 1973] Rock & Roll Wreck: Stevie Wonder is seriously injured in a car accident, slipping into a 4-day coma before recovering. Stevie was not driving...
- 1978] "Happy Trails": Pope Paul VI dies from a massive heart attack at 80...1986] William J. Schroeder dies after living 620 days with the Jarvik-7 man-made heart. He was the world's longest surviving recipient of a permanent artificial heart. Schroeder was 54...1991] "60 Minutes" mainstay Harry Reasoner dies from a blood clot in his brain at 68...2004] Rick James dies of a heart attack at 56...
- 1989] Hang 'em High: The Red Sox retire Carl Yastrzemski's #8 uniform number at Fenway Park. On October 1, 1983, Yaz was given a 'day' for him to announce his retirement. Here are some snaps from that day: http://youtube.com/watch?v=k9GQ74SKAqk ...
- 1997] Wedding Bells: Apple Computer and Microsoft agree to share technology in a deal giving Microsoft a stake in Apple's Survival...
- 2005] Anti-War Protest: Activist Cindy Sheehan, whose soldier-son Casey is killed in Iraq, begins a weeks-long protest outside President Bush's ranch in Texas...
Music Memories:
- 1960] On American Bandstand: This is a monumental day on AE as Chubby Checker lip-synchs "The Twist" and a new dance sensation is born. Here's Chubby on Dick Clark's Saturday Night Show: http://youtube.com/watch?v=OvvUKFCIVOg ...
- 1965] Released on this date: "Help" LP - Beatles...
- 1970] At Shea Stadium: Janis Joplin, Paul Simon, Steppenwolf and Johnny Winter perform in an anti-war festival... [To ensure accuracy of dates and content, multiple reference sources are used in each timeline]...
Commentary...
Len Zola wants to make clear that it is Media Gang member Len Lawrence who should get credit for that great new version of "We Didn't Start The Fire" video included in Friday's MPR. Consider it done, Len...
"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":
Soleil Moon (31), Geri "Ginger Spice" Halliwell (35), M. Night Shyamalan (37), Mike Greenburg (of "Mike & Mike")(40), David "The Admiral" Robinson (42), Peter Bonerz (69) and Abbey Lincoln (77)...
Timeline Countdown: 28 days until Labor Day and 31 days until the NFL opener...
