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Original Article Posted July 14, 2010

We’ve come across plenty of unusual Official Major League Baseballs recently, and this entry to the collection is no exception. Presented below is a multi-color laced (red and blue) Spalding American League Baseball – not Reach – bearing the stamped signature of Joseph Cronin.

What’s even more perplexing is the text around the Spalding stamp. “The 5x Center,” what in the world does that mean?

Spalding American League Cronin Ball with multi-colored laces and "The 5X Center" Stamp

Reverse side of the Spalding American League Cronin 5X Ball

Could this have been a prototype baseball, or even an actual gamer? It certainly shows game use, and it did come from the estate of late Boston Red Sox executive vice president Dick O’Connell, who served in that role for the organization from 1961-1977. He also was the Sox general manager from ’65 – ’77, or so Wikipedia tells us. So there’s plenty of evidence that suggests these baseballs were at least on the field at some point during the late ’60s to early ’70s.

But it’s still likely that these 5X balls were nothing more than a failed experiment. Perhaps tested in spring training or batting practice. Or maybe they were a success? Any changes made to the design of the ball, such as the rubber pill at its core, could have taken place the following year, and would have never effected the outside of the game ball…

As far as these specific balls being used in Official MLB games, that’s still doubtful. Cronin was president of the AL from 1959-1973. Certainly well outside of the red and blue stitched Reach American League Baseball era – which included baseballs like this 1930s Harridge Reach example pictured on the right.

Additionally, lone Spalding stamps did not appear on American League baseballs until the 1975 season, which falls within the Lee MacPhail AL presidency. Though it’s possible that Spalding stamped their experimental baseballs with the regular NL and corporate Spalding stamp well before the Reach label was abandoned; the Spalding Orange Baseballs featured in this Big League Baseballs exclusive Charles O. Finley article are another example.

Spalding Feeney National League Baseball Yellow Laced 5X Center

There is no information about “The 5X Center” available on the web, and we don’t own a library card. So as usual we’re forced to speculate about these rare and very special baseballs.

One thing is for sure, we’ve only seen two of these, both used, and we’ve also seen the 5X Spalding stamp on a Charles Feeney National League ball (pictured on the left), which sold on Ebay several years ago for a nice chunk of change. Wish we were willing to splurge back then.

So if you have any information about these baseballs, feel free to post on the Big League Baseballs Forum or leave a comment in the section below (either way, you’ll need to sign up on the main site or in the Forum).

In the coming weeks, we’ll delve deep into the history of Official Game Balls, and take a look at the very first versions of Major League’s Official Game Ball. We’ll also be offering our loyal readers and forum members the chance to purchase a few extremely rare, impossible to find Official Game Baseballs from… 2010.

UPDATED INFORMATION:

A member of Big League Baseballs Forum sent us the following picture of another 5X Spalding Major League Baseball. This is the second Feeney version we’ve seen, the first is the gold-laced ball picture above. This, like our AL Cronin, has red and blue laces, and is clearly used. Most interesting is the description that came with the ball – originally sold by the Cincinnati Reds team store:

1972 Spalding National League Feeney Red Blue Laced

“Super Scarce Rare 1972 Official Major League “CHARLES FEENEY” Baseball that is still contained in its original packaging bag from the Cincinnati Reds. This genuine National League Baseball was obtained at the Reds Gift Shop in 1972. According to the Cincinnati Reds COA it reads “This to certify that the enclosed 5-X Experimental Baseball is one of a small number produced in 1972 for Major League Baseball. This Baseball, however, was found to be to lively & exceeded maximum velocity restrictions. It’s manufacture was discontinued. This is one of twelve 5-X Baseball being made available to collectors.” This Baseball has multi-colored stitching.”

Forgot to add this post, from the forum Net54Baseball (a great vintage baseball card collectors site with an equally informative baseball memorabilia forum section):

From poster “sphere and ash”: The 5x baseball, so called because it was 5% livelier, was an experimental baseball. It was used during spring training in 1970 and discontinued because of concerns over the safety of both players and fans. Cronin, whose stamp appears on the ball, referred to the 5x derisively as Bowie Kuhn’s “little experiment,” and said, “I’ve seen enough of it. It should be outlawed.”

I own both American and National League 5x balls. The National League ball’s stitches are one color, though lighter than typical. Red and blue stitches would let players and umpires identify the ball immediately–an important design element given potential safety concerns.

So that should help end some of the speculation as the use of these baseballs. We’ve heard similar explanations before, so I’m comfortable saying all of these versions were experimental and used for testing. We’ve also heard that some may have been tested in spring training games.

Dennis Schrader’s baseball shrine: Prepare to enter  “Little Cooperstown,”  the world’s largest known collection of autographed Major League Baseballs.

The largest collection of autographed baseballs in the world (as recognized by Guinness World Records) is not in Cooperstown, New York, it is at “Little Cooperstown,” in Odessa Florida.

It all began for Dennis Schrader when he was 9 years old and accompanied a friend to the spring training site for the Yankees.  He was sitting in the dugout, taking in the sights and holding a baseball that he picked up after it rolled near him, when number “7″ came out of the Yankee clubhouse and addressed the young Dennis “the Menace” as he is now known.  The young man found the courage to ask “the Mick” for an autograph; from that moment on Dennis was hooked.

Dennis has autographed baseballs from everybody in the Hall of Fame; autographs from .400 hitters; the members of the 300 Win Club; the members of the 500 Home Run Club; and almost any other club in baseball you can think of.   When asked if there was anybody he was still looking to get on a baseball, Dennis simply answered “no.”  He recalls searching long and hard for a Pud Galvin baseball to finish up his 300 Win Club. Now he has them all.

Dennis is still adding to his collection but most people are not going to be able to offer him anything he doesn’t already have.  Every year there are new prospects to get (yup, he already has Bryce Harper), so he continues to get those guys but at this point, with over 4,300 baseballs, the collection kind of feeds off itself.  It is not uncommon for people to contact Dennis and offer him baseballs or for young players to ask to be part of his collection. Presently, Dennis is getting autographs on baseballs of various celebrities and public figures: Obama, check. Palin, check. John Wayne, John Trovolta, check and check. You name it and there is a good chance he has it.

1939 Hall of Fame Inductees - The 1st Class

Among some of Dennis’ more impressive signed baseballs is a multi-signed baseball from the first Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in 1939.  All 11 players present and alive (Lou Gehrig was alive but not present because of his health) signed the ball.  There is a beautiful single signed “Shoeless” Joe Jackson ball.  Signed “Shoeless” Joe baseballs are incredibly hard to find.  He did not sign many baseballs because he was illiterate and actually had to learn to sign his name to cash his paychecks.

There is a Joe DiMaggio/Marilyn Monroe duel signed baseball; which is one of only two known to exist.  The other sold in 2006 for $191,000.00.  There are multiple Babe Ruth signed baseballs ranging from an early smaller signature to the more prominent and recognized big full signature that Ruth used in his prime.

Spalding Yellow National League Baseball signed by the 1939 Brooklyn Dodgers

Of particular interest to fans of Big League Baseballs is a Yellow National League Ford Frick ball signed by the 1939 Brooklyn Dodgers.  These yellow baseballs were in Major League games for a short time because the lights at Ebbets Field were so bad.

Part of the collection at Little Cooperstown focuses on the Negro League Players, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League Players, owners, coaches and broadcasters.  Every group is represented.  Dennis and his obviously supportive wife, Mary, display parts of the collection every year at Tropicana Field during the Rays Fan Fest and he regularly opens his home for private tours.  People have flown in from all over the world to see his collection.

1916 American League Reach Baseball, first home run hit as a NY Yanlee by John Franklin "Home Run" Baker

When I talked to Dennis about the collection and the people that routinely come to see the collection you can tell he has a sense of pride when talking about the history of the game. He takes particular pride in showing off baseballs signed by players of historical significance, such as Dummy Hoy (a deaf mute player responsible for wide spread use of umpire hand signals).  Dennis always shows off the old timers, such as a 1916 ball signed by Frank “Home Run” Baker, which also happens to be the actual first home run Baker hit as a Yankee, but Dennis knows the younger generations tend to ask for his Jeter, Pujols, A-Rod, and Longoria baseballs.

It is impossible not to look at this collection and become overwhelmed by the sense of baseball history that is present, and Dennis recognizes it. Requests to purchase baseballs from the collection are met with a “sorry not interested” from Mr. Schrader. Dennis once turned down an offer of $2 million for the whole collection.

The collection is so impressive because of how complete it is – everybody is there, together in one brilliant shrine.  Although, there is one baseball missing: that Mickey Mantle ball that started it all.  “Long gone,” says Dennis.

That ball, signed by The Commerce Comet, became a favorite for Schrader. As a child he showed it off to the other kids on his street, and even used it for a neighborhood game of baseball.

For more information about Dennis Schrader and Little Cooperstown, visit www.littlecooperstown.com.

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New York Yankees 1927 "Murderers Row" Signed Reach Baseball

BigLeagueBaseballs greatly appreciates Dennis Schrader for letting us visit his amazing baseball shrine. And we owe a big “thank you” to Big League Baseballs contributor Matthew Felix, who interviewed Dennis and wrote this entry. For those with questions about Dennis Schrader and his collection, join and post in the Big League Baseballs Forum, of which Mr. Schrader is a member.

Spalding NL Frick Ball with Multi-Colored Laces

Big League Baseballs came across what appears to be a heck of a find, this vintage Spalding National League baseball. Stamped with NL president Ford C. Frick’s signature, it’s a beauty, and there is little information about it. What makes it unique, and apparently extremely rare, are the multi-colored laces. Two-toned laces were a thing of the past by the time Frick became president of the NL, according to all the records available for vintage major league baseballs.

So what gives with this pristine ball, why the two different stitch colors? The last multi-color laced NL ball of the early 1900s is, according to many resources, a John Heydler NL President stamped black and red laced Spalding ball, most likely last put into play in 1933. Frick became the league’s president in 1934, but judging by the manufacturer’s stamp on this ball, it’s most likely from the late ’30s to early ’40s. It also came with the box pictured to the right, but there’s no way to verify that it was originally packaged in this box (although it’s likely that it was).

Multi-colored laces on official MLB baseballs did not come back around again until the 1990s, and we’ve got an incredible story about that coming to BigLeagueBaseballs.com next week.

In the meantime, Big League Baseballs’ forum member and vintage-style baseball creator William Peebles (check out his amazing hand-made baseballs) was kind enough to send in the picture below, taken from the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. It is the only other known multi-laced MLB ball like the Frick NL ball that we’ve seen, and there is no photo of the manufacturer’s stamp available. We haven’t been searching for this variety of Official Major League Baseball for long as this is a new discovery, but all of our searches have come up empty for any other information.

The ball pictured, as noted, was hit by Hank Greenberg for his 20th home run in 1940. So we at least know these were used in official MLB regular season games in the 1940 MLB Baseball Season. And since Greenberg was a member of the American League’s Detroit Tigers, this ball should be a Reach-made William Harridge President-stamped American League baseball.

So did both league’s field baseballs with multi-color laces for a short time period? Could these possibly be “mistakes?” Or is it possible that one of the laces has faded completely while the other remained unchanged? I have doubts about both of those possible explanations.

Does anyone out there have any other information on this rare Ford Frick Spalding baseball with two-toned laces, or another variety? We’d love to hear from you in the forum or in the comments section below. If you have another photo of an example of one of these baseballs, please send us an email.

Several years ago BigLeagueBaseballs.com came across what looked like two or three different versions of the same 1960s to ’70s-era Reach Official American League Joe Cronin baseballs. Some have noted that the different shades of colored stamping were simply a result of long-term storage, or exposure to the elements. Even game-use could have caused the slight change in print color. But the sleuths at Big League Baseballs wouldn’t settle for such excuses. We figured then that they were simply produced in different years, and the change in stamping color was intentional. We also hoped it would help date the Cronin baseballs, but could not find any information on the dilemma.

Three varieties of Reach AL Cronin balls, two on the left from the late 1960s to early '70s that appear to have different colored stamps.

After looking deeper into the matter, we’ve discovered the cause of these ink color differences. They’re actually different baseballs, made by by the same factory operated at that time by the Reach division owned by Spalding. And the differences go beyond the stamping, according to one source. Here’s the evidence, an excerpt from a Sept. 23, 1971 article published by the Sarasota Herald Tribune. It appeared in “The Press Box” column by Frank True, titled Baseballs, Baseballs:

Kuhn To Investigate

Today commissioner Bowie Kuhn has a problem that is a lapful. He’s investigating American League balls that not only are different in resiliency, but aren’t even the same size. Official American League balls are manufactured by the Reach Division of the Spalding Company. All bear the signature of Joe Cronin, president of the American League. But on some balls the ink is blue. On others it is green.

It seems the blue-labeled balls are larger by about one-quarter inch in diameter, have wider stitching, looser covers and don’t go as far when hit. The green-labeled balls are said to go farther when hit, especially in cool weather. The balls are made in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico. The green ball has glue all over it right under the cover, which is responsible for its greater resiliency.

Numerous pitchers have remarked about the larger size of the blue-labeled balls and Dick Walsh, general manager of the Angels, has asked Kuhn to investigate. What an ideal setup for the home club, which furnishes the baseballs, to run in a batch of blue-labeled balls to the local pitchers, then feed the green-labeled balls to opposing hurlers.

It is incredible that a multi-million-dollar enterprise like baseball can’t control the uniform quality in such a basic piece of equipment as a baseball.  Or maybe the two different types of balls represent an experiment that’s being conducted. If so, would it have done any harm to let the public in on the venture? Would not public participation in such a test have been good public relations?

We’d provide a direct like, but it is not hosted on the newspaper’s website. We’d also provide more convincing pictures of each version of Official Cronin AL ball, but we don’t have better samples. Like fools, some of these baseballs were sold or traded by BigLeagueBaseball contributors before it was realized a few were, in fact, different by design. If there is a reader out there that can provide better photos of each variation of this era of Cronin ball, please send us an email. There’s a big “Thank you” in it for you, and nothing else.

There is no additional information, to the best of our knowledge, as to the results of the “investigation” or any other complaints about the two different baseballs. If there is any information out there we’re not aware of, please let us know.

Are there other vintage baseballs like these that have one or more varieties? Does the Spalding Warren Giles-stamped Official National League baseball of the same time period have a different sized or stamped counterpart? Or perhaps it would be one of the first Charles Feeney-stamped NL balls that would have been constructed differently? We’ve even come across AL President Harridge American League balls and older Reach Cronin balls that appear to have two different shades of blue and green print.  We’ll look into those as well.

In the meantime, feel free to discuss the groundbreaking discovery in the BigLeagueBaseballs.com Forum or respond in the comments section and tell us how much you appreciate BigLeagueBaseballs.com and its mystery solving detective work. Or let us know that nobody cares, if you prefer, and that we should just get back to work.

The Official Charles O' Finley Orange Baseball

One rare collectible ball stands out as perhaps one of the most unconventional pieces of sports memorabilia: The Official Orange Major League Baseball. Coming from an era of Major League Baseball’s past in which its time-line is dotted by several controversial shenanigans pulled off by one of the League’s most eccentric minds, former Oakland Athletics owner Charles O. Finley.

The Official Charles O. Finley Orange Baseball saw use only by the A’s in Spring Training in the 1973 season. It was supposedly disregarded as a flop; a fad that failed before it could even become a fad. A proposal so outlandish it was probably laughed at behind the privacy of closed doors and thick cigar smoke-screens of baseball’s big wigs. But some evidence shows that maybe the league took this much more seriously than they ever let on.

At least, BigLeagueBaseballs.com has come across some interesting prototypes that would suggest the hot orange ball had more than a snowball’s chance in hell at making the it to The Show.

Charles O. Finley’s memorable tenure in baseball is full of many outlandish stories, (check out Time Magazine’s typo/misspelling in the title! Ouch.) most based around his ideas to “improve” the national pastime by invoking anything and everything that would spit in the face of its long upheld traditions.

Some of Finley’s proposals gained approval and can still be seen in today’s game. He was responsible for bringing some color and aesthetics to the game with the Athletics bright green and yellow uniforms, as well as the first night games in the World Series, and the American League’s Designated Hitter rule.

A few of his more peculiar proposals? While the A’s were still in Kasas City: A mascot – in fact it was a live goat -named Charlie O., sheep grazing in the grass beyond the outfield wall, and a mechanical rabbit that popped up and gave a fresh set of baseballs to the homeplate umpire. Sounds like all this guy really wanted was a petting zoo. And by the way, if anyone can find video of that mechanical rabbit and upload it, please contact us. I want one of those rabbits to pop up behind my desk and deliver piping  hot rounds of Starbuck’s every morning.

Finley also was the man who hired a very young “executive vice president” named Stanley Burrell to be his “eyes and ears” for the Oakland Athletics. Think you’ve never heard of Mr. Burrell? Maybe this will ring a bell:

My, my, my music hits you, so hard, makes you say “oh my lawd!” …I think I digressed.

Anyway, the Hammer somehow brings us full circle, back to the topic at hand, the Official Charles O. Finley Orange Baseball. The MLB commissioner at the time of its creation, Bowie K. Kuhn, wouldn’t let Finley use the ball in an official regular season game. So the bright orange baseball was first put into play in the Athletics 11-5 loss to the Cleveland Indians in a 1973 exhibition game. Some sources note that it was used in a second spring training game as well.

Finley white-laced ball

Reviews from this initial on-field orange baseball experience mentioned that the color of the ball gave it several advantages over regular white baseballs. Fans and batters could see it better than a white ball. Umpires also stated that the ball was easier to see, while it increased the offensive side of the game (which Finley always preferred: Designated hitters, designated runners) while decreasing the number of errors in the field. (From Keyman Collectibles).

But it was also mentioned by some hitters that they couldn’t see the spin of the ball, thanks to the red laces disappearing on the orange ball. That would explain why Finley would later tinker and add minor modification – switching to white laces. Regardless, the ball never was accepted by the league and all of Charlie’s hopes and dreams of leaving his finger prints on the Major League’s Official Game Ball never came close to being realized.

But then why, if the ball was deemed such a joke and a spectacle, did Major League Baseball contract Spalding to produce official prototypes, like these pictured below? Glowing bright orange MLB baseballs with the OFFICIAL Major League stamped American League President signatures of Joe Cronin and Lee MacPhail? Along with the Spalding logo on “No. 0″ and “No. 1″ Official model baseballs?

BigLeagueBaseballs.com obtained two of these samples, they are now the newest additions to the hallowed hall of official game balls, the Museum of Baseballs. I only wish I had more information on these great specimens. I only know that they came from true Spalding official dozen boxes, and that their covers may have been derived from pig skin. Don’t quote us on that.

So if nothing else it proves that the official supplier of Major League Baseballs at that time, Spalding, took the Orange Ball, or perhaps the “Night Game” ball seriously enough to stamp its prototypes and most likely run them through a battery of tests and send them off to the commisioner’s office. All speculation at this point, but if there are any collectors with a bit more knowledge of these baseballs, please share your wisdom in the comment’s section below, or in our shiny new Big League Baseballs’ Forum.