Army Baseball Bat

[Cheers]

Cheers,

 

a neighbor passed away and I was invited to browse his stuff before removal.

Oddly, he had this bat in his studio.

Is the official military issue?

If so, can the date of issue be determined?

 

Thanks in advance for any input.

[mvmhm]

Yes, it is an Army bat...you'll find gloves and baseballs marked that was as well. Most likely from WWII but there's much smarter people on here who can give you a better answer.

 

Mark sends

[Scottz63]

Very cool! First time for me seeing an Army marked bat. Thanks.

[Persian Gulf Command]

Joe "Ducky" Medwick played in the Major Leagues from 1932-1948. A left fielder with the St. Louis Cardinals during the "Gashouse Gang" era of the 1930s, he also played with the Brooklyn Dodgers, New York Giants, and Boston Braves  

 

1932 - 1952 Bat Label Manufacturing Period

The "H&B" Logo center brand first appears in catalogs in 1932. Inside the oval reads: "HILLERERICH & BRADSBY CO." at the top; "MADE IN U.S.A. " above "H&B" followed by the catalog number, below.  (pictured is "NO. 9") and "LOUISVILLE K.Y." at the bottom sandwiched between "f'" like ornate designs.

 

[mikie]

Sorry, no idea about the bat. But I looked up Mednick. His prime baseball career was in the 1930s. But he played into the 50s. He was in Italy during the War on a USO tour and got to meet the Pope. The story is that he said to him that he used to be a Cardinal too. Thought that was pretty funny. 

 

Mikie

[67Rally]

My apologies for being a few days late to your post. The "LEADER" product line by Hillerich & Bradsby was their most inexpensive retail bat series. All of these bats carry the catalog number "9" in the center brand. These bats do not include the player's endorsement signature but instead are marked in block letters with the player's name. Most H&B bats produced specifically for the armed forces during WWII bear a military marking of some sort: "U.S.," "U.S. Army," "Special Services U.S. Army," and "U.S.N." No bats, balls or gloves were marked by manufacturers with "U.S.M.C" during WWII.

Here are some references for wartime bats: https://chevronsanddiamonds.wordpress.com/military-baseball-research-resources/diamond-weapons-military-baseball-bats/