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Bidding For Babe Ruth Check Extended

Photo provided by JAMES BROWN

This check shows what The American League Baseball Club of New York paid the Boston American League Baseball Club on Feb 4, 1922, for the services of one George Herman "Babe" Ruth.

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By KEITH MORELLI | The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 29, 2008

Updated: 05/29/2008 10:37 pm

TAMPA – Bidding on an historic bit of baseball memorabilia — a check from the New York Yankees to the Boston Red Sox purchasing the services of George Herman "Babe" Ruth — has been extended and remains locked at $30,250 with three people seeking the piece of history.

Originally scheduled to end at 9 p.m., the auction deadline has been extended several times, according to James Brown, president of the auctioneer selling the check.

Close to the scheduled end of an auction, any bid placed on one of the 1,300 items for sale today by Historic Auctions of St. Petersburg automatically extends the end of all auctions for 15 minutes.

Those rules mean bids on other items the auction house is selling have also extended the auction for the check.

If 15 minutes go by with no bids on any items, all auctions end.

Brown said such a method prevents what is known as "sniping" for online auctions when a buyer enters a bid seconds before an auction ends that is sometimes pennies higher.

A last-second bid automatically extends the auction.

Brown expected the auction for the check to last until after midnight.

Bidding opened at $25,000, and the top bid this morning was $27,500, according to company's Web site.

The check transcends baseball history and has entered into American culture because it is part of a deal that sports wags say began an 86-year curse on the Red Sox. That's how long it took for the franchise to win a World Series championship (in 2004) after Ruth was dealt to New York. The Yankees, on the other hand, have raked in 26 World Series championships in that time.

Bidding began April 29.

The auction house put on the block one of two checks that the American League Base Ball Club of New York paid to the Boston American League Baseball Club on Feb. 4, 1922, for Ruth. The check is for $50,000.

The checks are part of the deal for Ruth, who would become the greatest home run hitter of his era and a major figure in baseball history and American culture.

The second check, written for $100,000, actually was made out two months earlier. It is expected to go to auction in December.

Both checks were being offered by an unidentified memorabilia collector, who has owned the items for years. Both checks have been authenticated, the auctioneers said.

Anyone interested in viewing the checks or placing a bid can go to www.historicauctions.com or call 1-888-955-2211.

Reporter Keith Morelli can be reached at (813) 259-7760 or kmorelli@tampatrib.com.

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