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1979 Dave Parker Game Worn Earring - The Very First Worn in a Major League Baseball Game (Parker Letter)
Displayed is unique offering - a stunning one-carat diamond solitaire earring worn by Dave Parker that is the first earring ever worn in a game by a Major League baseball player. Parker was a terrific hitter and right fielder whose early career seemed to be taking him to the Hall of Fame. In 1985, Parker was involved as a defendant in the Pittsburgh Drug Trials, and Parker's admitted drug usage while with the Pirates, along with several injuries, limited the effectiveness of his play in the second half of his career. Parker played in the Major Leagues from 1973-91: Pittsburgh Pirates (1973-83), Cincinnati Reds (1984-87), Oakland Athletics (1988-89), Milwaukee Brewers ((1990), California Angels (1991), Toronto Blue Jays (1991). Parker was a 7-time All-Star, a 2-time NL batting champ (1977-78), the '78 NL MVP, and a 2-time World Series winner. He hit .290 lifetime, with 339 home runs and 1,493 RBIs. In 1979, Parker's Pittsburgh Pirates faced the Baltimore Orioles in the World Series. In the opening game of the '79 World Series, played at Baltimore's Memorial Stadium, Parker was listed as the right fielder and third batter for the Pirates. Parker wore the first earring ever worn by a player in a Major League game when he stepped to the plate with two outs and the bases empty for the Pirates in the first inning. On the first pitch, Parker hit Mike Flanagan's offering into right field for a double. Flanagan went the distance for Baltimore in a 5-4 Orioles' win, but Parker's earring debut was wonderful. Dave went 4 for 5. Eventually, the Pirates won the Series in seven games, with Parker, continuing to wear this earring, going 10 for 29 in the World Series, batting .345. When Parker played for the Cincinnati Reds in 1984, he added the included diamond cross to the earring. The diamond earring and diamond cross come with a signed Letter of Authenticity from Dave Parker. That letter reads: "The one-carat diamond earring with a cross containing 16 small cut diamonds and hanging from the diamond solitaire and all in 14k gold belonged to me. The diamond solitaire earring was first worn in the first game of the 1979 World Series. It was the first earring ever worn by a major league baseball player. In 1984, when I came to the Cincinnati Reds from the Pirates, I added the diamond cross to it." The diamond earring has a diameter of approx. 0.5", and the attached cross has a height of approx. 0.6" and a width of approx. 0.4". The earring and attached cross are in excellent condition. In 1979, the baseball world and the larger societal world in the United Staes were far different from those worlds today. A baseball player wearing an earring in a game was almost inconceivable back in 1979. Until Dave Parker did it. The offering hearkens to the glory days of Dave Parker and of the Pittsburgh Pirates "We Are Family" teams.
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