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Gorgeous 1953 Ty Cobb Signed Handwritten Letter with Fabulous Hitting Advice Content (JSA)
<p>Displayed is a beautiful two-page handwritten letter that immortal Hall of Famer Ty Cobb wrote in response to a baseball-playing boy who had written to him, along with the hand-addressed envelope in which Cobb sent the letter, from Menlo Park, California. Not only does the letter reveal a congenial Cobb, but the Cobb response offers his pointers on hitting that are both informative and absolutely fascinating - almost as if one is getting a one-on-one tutorial on hitting from Cobb. "The Georgia Peach" was often considered to have had a mean personality, yet more recent research into Cobb's behavior indicates that although the center fielder was perhaps the fiercest competitor on the baseball diamond, he is not thought to have ever deliberately injured another player, and his off-the-field actions often exhibited quite a bit of understated kindness. Cobb often quietly financially helped many former baseball players, and the players this sometimes supposedly racist man assisted were both white and African American. The letter is in Cobb's trademark green ink, written by using a steel-tip fountain pen. Written on 7x10.5" stationery, with Cobb's printed name and address at the top of the page, the letter is written on one sheet of paper, front and back. Dated 5/12/53, the letter (over 300 words) is addressed to a "Ronald," last name unknown. Cobb starts off his letter: "Dear Ronald, Suppose you thought by now that I failed to appreciate the thought of a boy like you writing me." Cobb then explains that the letter was placed in the "glove receptacle" of his car for some time. After acknowledging that Ronald mentioned his home run total, Cobb gives Ronald hitting advice, meant to discourage the boy from over-emphasizing his going for four-baggers. Cobb writes, "... to hit well you should 'choke' your bat (,) that gives better control of bat... also better timing, don't spread your feet as many do today, bend slightly over from waist up, keep your bat back of your body, for you have to come to that position any way to start swing, keep bat off shoulder (if you do) keep elbows out and away from your body [,] that gives freedom of swing, whether the ball is inside or outside, hit the ball where it comes to you... don't put more weight on your back foot... stand as evenly on both feet as you can, baseball is a game with lots of science." Cobb goes on to state that a player should go for base hits rather than home runs because in the long run consistent base hits will win more games than occasional home runs. In closing, Cobb seems to enjoy writing to youths, but not autograph hunting adults: "...I like boys, but don't sick others on me - my correspondence is really a task. Sincerely, Ty Cobb". There is a gorgeous Cobb signature at the end, signed as "Ty Cobb," and not his typical "Ty" or "T R." What could be better than a warm, thoughtful letter from such a supposedly mean player? What could exceed hand-written hitting advice from a man who once held the all-time MLB base hit record and whose lifetime batting average of .366 is the highest in Major League history? The letter comes with a JSA LOA that states: "All handwriting was penned in the hand of Ty Cobb." There are a few bleeding spots scattered on both sides of the letter, but otherwise strong green ink rating 8/10. A personal, signed letter from Ty Cobb on the topic of hitting? What a treasure!</p>
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