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I enjoy doing fun things outdoors. Family adventures, hunting, fishing, hiking, photography, 4 wheeling, etc. Get out there and enjoy ... NOTE: PLEASE CLICK ON MY PHOTOS IN THE BLOG POST SO THEY WILL BECOME LARGER.

Friday, July 31, 2015

Rawlings Roberto Clemente Brooks Robinson World Series Special

On our latest summer vacation, we took the usual assorted play toys: Bocci ball, ladder toss, baseball and gloves, football, Frisbee, RC Rock Crawler, bicycles, etc.  The kayaks were already there.
I decided to join in and throw the baseball around so I went to get my glove only to discover my old glove had been packed.  Ok … it still works.  It's broken in and warn but still a good functioning glove.

It was pretty old so I told my nephew how I acquired the glove.
In 1972 on a family summer vacation, we were visiting relatives in Arthur, Iowa.  The church softball team had a game coming up.  I asked if I could play.  They said I may be too young but said they would make an exception for an inning. 

I didn’t have a glove and I was a lefty … Reese J. played shortstop and had a nice Red, White, and Blue Rawlings glove.  After seeing it I just had to have that same glove.  I remember my parents driving quite a distance to a particular store after persistent begging on my part to buy it for me.

I played an inning at first base.  No errors on my part, can’t remember if we won the game … Fast forward … I used this glove playing in several softball leagues through high school, and in college, and sporadically years after.

Looking at this old glove I noticed a couple things on it that got me thinking so I decided to find out what I could about it.  Below is what I found.
My glove is a Rawlings Roberto Clemente Brooks Robinson World Series Special.  It’s a Rawlings Fastback baseball glove and was sold in stores shortly after the 1971 World Series which featured the Gold Glove winner Roberto Clemente, with the Pittsburgh Pirates playing against fellow Gold Glove winner Brooks Robinson, with the Baltimore Orioles.  The Pirates won four games to three. Unfortunately, the celebration in Pittsburgh would soon turn to mourning as fourteen months later Roberto Clemente was killed in a plane crash.

The WSS Rawlings Fastback Glove was issued in 1971 and came in two models (The World Series Special and the Gold Glove Award). My red, white, and blue glove reads World Series Special on the pinky finger.
Since I used my glove for so many years in all types of weather I have restrung it a couple times.  I mainly played 1st base as I was pretty good a catching almost everything thrown at me.  In one of the leagues I was called in by the umpire and told I couldn’t use this glove because the outside webbing was white.  The same color as the ball.  If I turned the glove it was hard for the umpire to distinguish between a white ball caught or the white webbing.

I wasn’t about to buy a new glove.  To keep tradition with the Red, White, and Blue I took a Red marker and colored in the white webbing to solve the problem.

Years ago things were different.  This must have been a prized possession of mine.  Why, you ask?  Because there are 2 distinct things I noticed on my glove.  My dad took one of those branding-type pencils and we branded my name on the glove.  I can still read it.  OH … We also branded my SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER on the glove and yes, I can read it also.  I have no idea why we did that!!!

This got me thinking ... Has the world changed?  Are things different now?  Should it be that we all emboss, brand, write, or chisel our social security number on things of importance?

2 comments:

  1. Thanks for your post. When I was 10 or 11 my little league team had a candy sale where if we sold enough boxes we would get a new glove. I don't remember how many but I remember it was a LOT of boxes. I did it. When it came time to get our gloves, it was kind of a letdown. There were a bunch of new gloves laid out on the ground at practice and we drew numbers from a hat for who got to choose first. I was third or fourth but luckily the glove I wanted from the moment I saw it was still there. The Red White and Blue World Series Special. I lost it over the years, but today I found one in darn nice shape at an estate sale. I of course took it home. Thanks for your post.

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  2. Anonymous6:34 PM

    In 1973 this double autograph red, white & blue glove was among my most prized possessions. I played it extensively through middle school, summers and high school. Softball never appealed to me and so it spent the next 40 years in a box. How lucky am I that my daughter married a ball player. Have been throwing with him for the last few years. The arm is still pretty good. The eyesight-less so.I just busted the webbing and am debating whether to get it restored. Am feeling a bit guilty, but we had a good run and I think it’s time to see if they still make this kind of quality. We shall see.

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