The sports memorabilia market is firmly in the era of the photo-match.
Documentation from third-party authentication companies, tying the most coveted jerseys and sneakers to specific moments, has become a mainstay in the hobby — not only from modern times, but increasingly, from the pre-war era.
The photo-match designation, particularly when it relates to games or moments of significance, can super-charge the price of a previously unmatched jersey.
Added research and documentation has consistently fueled a sizable return for collectors who are able to find additional matches for their jerseys before bringing them back to market.
SCP Auctions’ December Dynasty auction, which opens Wednesday and runs until Dec. 14, includes Freddie Freeman’s 2024 World Series walk-off grand slam ball, as well as a 1937 pinstriped home Yankees jersey from Lou Gehrig, which might be the single-finest example of a Gehrig jersey to hit the market.
Sold for $870,000 in 2020 at Heritage, the jersey was previously photo-matched to Gehrig’s plaque in Monument Park as well as to photos believed to be from late September, one of which mentions it was taken prior to a World Series game.
Due to the gap in time between the photo’s date and Game 1 of the World Series on Oct. 6, it was unable to be conclusively called a World Series jersey. It was also matched to the image used on the ticket issued for Lou Gehrig’s Memorial at Yankee Stadium on July 4, 1941.
Now, over four years later, the same jersey — one of less than a dozen examples believed to remain from Gehrig’s career — has arrived as SCP with additional documentation from MeiGray, Resolution and SIA, including a match to a World Series game that might drive the final hammer price deep into the millions.
SCP Auctions Founder David Kohler believes this jersey could sell for $4 million or higher, blowing away the current record for a Gehrig jersey — a road jersey from the same year, which fetched $2.58 million.
Tacking on attribution beyond Monument Park and the ticket, which Kohler sees as a vitally important piece of the jersey’s appeal — Gehrig was the first player to have his number retired — the jersey has also been found to match multiple other significant games and moments, including Game 2 of the 1937 World Series, a team photo taken that summer, a two home-run game from August, the “Parade of Stars” at Yankee Stadium in 1937 and a famous image of Gehrig looking down a set of bat barrels.
Additionally, it has been matched to 1938 spring training, indicating further use.
Like many jerseys from the era, this garment was likely sent down to the minor leagues for further use after Gehrig, which explains why the “NY” Yankees logo was originally stripped and re-applied using fabric from what Heritage claimed was “harvested from another 1937 Yankees jersey, according to an earlier owner.”
Pinstripe Gehrig jerseys, which are widely considered to be more desirable than road examples of Yankees uniforms, have sold only a few times publicly, including a $717,000 sale for a 1927 example in 2010 and a 1931 jersey which sold for $1.44 million at Christie’s in 2020.
Jerseys from the era are rarely accompanied by extensive photo-matching documentation.
Walter Johnson’s 1920 jersey was one of, if not the, oldest jerseys ever photo-matched when it appeared for sale at Heritage earlier this year. Having previously sold for $352,000 without a match, it achieved $2.01 million after being matched to the first game the Big Train faced Babe Ruth as a Yankee.
As far as the rarity of jerseys from that era, it’s believed players were likely to have received around two road and two home jerseys per season, though Kohler notes some players like Gehrig might have had more due to their preference to have both long and short-sleeved options.
To date, the most expensive piece of sports memorabilia sold belongs to the Ruth “Called Shot” jersey, which sold for $24.12 million earlier this year.
The 10th most expensive piece of sports memorabilia belongs to a Jackie Robinson jersey at $5.52 million.
Time will tell if this Gehrig can crack the top 10.
Will Stern is a reporter and editor for cllct.