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Ralph Branca and Bobby Thomson Dual signed Baseball
Ralph Branca is remembered for throwing the home run pitch to Bobby Thomson in 1951 that became know as the "Shot Heard Around the World." As a result, the Brooklyn Dodgers lost the pennant to the New York Giants. This official MLB baseball was signed by both Branca and Thomson, and comes complete with a Steiner Sports certificate of authenticity.
Each and every hand-signed collectible that carries a tamper-proof hologram is witnessed by a Steiner Sports representative. Once the collectibles have been autographed, they are cataloged and inventoried.
A notarized affidavit is prepared and signed by the athlete and a Steiner Sports representative. The notarized affidavit records the date and location of the signing and also details the items that were signed by the specified athlete. This document is then secured within the Steiner Sports main offices.
Each hand-signed collectible is examined for quality and signature condition. If the collectible meets the Steiner Sports standard of excellence a tamper-proof Steiner Sports hologram is affixed to the product.
Once the hand-signed collectible has passed the steps listed above, a Steiner Sports Certificate of Authenticity is created for the collectible. The collectible is then sealed and stored within our main office and is not handled until it is delivered to a sports collectible enthusiast.
Ralph Theodore Joseph Branca (born January 6, 1926 in Mount Vernon, New York) is a former starting pitcher in Major League Baseball. From 1944 through 1956, Branca played for the Brooklyn Dodgers (1944-53, 1956), Detroit Tigers (1953-54), and New York Yankees (1954). He batted and threw right-handed.
Branca was known as a very good starter during his years in Brooklyn. Branca debuted on June 12, 1944 with the Brooklyn Dodgers, and put up a 3.04 ERA in 109.2 innings pitched in 1945, his rookie year. A three-time All-Star, he won 80 games for the Dodgers with a career-high 21 wins in 1947. He is perhaps best remembered for one infamous relief appearance in a 1951 playoff game against the crosstown rival New York Giants. Branca entered the game in the ninth inning and surrendered a walk-off home run known as "The Shot Heard 'Round the World" to Bobby Thomson, giving the Giants the National League pennant.
Branca later learned from Detroit Tiger Ted Gray that the Giants had stolen the signs to the two pitches he threw Thomson. That rumor was confirmed in The Wall Street Journal 2001, when Giant Sal Yvars admitted that he relayed to Thomson the stolen signs for Branca's fastballs.[1] Joshua Prager detailed the revelations in a book entitled The Echoing Green: The Untold Story of Bobby Thomson, Ralph Branca and The Shot Heard Round the World. Thomson acknowledged to Prager that the Giants had stolen signs in 1951 but denied that he had foreknowledge of the pitch he hit off Branca for the pennant-winning home run.
Prior to facing Thomson, Branca had been warming up in the bullpen with Carl Erskine. Dodger coach Clyde Sukeforth noticed that Erskine was bouncing several curveballs in the dirt and instructed manager Charlie Dressen to call on Branca-this despite Thomson having homered off Branca in Game One. (The Dodgers fired Sukeforth shortly thereafter.)
Branca was engaged to be married to Ann Mulvey, whose cousin, Father Pat Rowley, was a priest. When Branca asked, "Why me?" Father Pat told him, "Because God knew your faith would be strong enough to bear this cross." Ralph married Ann a few weeks later. He would not only rarely express bitterness over the gopher ball, but begin a friendship with Thomson that lasted into each man's old age, including many joint television appearances. Branca's experience is in stark contrast to that of Donnie Moore of the California Angels, who gave up a dramatic home run to Boston's Dave Henderson in the 1986 American League Championship Series, and committed suicide three years later.
Triskaidekaphobics have noted that Branca wore uniform number 13 in 1951. Branca was photographed on Friday, April 13, 1951, flaunting the number and holding a black cat. Branca forsook the number 13 for No. 12 in 1952, but resumed wearing No. 13 in 1953. [2]
In a 12-year career, Branca posted an 88-68 record with 829 strikeouts and a 3.79 ERA in 1484.0 innings pitched. He would later indicate that a back injury suffered during spring training in 1952, and not the reaction to the previous year's home run, cut down on his effectiveness and cut short his career.
"The Shot Heard Round The World" is reputed to be the most exciting moment in the history of baseball and has forever immortalized the Polo Grounds. After the Giants left New York City for San Francisco in 1958, the stadium remained empty for five years until the Mets occupied it during the 1962 and 1963 seasons. Nostalgia ran wild when the Giants and Dodgers returned to the Polo Grounds to play the Mets. In 1964, the Mets moved to Shea Stadium in Queens, and the Polo Grounds was demolished. Branca was interviewed at the demolition site when the wrecking ball was thrown against the wall. Thirteen years after Bobby Thomson's electrifying home run, he watched the stadium come crumbling down. The site is now occupied by a housing project.
Robert Brown Thomson (born October 25, 1923 in Glasgow, Scotland), nicknamed The Staten Island Scot, is a Scottish-American former Major League Baseball outfielder and right-handed batter who played for the New York Giants (1946-53, 1957), Milwaukee Braves (1954-57), Chicago Cubs (1958-59), Boston Red Sox (1960) and Baltimore Orioles (1960).
Thomson became a celebrity for hitting a game-winning home run in a playoff game, off of Brooklyn Dodgers pitcher Ralph Branca, to win the 1951 National League pennant. The home run (nicknamed the "Shot Heard 'Round the World") is perhaps the most famous in baseball history. The baseball hit by Thomson provides a central motif in Don DeLillo's novel Underworld.
Rumors that the 1951 Giants stole signs en route to the pennant were confirmed in 2001, when several players told the Wall Street Journal that beginning on July 20, 1951, the team used a telescope and buzzer wire to steal the finger signals of opposing catchers careless enough to not protect their signs.[1] Joshua Prager detailed the revelations in a book titled The Echoing Green: The Untold Story of Bobby Thomson, Ralph Branca and The Shot Heard Round the World. Giant catcher Sal Yvars told Prager that he relayed to Thomson the stolen sign for Branca's fastball. But Thomson denied that he had foreknowledge of the pitch he hit off Branca for the pennant-winning home run.
Thomson hits the 'Shot Heard 'Round the World'This event was even more dramatic than it may seem to the modern sports observer, as league pennants were not routinely decided by playoff until 1969 and only occurred in years in which teams finished the regular season in a tie, as had happened in 1951.
The home run was an exclamation point on a dramatic season for the Giants. Although some had considered them a pre-season favorite to win the pennant, they faltered badly in the early going. By mid-August, they were 13 1/2 games behind the league-leading Dodgers. But the Giants went on a late-season tear, winning 37 of their final 44 games to tie the Brooklyn team on the final day of the season and force the three-game playoff.
The teams split the first two games, forcing the decisive contest on October 3rd at the Polo Grounds. The Dodgers took a 4-1 lead into the bottom of the ninth inning, and the Giants' cause appeared lost. But Thomson's homer turned what looked like a certain defeat into a 5-4 victory. The moment was immortalized by the famous call of Giants play-by-play announcer Russ Hodges who cried, "The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant!"
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