Extraordinary 1939 Ted Williams Boston Red Sox Rookie Contract

Sold For:

$192,000

Year:

1939

Auction:

2022 Fall

Lot #:

17

Category:

Autographed Baseballs/Flats/Photos

Exceedingly rare Ted Williams Boston Red Sox contract dating from his 1939 rookie season. Official "Uniform Player's Contract" dated February 18, 1938, between Ted Williams and the Boston American League Baseball Company. Signed on the interior in black ink by Ted Williams and team vice-president Eddie Collins. American League President William Harridge has signed the front. The four-page document, representing a two-year agreement, calls for Williams to receive a salary of $3,000 for the 1938 season and $4,500 for the 1939 season. Williams enjoyed a banner season at the plate with the Minneapolis Millers (Red Sox AA minor-league affiliate) in 1938. His forty-three home runs were a league high, thereby earning him the American Association Triple Crown (.366 average, 43 home runs, 142 RBI). Those extraordinary numbers all but ensured the end of his minor-league career. The following spring he reported to the Red Sox training camp, and the rest, as they say, is history. Williams immediately tore up the league (batting .327 and leading the league with 145 RBI), and within a year was being compared to the all-time greats. His numbers and legend only improved in the years to follow. A six-time batting champion, Williams is still the last player in baseball history to bat over .400 in a season, a feat he accomplished in 1941. Williams was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1966. Contracts of Hall of Fame players are rare, and the offered example is no exception. This is the only the third Major League contract of Williams' we can recall seeing at auction, and it is the first we have ever offered. The contract (8.5 x 11 inches) has two horizontal folds and is in Excellent condition. Full LOA from PSA/DNA. Opening Bid $25,000.