The bat used by baseball legend Babe Ruth to hit the first home run in Yankee Stadium history has been sold for a record $1.26 million at auction. It was the most ever paid for a baseball bat.
Sotheby's says a private collector emerged the winner Thursday after about one minute of bidding at the auction house in New York. The massive Louisville Slugger baseball bat, made of solid ash wood, has been described as "The Holy Grail of sports memorabilia."
The bat was only the third sports item to break the $1 million mark at auction. Mark McGwire's 70th home run ball from 1998 sold for $3 million and a 1909 Honus Wagner baseball card went for $1.265 million.
Ruth lugged the historic lumber with him to the plate on April 18, 1923, during the first game inside Yankee Stadium, known as "The House That Ruth Built." With 74,000 fans looking on, Ruth hit a third-inning blast into the right field bleachers as his New York Yankees beat the Boston Red Sox, 4-1.
Some information for this story provided by AP.
