It's not everyday baseball fans stumble upon a piece of memorabilia that contains not only a lot of history in it, but boasts a lot of value within. Sure, those in the hobby can go searching for the next hot prospect, like cards and jerseys signed by Shohei Ohtani. On the other hand, this old baseball unearthed from a building in Chicago, one that was used in a World Series between the Chicago White Sox and Cincinnati Reds way back in 1919, is poised to be something better.
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In a video shared by Find Your Trove on Instagram, three time capsules were unearthed from the Chicago Tribune tower while it was being transformed into condominium buildings in 2018. Although these capsules were obtained a couple of years ago, it wasn't until last June when they were opened and in one of them was an old baseball. According to a letter penned by a Chicago Tribune sports editor in 1920, the said baseball is the same one used in the 1919 World Series with the White Sox and Reds battling it out back then. But apart from the historic event where it was used, there are other layers to the story that make this piece of memorabilia much more valuable.
Apart from being the baseball used in that World Series, it's also the same one that Hod Eller had when he pitched six consecutive strikeouts in Game 5. Furthermore, this is also the same series that the Chicago White Sox lost on purpose because gamblers paid them off to do so. Eight players, including Shoeless Joe Jackson, were forever banned from playing the sport because of their involvement in throwing the World Series back then.
Thanks to its rich history, this baseball is going to be displayed at the Chicago Sports Museum by its new owners. Although there isn't any official price yet on this bad boy, it's safe to say that it'll hit or even exceed the $1 million sooner than later. When that happens, baseball fans are gonna flock to this piece of memorabilia and be amazed by it.
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