It's gotta be the … cleats. Michael Jordan may not have made a huge mark on the game of baseball in his short-lived minor league career, but the cleats he wore on his way to a .202 batting average are still a prized piece of baseball memorabilia.
A pair of Jordan's game-worn and autographed cleats were recently sold by Heritage Auctions for a cool $93,000, according to TMZ. There's no word on the identity of the buyer.
Apparently, the shoes — signed by Michael Jordan in silver link — were gifted by Jordan to a Chicago White Sox announcer (Chicago Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf also owns the White Sox, for which the Barons are a minor league affiliate). Later, former MLB pitcher Jeff Reardon acquired the cleats at a charity golf tournament in 1995. The shoes are reportedly accompanied by a note from Reardon confirming their authenticity. The Air Jordan Nikes apparently feature dirt and scuff marks throughout, and the Nike “Swoosh” logo inside the heel has mostly worn off.
His Airness posted a .202/.289/.266 slash line with 30 stolen bases (48 attempts), 51 walks, 114 strikeouts, 51 RBIs, and three homers in his one season for the Birmingham Barons (497 plate appearances). By all accounts, though, he showed steady improvement in the Arizona Fall League.
In “The Last Dance,” former Barons manager and current Cleveland Indians skipper Terry Francona said he believed Michael Jordan had a shot at making The Show (h/t The Washington Post):
“I can't believe he actually hit .202,” said Francona, who went on to win two major league titles with the Boston Red Sox. “He drove in [51] runs. We had a lot of good prospects that didn't drive in 50 runs. In my opinion, with 1,500 at-bats, he would have found a way to get to the major leagues.”
While that didn't come to fruition, Michael Jordan's baseball career should be viewed as more of a success than a failure.
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