Danny Ainge 1978-79 Game Used Louisville Slugger Baseball Bat 35" S44 VERY RARE

Description

This Danny Ainge H&B Louisville Slugger 125 pro model bat dates exactly to the 1977 to 1979 marking period before H&B changed their center label. This bat is the model S44 which is burned into the barrel. It is 35 " long and weighs about 32 ounces. No cracks or checking, knob fully intact and very strong burned-in markings. Very little use. Since there is no record of any other player with the name AINGE ever playing professional baseball, at any level, on the Baseball Reference site, and, the bat was made between 1977 and 1979 (Mr. Ainges rookie years) it's not hard to be certain that this is Danny Ainge's bat. The bat was obtained by a local fan here in Syracuse when Danny Ainge played for the Syracuse Chiefs in 1978.  His uniform number was 2 when played for both the Chiefs in 1978 and Toronto Blue Jays in 1978 and 1979. Number 2 appears on the knob of this bat in black marker.  These key factors add up to a great provenance that this is Danny Ainge's actual game bat. He played 119 games at triple A Syracuse in 1978. In 1979, He played both at Syracuse (27 games) and with the Blue Jays the same year for 87 games.  His uniform number 2 stayed the same with both teams in 1978 and 1979. This bat may well have been used at both levels.  Danny Ainge was a THREE SPORT (baseball, basketball, football) high school ALL AMERICAN. He went on to play for Brigham Young University where her was named National College Basketball Player of the Year and won the John Wooden award.  After college he played 4 years in professional baseball.  At the end of his four year MLB career, he was drafted by the BOSTON CELTICS and played 14 seasons in the NBA. He has three NBA championships to his credit, 2 as a player and one as a coach. Most recently, he served as the Boston Celtics President of Basketball Operations from 2008 to 2021. Mr. Ainge is listed as one of America's best known Mormon athletes. This is a VERY RARE piece of sports history for an exceptionally talented and multifaceted individual. We are so confident that this is Danny Ainge's game bat that we will ACCEPT A RETURN (as per specifics in this listing) if you are able to determine otherwise from a recognized authority on pro model baseball bats. All inquiries welcome.