Oscar Taveras auction to benefit his family
By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor
A serious collector of a prospect gone too soon is selling his collection to benefit the player’s family.
Nine prime pieces of Oscar Taveras memorabilia will hit the auction block in January via West Berlin, N.J.-based Goldin Auctions with the proceeds from the nine lots going to the family of the former St. Louis Cardinals rookie. Taveras died on Oct. 26 during an automobile accident in the Dominican Republic. His blood-alcohol level was five times the legal limit at the time of the accident. He was 22.
A consensus No. 3 prospect in all of baseball from Baseball America, MLB.com and Baseball Prospectus entering this season, Taveras was a highly watched prospect on both the field and in the hobby. He made his big-league debut with the Cardinals this past season, hitting .239 with three home runs and 22 RBI in 80 games. In six minor-league seasons, he hit .320 with 53 homers and 324 RBI in 436 games.
Among the items up for grabs? The ball Taveras hit for his first MLB hit, which was a home run, his 2010 Appalachian League championship ring as a member of the Johnson City Cardinals, a 2011 Midwest League championship ring as a member of the Quad City River Bandits, his signed game-used jersey from this past postseason, a signed game-used bat, the cleats from his MLB debut, a pair of batting gloves, another bat and his fielding glove from his MLB debut, too.
“As a big fan of the Cardinals and the young star, our consigner wanted to do something to help the Taveras family,” said Ken Goldin, the founder of Goldin Auctions. “We commend him for his thoughtfulness and hope our bidders can help him make a large donation to the Taveras family.”
The auctions will open on Jan. 12, and run until Feb. 6 as part of the Goldin Winter Auction. The opening bids will be the same as what the collector paid to obtain the items in each auction.
Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball and Beckett Sports Card Monthly magazines. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.
