Tim McCarver 1979 Saturday Night Special Phillies Game Used Jersey MEARS A10
$18,995.00
Offered here is one of the rarest modern-era baseball uniforms extant: a Philadelphia Phillies "Saturday Night Special" jersey and pants worn by Tim McCarver in a game against the Montreal Expos at Veteran's Stadium on May 19, 1979. Graded A10 by MEARS. The rarity of this uniform is predicated on the fact that it was only used by the Phillies for that one, single game in 1979 before being permanently retired. The Phillies had originally intended to wear these specially designed solid maroon uniforms (with white trim running down the sides of both the jersey and pants) only for Saturday night home games (hence their nickname, which was also slang for cheap handguns on the street at the time). However, the initial reaction by both the players and fans to the new design was, to say the least, less than enthusiastic. The fact that the team was trounced by the Expos 10-5 in the game did not help matters either, as most fans didn't know whether to laugh (at the sight of the Phillies in these garish uniforms) or cry (at the level of performance witnessed that night). The players, being superstitious as most players are, cited the ridiculous uniforms as the reason for the loss and vowed never to wear them again. Despite assurances from Phillies management that the uniforms would be worn the following Saturday as planned, public sentiment during the week was so overwhelmingly negative towards them that the team finally relented and packed them away, never to be used again. Today, examples are rarely seen, with the uniform considered a "holy grail" for many jersey collectors.
All of the garments are original as issued, with no alterations, and display light wear consistent with their single-game use.
Comes with full letter COA from MEARS and signed and notarized Letter Of Provenance from the original Owner who got it directly from the Phillies.
T#13
