Discover the Rarest and Most Iconic
Baseball Artifacts in “Baseball! The Exhibition”
At the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum Presidential Foundation. April 4 – September 4, 2014
(SIMI VALLEY, Calif.) Just in time for the opening week of Major League Baseball, Baseball! The Exhibition opens April 4, 2014 at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum. Running through September 4, 2014, Baseball is a 12,000 square foot exhibition featuring over 700 artifacts, including some of the rarest, historic and iconic baseball memorabilia from the largest known private collector in the U.S. The exhibit displays extraordinary artifacts from Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio, Lou Gehrig, Jackie Robinson, the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers, and scores of other historically
important players and organizations. Also featured will be rare artifacts related to Ronald Reagan and baseball from his days calling Chicago Cubs games, to signed balls and jerseys he received while President.
“I really do love baseball and I wish we could do this out on the lawn every day,” President Reagan remarked on May 11, 1983 on the South Lawn as part of a White House Ceremony observing National Amateur Baseball Month. “I wouldn’t even complain if a stray ball came through the Oval Office window now and then.”
“Nothing is more American than baseball,” said John Heubusch, executive director of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation. “Baseball fans of all ages are going to be astounded by the array of iconic baseball pieces on display. ‘Baseball the Exhibition’ is the perfect way to spend an afternoon with family, friends, and fellow baseball fans.”
The exhibition celebrates the great American pastime of baseball by showcasing the glory days of baseball from the first balls, bats, gloves and uniforms ever used, to bringing together the most iconic pieces of baseball history, such as Joe DiMaggio’s record-setting ball that drove his 56 game hitting streak and Babe Ruth’s 1939 uniform from when he coached the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Featured items on display in Baseball! The Exhibition include:
- An exhibit dedicated to Babe Ruth, which will display his traveling trunk, including his 1939 uniform while coaching the Brooklyn Dodgers, his baseball bat and his famous fur coat
- A Honus Wagner trading card – the rarest and most valuable of all baseball cards
- Jerseys/uniforms worn by Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, Jackie Robinson, Willie Mays, Ted Williams, Hank Aaron, Don Sutton, Orel Hershiser, Barry Bonds, David Ortiz, Fernando Valenzuela, Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale and more
- Baseball hit by Barry Bonds (the homerun ball that tied Hank Aaron’s record), as well as a Hank Aaron-signed ball
- Baseballs from Joe DiMaggio, including his record-setting ball that drove his 56 game hitting streak as well as the ball that ended the streak
- Baseball signed by Pete Rose that broke Ty Cobb’s all-time hitting record
- A special section featuring the history of the Brooklyn Dodgers and their legacy in Los Angeles
- Some of the first historic bats, balls, gloves, uniforms, stadium items and folk art related to the sport as well as an unmatched collection of rare baseball cards and photographs of all the astonishing athletes who played the game
- And so much more
The Reagan Library is located at 40 Presidential Drive in Simi Valley, California. Public hours are from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. The Museum is only closed on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Years Day. For Museum Admission fees, please visit www.reaganlibrary.com. Museum exhibit tickets may be pre-purchased at www.reaganlibrary.com/tickets.