It's widely held that the three toughest Hall of Fame autographs are Jose Mendez, Cristobal Torriente and Frank Grant with zero—yes, ZERO—known exemplars. Ross Youngs no doubt ranks in the Top 10 for rarity and is found almost exclusively on New York Giants team-signed baseballs. But single-signed balls? Youngs all by his lonesome? Near non-existent. In 2016, an almost single (with Youngs as a sweet-spot sandwiched between two other signatures) sold at auction for a whopping $18,000. Which is to say, even the most advanced Hall of Famer single-signed ball collector has a gaping hole in the Ross Youngs slot. Hence, this circa 1925-26 survivor is rare as hen's teeth, far more elite than a Ruth, and could even max out in the high 5-figure stratosphere. Dare we say it's the Button Gwinnett of Cooperstown signed singles. The darkly toned, heavily scuffed, red-and-blue-seamed OAL (Johnson) ball features a boldly legible autograph complete with Youngs' nickname "Pep," bestowed by none other than John McGraw for his speedy hustle. Faint, undecipherable writing away to the right is described as follows by JSA: "There is additional ink on the east panel that is of unknown origin." Full LOA from JSA.
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