Mantle RJ 33 Rawlings

[Bleacher Bum]

I picked up an RJ 33 Rawlings glove a few months ago on eBay. It has Mickey Mantle's sig in the palm and is a Trap-eze model - made in the USA. The glove is for a LHT. I have been through the Catalog and cannot find any RJ model gloves. Can anyone give me some insight on this particular model?

Thanks,

Brad

[softball66]

Oh boy, I'm having to do this by memory and with a little help from the glove finder. Years ago we ran a photo of three Trapeze models, one for Maris (Spalding Trapocket), a Mantle, and a Yogi Berra (both Rawlings).
I'm trying to remember the model number for the Mantle. I want to say it was SS480 could have been TGF7 but I don't think so.
Your's, as far as we know, is not catalogued unless in a missing year we don't have on Rawlings. Also not sure what your model number stands for "J"s later were used for imports but that's not always the case. Rawlings used the TT and TG designations on most of their catalogued issues.
I'll try finding that picture and see what the Rawlings model # might have been.

[BretMan]

It seems like many oddly numbered Mantle models frequently pop up. And many pop up that don't appear in any of the catalogs or reference books.

A few I can think of off-hand: the GJ999 (three-nines) which looks just like the common and well known GJ99 (two-nines); a model number 1050 which seems to be the same as the later MM5's, and the unusually numbered MICK7 gloves.

I always assumed that these uncataloged models may have been made for department stores or other retail outlets. Possibly some of them may have been give-away gloves or premiums.

I've seen the RJ33 gloves before and thought that it was interesting that Mantle appears in some early ads for the RJ Reynolds tobacoo company. These ads had some sort of promotional giveaway where you could get your very own Mantle endorsed glove. I wonder if the RJ models could have been produced for this promotion?