by BretMan » January 7th, 2008, 4:49 pm
The Flagstead-endorsed Wilson 651 model glove appears in their catalogs from 1930 to 1933 (source: The Vintage Baseball Glove Catalog Source Book, 2007 edition).
No catalog data is available for 1928 or 1929, so the glove could possibly be from either of those years. In 1927, Wilson offered a 644 model endorsed by Flagstead and it would be safe to assume that such models were sold continually from 1927 to 1933.
Odd that his endorsement was offered on gloves for several years after his playing days ended, but certainly not the first case of such an endorsement from the early days of sports marketing.
The 651 model glove was a mid-priced glove, slotted in the middle of the Wilson line-up. Each year they would offer an array of models in various degrees of quality and price. For instance, in 1930 there were 21 distinct different fielder's glove models listed in the Wilson catalog, ranging in price from 75 cents for a cheapie kids glove, up to $9.00 for the professional-quality Rogers Hornsby models. The 651 sold for $5.00, right in the middle of the pack.
The Diamond model is harder to pin-down an exact date. Scant historical information exists for this brand. Judging from the style, my best estimate would be that it is from approximately the same era as the Wilson, possibly a little earlier due to the "vertical tunnel" webbing design. Another reason it may be slightly earlier would be that either glovemaker might have had an exclusive contract to use his endorsement, so there would be no overlap between to two makers. Mid-to-late 1920's would be my best estimate on the Diamond.
Flagstead gloves are considered rare, in that not many examples are found. Personally, I can only recall seeing a couple of them in my years of scanning through, literally, thousands of gloves auctions on eBay and various collector sites. The price guides reflect their rarity. Book values for gloves in "Very Good/Excellent/Near Mint" conditions are $100/$200/$375.
Hope this info proves to be helpful!
