"If you could equate the amount of time and effort put in mentally and physically into succeeding on the baseball field and measured it by the dirt on your uniform, mine would have been black," said Hall of Fame third baseman Mike Schmidt, who wasn't bragging as much as explaining the hard work that went into his career. Displayed is a signed Mike Schmidt 1970s game used bat. The lifetime Philadelphia Phillie played 18 seasons (1972-89) and bashed 548 home runs, winning three NL MVP Awards and 10 Gold Gloves, and he was a key member of the 1980 World Champions. Schmidt had such an amazing career in spite of playing in "The City of Brotherly Love," a town that can be notoriously hard on its own players. He had to forge his way past all of the negativity that can engulf a Philadelphia athlete. "If you're associated with the Philadelphia media or town, you look for negatives," said Schmidt." I don't know if there's something in their upbringing, or they have too many hoagies or too much cream cheese." Schmidt was able to stay positive, and he went to the HOF in 1995. The offered bat is a signature model Adirondack MS 20, flame treated, and it is 35.75" in length and weighs 32.9 ounces. The bat shows light to moderate use, with some red bat rack marks, and some ball marks on the barrel. It is from the mid-to-late 1970s. The bat has his "20" on the knob, in black marker. The barrel is vintage signed and inscribed by Schmidt as "Best Wishes Mike Schmidt." With only 17 third basemen in the Hall of Fame (18 when Scott Rolen is inducted in 2023), the hot corner has the fewest Hall of Famers of any position, so Mike Schmidt is in a very exclusive club, and his signed and inscribed bat makes a great keepsake.