Ken Hubbs was the 1962 National League Rookie of the Year as a second baseman for the Chicago Cubs. Sadly, he passed away when a plane he was piloting crashed during a snowstorm near Provo, Utah, in 1964, before spring training began. Hubbs had died at 22 years old. Presented is a single-signed Ken Hubbs baseball with a scarce Hubbs' autograph. Hubbs also won a Gold Glove Award in '62, the first player to ever win a Gold Glove in his rookie season. That season, Hubbs broke two fielding records held by Hall of Famer Bobby Doerr. The records involved Hubbs playing 78 games and handling 418 total chances without an error. Hubbs excelled in baseball, football, and basketball in high school in Utah. He was recruited by Notre Dame to play quarterback and also recruited by famed UCLA basketball coach John Wooden for basketball. Hubbs chose baseball, bating .247 for his MLB play, with 14 home runs and 98 RBIs. He was very popular with players and fans.

Many baseball pundits felt that he would have been a star. Hall of Famer Lou Boudreau, who was a radio announcer with the Cubs when Hubbs passed away, said, "At the time he died, I felt he was on his way a Hall of Fame career. The bat hadn't come around, but it would have."

The signed ball shows wear. It exhibits some "skin" loss, with some darkening, spotting, and minor stains. Hubbs neatly signed his name, using dark blue or black ink from a ballpoint pen, on a side panel. The manufacturer and any possible league information are not visible on the ball. The consignor got the auto in 1962 during a promotional event for a new store in Illinois. The offering comes with a PSA LOA for the signature. The ball has possible signature/handwriting removals.

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