Oakland A's road jersey worn by Hall of Fame outfielder Rickey Henderson in 1980 during his first full season in the Major Leagues. Graded a perfect A10 by MEARS.
The green knit jersey is lettered "A's" on the left breast and features the number "35" on the reverse. "Henderson" is lettered on the reverse, directly above the number. All numerals and front lettering are applied in white on gold tackle twill. All reverse lettering is applied in white tackle twill. Located on the interior front tail are the following tags: 1) "1980" year tag; 2) "McAuliffe" label; 3) "42" size tag; and a laundry tag. Henderson has signed the jersey in blue ink (grading 8/10) on the reverse numeral "5." The jersey is original as issued and displays moderate wear.
Although 1979 represented Henderson's official rookie season, he played in just over half the team's games that year. In 1980 he was given the starting job as the club's left fielder and, no pun intended, he ran with it. Henderson appeared in 158 games that year, finishing the season with a .303 batting average, 9 home runs, 53 RBI, and a league-leading and then American-League record 100 stolen bases. During his twenty-five Major League seasons, Henderson established himself as both the greatest lead-off batter and base stealer in Major League history. The first accolade is by general consensus of opinion, but the second is factual. Henderson led the American League in stolen bases twelve times, and he finished his career with an incredible total of 1,406, which shattered Lou Brock's previous record of 938 stolen bases. He is also the only player in American League history to steal 100 or more bases in a single season, achieving that feat on three separate occasions, including a record 130 in 1982. Henderson retired in 2003 with 297 home runs, 1,115 RBI, a lifetime average of .279, and a Major League record 2,295 runs scored. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2009, his first year of eligibility. Full LOA from MEARS (graded A10). Full LOA from PSA (for the signature only).