While certainly not the most valuable this is one of the greatest autograph display items we have ever handled. In his early seasons in the Major Leagues the "Say Hey Kid" would spend time playing stickball in the streets of Harlem with young kids. He claimed that this was how he learned to hit a curveball. "I played stickball in the morning around 10 for about an hour " he explained. "There was a bunch of kids. They'd come and knock on my window 'cause my window was on the ground level. I could walk from where I lived down the street to the Polo Grounds. So I'd buy the kids ice cream then go to the ballpark. I did that all year in '51 and in '52 til May when I went into the military." Kids in New York would play with what they called a "Spaldeen" - a Spalding "Hi-Bounce" rubber ball. A bit smaller than a tennis ball the "spaldeen" got its name simply from the sound of "Spalding " pronounced with an affected New York accent. Like many great names "Spaldeen" came to represent any pink bouncy rubber ball - though the Spalding Hi-Bounce was always the original "Spaldeen."Presented here is a lovely shadowbox measuring 18 1/2" x 20 1/2". At the top is a photographic print measuring approximately 13" x 10 1/2" picturing Mays playing stickball on the streets of Harlem. Encased at the bottom of the shadowbox is a Spaldeen - signed by Willie Mays in black fiber-tip marker. The rubber of the ball was not intended to display autographs well as the ink does not absorb into the surface. The result is a slightly faded appearance to the signature. In this case however it's less the quality of the signature and more how cool of an idea this is - a display that doesn't celebrate Mays' Hall of Fame status his 660 home runs his status as one of the three or four greatest players that ever lived - it simply celebrates a superstar athlete playing ball in the street with kids. It's what baseball is all about. Full LOA from James Spence Authentication.