Rollie Hemsley Autograph
Ralston Burdett Hemsley (June 24, 1907 – July 31, 1972) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for 19 seasons from 1928 to 1947. Born in Syracuse, Ohio, he was nicknamed "Rollicking Rollie". Hemsley batted and threw right-handed. More about Rollie Hemsley
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Hemsley began his major league career in 1928 for the Pittsburgh Pirates, playing 50 games. After spending his first two seasons backing up Charlie Hargreaves, he became the starting catcher for the Pirates for the 1930 season. The following season, Hemsley played 10 games before he was traded to the Chicago Cubs for Earl Grace. He spent his time as a Cub backing up Hall of Famer Gabby Hartnett, though was able to bat .309 during his tenure on the Cubs for the 1931 season. He played with the Cubs during their run to the 1932 World Series, though Hemsley ended up without a hit in three pinch hit appearances. At the end of the 1932 season, Hemsley was traded to the Cincinnati Reds along with Johnny Moore, Lance Richbourg, and Bob Smith for Babe Herman. He struggled in Cincinnati, hitting under .200 while playing under another Hall of Famer, Ernie Lombardi. On August 12, 1933, he was traded to the St. Louis Browns for Jack Crouch.
Hemsley became the starting catcher for the Browns in the 1934 season, and his best years were with the St. Louis Browns in 1934 and 1935, when he hit .309 and .290 respectively. He also hit 7 triples both years, a career high. His effort in 1935 also earned him his first spot on the All-Star team, as well as 9th place in MVP voting. He played well for two more seasons for the Browns, but a batting average of .222 in 1937, as well as a suspension for violation of team rules on July 2, 1937, led to a trade on February 10, 1938. Hemsley was traded to the Cleveland Indians for Ed Cole, Roy Hughes, and Billy Sullivan, Jr. on the recommendation of Bob Feller, who had been impressed with Hemsley's catching skills. He spent the 1938 season backing up Frankie Pytlak but, became known as Feller's personal catcher. Hemsley became the starter in 1939 after Pytlak went down with an injury, and played well enough to earn his third All-Star bid. On opening day of the 1940 season, Hemsley caught Feller's no-hitter, becoming the only catcher to catch an opening day no-hit game. He also drove in the only run of the game with a triple. His consistency in the 1940 season saw him lead the American League catchers with a .994 fielding percentage, and led to a couple MVP votes as well as his fourth All-Star appearance. Read even more about Rollie Hemsley at Wikipedia
Hemsley became the starting catcher for the Browns in the 1934 season, and his best years were with the St. Louis Browns in 1934 and 1935, when he hit .309 and .290 respectively. He also hit 7 triples both years, a career high. His effort in 1935 also earned him his first spot on the All-Star team, as well as 9th place in MVP voting. He played well for two more seasons for the Browns, but a batting average of .222 in 1937, as well as a suspension for violation of team rules on July 2, 1937, led to a trade on February 10, 1938. Hemsley was traded to the Cleveland Indians for Ed Cole, Roy Hughes, and Billy Sullivan, Jr. on the recommendation of Bob Feller, who had been impressed with Hemsley's catching skills. He spent the 1938 season backing up Frankie Pytlak but, became known as Feller's personal catcher. Hemsley became the starter in 1939 after Pytlak went down with an injury, and played well enough to earn his third All-Star bid. On opening day of the 1940 season, Hemsley caught Feller's no-hitter, becoming the only catcher to catch an opening day no-hit game. He also drove in the only run of the game with a triple. His consistency in the 1940 season saw him lead the American League catchers with a .994 fielding percentage, and led to a couple MVP votes as well as his fourth All-Star appearance. Read even more about Rollie Hemsley at Wikipedia
Traded items with a signature of Rollie Hemsley
In total, we tracked 57 items since 01/01/2008. The chart below shows the trade volume over time.
The most expensive item with a signature of Rollie Hemsley (ROLLIE HEMSLEY (1932 CUBS) 2012 HISTORIC AUTOGRAPHS CHAMPIONS CUT SIGNATURE #3/3) was sold in March 2023 for $250.00 while the cheapest item (Rollie Hemsley Autographed Cut on Card 1928-47 PIT SLB) found a new owner for $2.99 in February 2010. The month with the most items sold (2) was September 2013 with an average selling price of $11.66 for an autographed item of Rollie Hemsley. Sold items reached their highest average selling price in March 2023 with $250.00 and the month that saw the lowest prices with $2.99 was February 2010. In average, an autographed item from Rollie Hemsley is worth $20.51.
Most recently, these items with a signature of Rollie Hemsley were sold on eBay - click here for more items.
| Item Title | Price | Store | |
|---|---|---|---|
 | 1930s Rollie Hemsley SIGNED 4”x6” Browns Vintage Photograph SEINFELD TO Assman | $10.00 | |
| 1932 CUBS: Rollie Hemsley, SIGNED 3x5 (JSC), D.1972 | $39.99 | |
| 2020 HISTORIC AUTOGRAPHS HALF CENTURY ROLLIE HEMSLEY CUT AUTOGRAPH BOOKLET | $23.83 | |
| 2020 Historic Autographs Half Century ROLLIE HEMSLEY Cut signed w/1941 Play Ball | $85.00 | |
| Autographed 3x5 Index Card of Indians Rollie Hemsley | $8.00 | |
| Autographed 3x5 Index Card of Indians Rollie Hemsley | $7.00 | |
| ROLLIE HEMSLEY (1932 CUBS) 2012 HISTORIC AUTOGRAPHS CHAMPIONS CUT SIGNATURE #3/3 | $250.00 | |
| ROLLIE HEMSLEY 1928 PIRATES VINTAGE SIGNED AUTOGRAPHED INDEX CARD JSA BECKETT | $75.00 | |
| ROLLIE HEMSLEY 1943 YANKEES D.1972 SIGNED 3X5 INDEX CARD JSA/BECKETT AUTHENTIC | $7.57 | |
| Rollie Hemsley 2011 Sp Legendary Cuts 12/13 Cut Black Signatures Auto Autograph | $169.99 | |
| Rollie Hemsley 3x5 Baseball Autograph | $58.00 | |
| ROLLIE HEMSLEY Autographed GPC Baseball Five Time All Star Died-1972 | $22.50 | |
| ROLLIE HEMSLEY Autographed Signed AUTO INDEX CARD 3X5 D. 1972 SGC AUTHENTICATED | $79.98 | |
| ROLLIE HEMSLEY BECKETT AUTHENTICATED SIGNED INDEX CUT AUTHENTIC AUTO ENCASED | $20.50 | |
| Rollie Hemsley signed 3x5 card 1932 WS Chicago Cubs, yankees Browns 5x AS D:1972 | $7.50 | |