In 1956, Don Drysdale made his MLB debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers. He pitched the ninth inning of a game against the visiting Philadelphia Phillies on April 17, 1956. He gave up no hits, no runs and walked one batter as the Phillies hung on for an 8-6 win. From that entrance, Drysdale would go on to become one of the most dominating pitchers in Major League Baseball history. Six days later, he started his first game for the Dodgers against the same Phillies lineup at Connie Mack Stadium. Drysdale went the distance, giving up nine hits and striking out nine as the Dodgers posted a 6-1 victory. His battery mate that day in Philly was future Hall of Famer Roy Campanella. Drysdale also collected his first major league hit that afternoon, a fifth-inning single off 172-game winner Murry Dickson. “Big D” started a total of 12 games that season for Brooklyn and helped “Dem Bums” clinch the National League pennant by posting a 5-5 record with an ERA of 2.64 and 55 strikeouts to his credit.

This lot features Drysdale’s circa 1956 Brooklyn Dodgers game-worn warm-up jacket. The blue satin, zipper-down jacket reads “Dodgers” across the front in white script tackle twill and is fully insulated. The collar, wrists and waistband areas are all sporting Dodger blue and white stripes. Both front jacket pockets are lined in blue leather and the inside rear collar is sporting the manufacturer’s tag reading “MADE OF SKINNER 8217” that’s accompanied by a flag tag reading “46” in red to indicate the size. The bottom of the left sleeve includes Drysdale’s uniform number “53” in white tackle twill numbers. The jacket reflects substantial use, but remains in incredible condition. The zipper remains intact and works! It has the same features (number on left sleeve only) as the attached images with examples worn by Drysdale, Dale Mitchell and Sal Maglie following Maglie's no-hitter on September 25, 1956.

Includes LOA from the Drysdale Family.