Roger Maris was a simple and humble man whose athletic prowess was his preferred method of communication. He was the “strong, silent type” who shunned the limelight and enjoyed an existence focused solely on family and sports. By the time he was acquired by the Yankees from the Kansas City Athletics on December 11, 1959, Maris was a fine ball player who was on the verge of blossoming into a perennial all-star and a prolific power hitter defined by the common standards of the day. Even though Maris would become an integral component to the Yankees’ success in the early 1960’s, he was still viewed as the “anti-Mickey Mantle.” Prior to his superb season in 1961 that clearly set him apart from his teammates, opponents and thousands of ball players across history, Maris’ struggle to command respect was particularly difficult. The offered lot succinctly demonstrates that point.

This group of correspondence between Yankees former assistant GM Roy Hamey and Roger Maris, executed between January 20-February 15, 1960 shows Maris trying to scratch out an addition $2,000 above the $20,000 salary offered by the Yankees. The fascinating content has Maris pleading his case for his value as a player and the additional cost of living increase the move to New York will incur. Hamey counters that his offer is both fair and firm noting Maris should derive greater future earning opportunity by being part of a team with better prospects than the one he left. Maris delivers a succinct point, stating, “I don’t believe my family can live on ‘opportunity’…”. Both Maris letters are handwritten and signed while the two Hamey letters are unsigned onion skin copies. All four letters can be read in full online. The group is an amazing window into the disparate compensation scale between athletes of Maris’ era versus that of today. Also fascinating is to view this exchange within the context of what was to come for Maris just one year later, and the relative value he would deliver for his team.

Two full LOAs from PSA/DNA.