1985 Reds Team Ball

I love autographed team balls. There's just a sense of aura that surrounds them. Maybe it's because I feel like I have a piece of history that's tied to a team at a particular moment of time. Or maybe it's the beauty of having multiple signatures gracing a ball that's been passed from teammate to teammate as they scribe their John Hancock. I've made it a goal to have some autographed Reds team balls in my collection and I'm very content with what I have thus far. One of my favorite team balls is 1985. This was the year that Pete Rose rejoined the Reds as player/manager (something you don't see anymore, but I wouldn't mind if it were to happen again). This was the year that Rose passed Ty Cobb claiming the mantle of "Hit King". Some other prominent signatures on the ball include the following Reds greats: Tony Perez, Tom Browning, Eric Davis, Dave Parker, John Franco, Ron Oester and Mario Soto. I've included some additional pics below. Sorry if they're a little blurry, that's the best I could do with the phone on my camera.