Derrek Lee Chicago Cubs Signed Rawlings Official Major League Baseball – Beckett Witnessed

Description

Derrek Lee, nicknamed “D-Lee”, is a former professional baseball first baseman. Lee played with the San Diego Padres, Florida Marlins, Chicago Cubs, Atlanta Braves, Baltimore Orioles and Pittsburgh Pirates of Major League Baseball (MLB). Lee was named to the U.S. roster for the 2006 World Baseball Classic, where he was the first player to hit a home run for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic.

Lee was a World Series champion with the Marlins in 2003, and he won the National League batting title in 2005. He was a two-time All-Star selection, and won the Gold Glove Award three times.

Lee was a member of the 2003 World Series Marlins championship team. Lee won his first Gold Glove during the 2003 championship season and his spectacular grab and unassisted putout on a hard hit Hideki Matsui one-hop line drive snuffed out a Yankees rally and ended Game 5 of the World Series with a Marlins victory. The Marlins went on to win the World Series in Game 6.

Lee was traded to the Cubs for Hee-seop Choi, who coincidentally had been scouted by Lee’s father Leon years before. He hit .278 with 32 home runs and 98 RBIs in his first year with the Cubs. In 2005, Lee had a career first half of the season, with an MLB-leading .376 batting average, 72 RBIs, and a tie for the major league lead in home runs with 27.

The Cubs had traded superstar Sammy Sosa, who had previously been one of their best hitters, before the 2005 season. Lee showed early on that he could more than compensate for the loss, and while Sosa had a disappointing 2005 season with the Baltimore Orioles, Lee had a career year. By midseason, he was among MLB’s leaders in each of the triple crown categories: batting average, home runs, and RBIs. Lee hit his 200th career home run on August 28, 2005, off Florida Marlins starter Josh Beckett. He finished the year with a career-best 46 home runs. His .335 batting average was the highest by a Cub since Bill Madlock’s .339 in 1976 and made him the first Cub since Bill Buckner in 1980 to win a National League batting title. He also finished third in NL MVP voting and won the NL Gold Glove and Silver Slugger awards at first base that year.

The featured Rawlings Official Major League Baseball has been signed by former NL Batting Champ and 2-Time All-Star Derrek Lee in blue. The autograph includes an official Beckett Authentication Services serially numbered hologram for authenticity purposes. The signing of this item was witnessed by Beckett.