First Annual Roger Maris-Shanley Open Souvenir Program

North Dakota: [s.n.], 1984 First edition. Signed on front wrapper by Maris, and signed inside by Whitey Ford, "Moose" Skowron, Bob Allison, and Ken Hunt on their respective profiles. Original white wrappers, with batting photo of Maris to front wrapper, priced $2.00, and lettered in black and red. About fine, with just some light toning and a hint of edgewear to wrappers. With JSA letter of authenticity. Overall, a lovely multi-signed copy. This program is for the inaugural Roger Maris-Shanley Open - a celebrity golf tournament that Maris organized after being diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Held on June 25th, 1984 near Maris' high school, Shanley High School, the tournament helped raise money for cancer treatment and research, and featured celebrity baseball players Roger Maris, Mickey Mantle, Bill Skowron, Bob Allison, Whitey Ford, and Ken Hunt. Sadly, Maris passed away in 1985, just one year after the inaugural tournament, but his impact on the world of cancer research continues to be felt. The Sanford Roger Maris Cancer Center was named in his honor, and in June of 2024 Maris' celebrity golf tournament celebrated its 40th anniversary. Roger Maris played 12 seasons of Major League Baseball from 1957-1968 with 4 different teams, most notably the New York Yankees. He's best remembered for his historic 1961 season in which he broke Babe Ruth's single season home run record with 61 home runs, the 61st home run coming in the fourth inning of the last game of the season on October 1, 1961. Maris also led the New York Yankees to a World Series title that same year. Maris is a 7x All-Star, 3x World Series Champion (1961, 1962, and 1967), 2x A.L. MVP (1960, 1961), and 1960 Gold Glove Winner. His number "9" was officially retired by the New York Yankees in 1984. Whitey Ford played all 16 seasons of his MLB career with the Yankees (1950, 1953-1967) during which time the team was incredibly dominant, winning six World Series. Ford was selected as an all-star ten times and holds numerous Yankees records, including career wins, shutouts, and games started. He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974, along with his close friend and teammate, Mickey Mantle. Bill "Moose" Skowren was a 5x champion and 8x All-Star, and Bob Allison was AL Rookie of the Year (1959) and a 3x All-Star.. Signed. First Edition. Original Wraps. Near Fine.