As Pete Rose was approaching baseball hit immortality, he predominately switched from H&B and almost exclusively used bats manufactured by the Mizuno company. As Rose approached the historic 4,000 hit milestone, it was a club with only one other member, Ty Cobb. As a tool of motivation, Rose had the milestone printed on his bat, PR4000, in reference to the 4,000 hit mark he sought to achieve.
On April 13th, 1984, Pete Rose registered the hit which raised his all time total to 4,000. Shortly after, the PR4000 model was retired, as its purpose of motivation was no longer needed, and a new model was created. The next model, the 4192, was set as the benchmark to surpass the Ty Cobb (career hit total 4,191). The PR4000 model was never used again.
Measuring 33 ½ inches and weighing 33.8 ounces, this bat is consistent with known Rose bats from the era.
Examination reveals the presence of three sets of use traits that must be present on high grade Rose bats. They are:
1. Ringlets of handle tape
2. Pine tar application in mid range of handle
3. Sanded surface above and below barrel
Examination of Wire Images #81478377 & #81478375, verify that Mizuno was the correct supplier as evidenced by the center label, presence of handle tape ringlets, and the presence of pine tar.
Finally, the factory applied “A” (ash) is factory stamped on the knob, along with a faded 14. The 14 is quite faded from extended game use, but clearly visible upon a personal inspection.
Game use: The bat exhibits heavy game use, with even patina from knob to barrel end. The handle tape ringlets appear shiny from continued use, with traces of worn pine tar and dirt patina. The pine tar is applied in a 10” area in the middle of the handle.
The final sign of game use, most commonly found on high grade Rose Mizuno bats from the era, is fact that the area above and below the barrel stampings has been lightly and repeatedly hand sanded.
In an interview personally conducted by MEARS evaluator Troy R. Kinunen, Rose explained that he hand sanded the two areas in the dugout after each at bat. His objective was to evaluate ball marks, and study hit vs. foul ball marks.
In the sanded areas are concentrations of hit marks, along with a few scattered yet distinct cleat marks, all of which are consistent with heavy, legitimate game use.
Finally, the period autograph, simply signed, “Good Luck, Pete Rose”, serves as an additional form of authentication. Rose was known for providing his game used bats for various favors. The autograph is vintage and was signed at the time of the bat's game use.
Grade: MEARS A10. A base grade of 5 points was awarded for the fact the bat was consistent with model, length, and weight for 1984 Rose bats, 3 points were awarded for optimal heavy game use, 2 points were awarded for combined player specific traits including ringlets of tape, vintage signature, document able 14 on knob, and overall heavy game use traits closely associated with Pete Rose.
According to the MEARS bat census, only two PR4000 bats have been examined by MEARS. The first was a MEARS A8, thus making this the highest graded example, along with the only graded example at the A10 level.