Something new from something old.

For so long, I’ve focused primarily on creating products from the leather and seams from worn baseballs.  Now that I’ve scaled down my day job, I have more time to dream up new products, create more content, and give you opportunities to encourage baseball fans in your life with meaningful gifts.  

Over the last few months, I purchased 10 vintage baseball bats from antique and collectible dealers around the country.  These bats bear the names of some of the game’s greatest players - Mickey Mantle, Joe DiMaggio, Pete Rose, Ted Williams, and more.  They’ve seen better days - now cracked, cleated, broken, and worn down. But you know what? To me, the wear and tear experienced by these bats are what make them so beautiful.  Here’s a picture of them all lined up. 

I teamed up with a master craftsman near Dallas, Texas to cut, sand, and finish these old wooden bats into new creations.  I’m proud to announce the result of this collaboration:  the release of Batch No. 1 of reclaimed wood pocket hearts and pocket crosses created from these 10 baseball bats. These small repurposed wood remnants are designed to inspire, encourage, and strengthen you and the ones that you love.  Here’s a picture of 40 of the 177 hearts from Batch 1:

The hearts are absolutely stunning.  They are a perfect way to tell someone how much they are loved and appreciated.  What’s really cool is that about 22 of them have very distinct features from the bat wood, such as player names and bat company logos.  We call these Premium Pocket Hearts and they cost more due to the scarcity.  Here’s a sample:

In addition to hearts, we also were able to produce 143 pocket crosses from the same 10 bats.  The crosses are just as beautiful and come in a variety of sizes (depending on whether they were made from the bat barrel or bat handle).  Here are some examples.

The wood pocket crosses are a tangible way to hit the pause button - slow life down and reflect on what you are thankful for.  Hold them during your prayer time.  Carry one in your pocket to remember how God has promised to be with you through all circumstances.

Like the hearts, a small amount of Premium Pocket Crosses are also available featuring distinct exterior markings from the bats.  Here are 5 of the 11 from Batch 1:

I don’t know about you, but I love these new products.  To my knowledge, nothing like this exists on the market today made from baseball bats and we are excited to pave the way.  Links to purchase these are noted below.  If we receive a good response from this batch, I’ll get another 10 bats going for Batch No. 2 before the end of the year.  

Link to Purchase Pocket Hearts

Link to Purchase Pocket Crosses

Would love to hear your thoughts in the comments or on social media.  Thanks for supporting my small business and all these crazy ideas that pop in my head.  Love bringing new ways to encourage you to the marketplace. 

Baseball is more than just a game.

- Nathan Rueckert, Founder & Artist
  The Baseball Seams Co.
  Sioux Falls, SD