It was 10 years ago next weekend that Major League Baseball first took the unprecedented step of allowing 100 of its biggest stars to brandish Louisville Sluggers colored pink on Mother's Day in 2006 in an effort to raise awareness about breast cancer and help find a cure for the disease. The players were then supposed to sign the bats and put them up for auction -- with the proceeds going to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. The players initially greeted this effort with mixed reviews, some declining to use the bats, while others, because they had contracted to swing a brand other than Louisville Slugger, could not participate. Many who did participate asked that their mother's name be put on the barrel rather than their own.
Above is a David Ortiz pink Louisville Slugger bat from that inaugural 2006 season. Collectors now look forward to this time of year and the MLB pink bat auctions. Not surprisingly, many of these bats never get auctioned as the players keep them to give to family and friends.
