[MSN] Hall Of Famer's Signed Baseball Returned To Family

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Hall Of Famer's Signed Baseball Returned To Family
Ted Williams' Prized Babe Ruth Ball Resurfaces
 
 
Dana Kozlov
Reporting

(CBS) CHICAGO A baseball battle over a keepsake -- with a connection to Ted
Williams and Babe Ruth is finally resolved.

CBS 2's Dana Kozlov reports the valuable keepsake is now going back to the
rightful owners.

The historic baseball signed from Babe Ruth to Ted Williams was one of
Williams' prized possessions, and his family's attorney says he died longing
for the ball that had been stolen from his home in the early 1980s.

"Ted Williams said that the regret of his life was that he no longer had
that ball," said the Williams family attorney, Shawn Collins.

Four years after Williams' death, the ball has resurfaced as part of a
Mastro Auctions auction. The Ted Williams Museum curator spotted it online.

"There's no question about the authenticity. This is the genuine article,"
Collins said.

Doug Allen is the president of Mastro Auctions in Burr Ridge. When contacted
about the stolen ball, Allen says they called the person who gave it to
them. 

Among the questions the president of Mastro Auctions, Doug Allen, had "Well,
where did you get it? Did you get it from his family? .It was clear this was
not a typical transaction."

Allen says the consigner promptly relinquished the ball. It's on its way
back to Williams' daughter. 
But who gave it to them? Allen can't say, and it's still the subject of a
lawsuit.

Allen says the ball would likely have sold for more than $40,000.

As for who stole it all those years ago? 

The Boston Red Sox hall of famer's family believes it was someone who knew
Williams well. 

(C MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)