(eBay screengrab)

Oh, my: The auction house Sotheby’s is selling the Mets’ old bullpen cart on eBay. Bidding is set to start at $10,000, with a final cost expected to be between $20,000 and $30,000.

But you can’t put a price tag on awesomeness, and this sounds awesome:

Electric powered Presidente Cart, circa 1967. Battery pack included. The cart is in drivable condition and remains completely untouched as to the original modifications. The cart is in a two-seat configuration, with seats mimicking bases, each with wear concurrent with age. The area to the outside of each seat has been widened to allow for the addition of speakers to either side. Green fabric interior shows the commensurate amount wear one would expect with a vehicle such as this. The exterior of the cart has cracks and minor paint chips to the edges of the helmet top as well as a few small scattered spots of loss around the helmet. Additional small areas of imperfections are visible as is some areas of paint flaking inside the helmet. Overall, this is a highly original vehicle with wear indicative of its age and in a condition one would expect. While not perfect, it is completely useable and presentable as is….

A fantastic example of whimsical Major League Baseball marketing from the late 1960s, used intermittently at Shea Stadium for more than 20 years. Highlights of its use include a memorable appearance at the 1986 World Series versus the Boston Red Sox and then again in 2003 when Mets Captain John Franco drove Mets legend Tug McGraw onto the field as part of the team’s celebration of the legendary 1973 team.

First off, it still works. That’s tremendous. And “the area to the outside of each seat has been widened to allow for the addition of speakers to each side,” which means you can take it down to Best Buy and get a bumping sound system put in there. You’ll want that for situations when driving around in a bullpen car isn’t enough to announce your presence.

Second, it was once driven by John Franco. You know what Mets fans normally have to do to get a car once driven by John Franco? It’s actually probably not that hard. John Franco’s around, and maybe you could talk him into selling you his car. But still.

Finally, do you have any idea how hard it is to park in New York City? If you could somehow make this thing street legal, you would eventually make up the cost in how much you save on garages and parking tickets. It’s a great option for anyone who wants the maneuverability of a Smart car but doesn’t want to be seen driving a Smart car and would rather be seen driving the 1967 Mets’ bullpen cart.

(Thanks to Eye on Baseball for calling our attention to this story.)