The Mickey Mantle auction conducted by Guernsey’s in 2003 was a direct link for collectors to get their hands on personal items from The Mick from the Mantle family. Now, collectors will get a second chance.
MEARS Online Auctions will be conducting three sales featuring the lifetime collection of a Mantle fan from Dallas, TX with many items originating from that Guernsey’s sale ten years ago. There will more than 5,000 items in all. The first auction kicked off earlier this week and runs through Jan. 4. Dates for the other two autions run Jan. 17-25 and Feb. 22-Mar. 1.
“This is a very comprehensive collection assembled by a really passionate collector,” said MEARS’ Troy Kinunen. “There are so many one-of-a-kind items – Japanese magazines with Mantle on the cover, Mantle home run scorecards and programs. Just the breadth of the autograph collection is amazing. All of it is one-of-a-kind on some level.”
Just a few of the highlights include Mantle’s 1965 Yankees player contract, a dozen photo transparencies from legendary photographer Ozzie Sweet with transferable rights, his 1956 Player of the Year Award Plaque, 1952 and 1955 Annual Art Griggs Memorial Awards, 1999 Custom Harley-Davidson Softail motorcycle designed by Mickey’s son David, original Frank Bauman 
photos, movie scripts, high school yearbooks and a massive autograph collection.
There are a total of 421 Mantle lots in the auction. Other items offered are a 1968 Transogram figure in the original box with the trading card on the back, a 1956 World Series full ticket to a game in which Mantle homered, Mantle-worn cowboy hats, 500 home run commemorative bats, original Yankee Stadium seats, original artwork, memorabilia from Mantle’s Country Cookin’ restaurant and more.
The auction is more than Mantle, however. Among the other items up for bid is a 1914-15 Eddie Collins JF Hillerich & Sons Louisville Slugger 40K Professional Model Game Used Bat (MEARS A8). Obtained at Comiskey park, MEARS officials say it may have been used during his 1914 MVP season. There is also a circa 1970 Thurman Munson game bat and others from Albert Pujols, Mark McGwire and others.
The auction includes a 1948 Pacific Coast League baseball signed by Babe Ruth to 14-year-old Frank Capra, Jr., who went on to fame as a Hollywood producer. Autographed just days before his death in June of 1948, the Ruth ball is among the last he would have signed. Capra’s father, Frank Sr., is best known as the director of the holiday classic ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’, starring Jimmy Stewart.
Game worn collectors will find a Yogi Berra Yankees’ coach’s jersey from the 1980s and gamers from Tommy Lasorda and new Hall of Famer Tony LaRussa.
There are also numerous game-worn and game-issued NFL jerseys including a September 2010 Peyton Manning Colts model with a team COA, a Kobe Bryant Finals jersey also with a team LOA.
Vintage football card collectors will notice a fresh to the hobby grouping of 80 high grade 1935 National Chicle football cards. The collection was assembled by a man in the Milwaukee area who opened the packs as a youngster and then saved them in a box. Virtually, untouched the group includes numerous high grade examples including a Rockne (SGC 84) and Ken Strong (SGC 96). The man recently passed away and the collection is being offered by his estate.
MEARS is also bringing a group of the original Hartland statue molds from the 1950s and ’60s, including those depicting Mantle, Stan Musial, Ted Williams and Harmon Killebrew. According to MEARS, each of the popular plastic statues was produced from heavy molds. Each mold consisted of two halves bolted together and each half weighed more than 200 pounds. The molds are made of solid steel and have about a 1/4-inch layer of copper on the impression surface.
For more information on this sale, contact Troy Kinunen at (414) 828-9990 or e-mail [email protected].
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