The Memory Lane Summer Rarities Auction had plenty of high-grade vintage sports cards and bidders weren’t shy about spending what it took to own some of them. Numerous records fell when the dust settled in the early hours of Sunday morning, some of which were multiple times the previous marks.
In all, the auction tallied over $8.9 million in sales.
For the first time since late 2019, a PSA 8 copy of Willie Mays’ second Topps card was offered at auction. The short print soared to $194,579, blowing away the previous mark of $38,240.
A PSA 8 Mickey Mantle offered by Memory Lane also set a new mark at $117,604.
A PSA 9 1955 Topps Ted Williams rocketed to $71,532, three times the previous high. Another record setting Williams card was a PSA 8 1941 Play Ball at $31,210.
1952 Topps Mickey Mantle Base #311 PSA 2.5 notched a record high when it sold for $89,249.
A 1973 Topps Hank Aaron graded PSA 10 went for $52,102—nearly four times the old mark set just two years ago. A flurry of bids came in on a 1976 Topps Reggie Jackson PSA 10 before it finally settled at $39,790, more than $29,000 higher than the last sale of a 10 just last year. A 1956 Topps card of Billy Martin graded PSA 10 climbed to $24,427.
It wasn’t just baseball cards that pushed to new heights. A PSA 9 1961 Fleer Jim Brown sold for $27,457, more than six times the previous high.
Other post-War records for their grades included:
- 1965 Topps Steve Carlton rookie card PSA 10 $93,869
- 1970 Topps Ernie Banks PSA 10 $63,427
- 1966 Topps Willie Mays PSA 9 $63,427
The biggest selling item in the auction was a 1961-62 Fleer Basketball unopened box that netted $420,608.
Other six-figure items included the only known signed copy of the 1932 U.S. Caramel Ruth card. Carrying a PSA 9 rated autograph, it went for $244,736. A Ruth signed magazine page from 1948 netted $50,933 thanks to a PSA 9 grade.
Numerous autographed baseball cards performed well including one of only four known 1952 Topps Jackie Robinson signed copies that sold for $125,794–the most ever paid for any autographed Robinson card A signed ’52 Mays went for $93,566–likewise, a record for any Mays-inked card. A 1967 Tom Seaver rookie card with the card and autograph both rated PSA 9 sold for $47,330. Numerous Roberto Clemente autographed cards set records including a ’58 Topps ($12,535); ’68 Topps ($12,535) and a 1969 Topps ($16,685).
The auction included several pages of unopened material. In addition to the 1961-62 Fleer Basketball box, a 1976 Topps Baseball vending case netted $72,198, a 1980 case sold for $42,930, a 1984 Topps Football wax case soared to $41,321 while a 1986 football rack case hit $22,784. A PSA 9 cello pack from 1966 Topps Baseball sold for $10,486.
Other unsigned vintage cards sold included:
- 1927 E126 Ruth Series of 60 PSA 4 $75,252
- 1957 Topps Frank Robinson PSA 9 $55,374
- 1909 T204 Walter Johnson PSA 2 $25,063
- 1972 Icee Pete Maravich PSA 10 $17,732
Memorabilia didn’t escape bidders either. A copy of the first World Series program in 1903 went for $77,225 and a 1918 World Series program from Fenway Park fetched a record-setting $28,082. Additionally, a full ticket to Don Larsen’s 1956 World Series perfect game, signed by the late pitcher and encapsulated by PSA reached $45,743, roughly three times the previous high mark.
Among the non-sports items in the sale were a couple of top-ranked sets on PSA’s Registry, including a 1975 Topps Comic Book Heroes ($21,456) and 1976 Star Trek Stickers ($20,188).
Complete results can be found here. Consignments are currently being accepted for the company’s upcoming Winter Auction.
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