Notes: Gehrig RC Sold; $2 Goodwill Find Worth Thousands; Collector Q&A

A 1925 Lou Gehrig Exhibit rookie card graded SGC 60 sold for $82,419 at Love of the Game Auctions early Sunday. The fast rising card has soared in value over the past year. 

Only four of 49 total copies examined by the major grading services rate higher than the EX example.  Bidding opened at $15,000.

Also sold in the auction were a 1951 Bowman Mickey Mantle rookie card  with an autograph grade of 10 which netted $38,130 and the 1915-1950 Philadelphia Athletics team ledgers once rescued from a team dumpster after the franchise moved to Oakland in the 1960s.  The two books with hand-written entries brought $12,300.

A 24-year-old guy walked into a Goodwill store in Pittsburgh recently and paid $2.22 for an old baseball bat. 

It’s worth a lot more.

The bat is a Pie Traynor game model issue that dates from the late 1920s or early 30s. 

Grant Hartley, in town for several weeks during an internship, found the bat while making a regular visit to the thrift store. He did some quick research on his cell phone and took it back to the hotel where he was staying.  A phone call to MEARS confirmed it was an original, likely gifted by Traynor, who played third base for the Pirates during the time of Babe Ruth, to a local fan.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette talked with Hartley and MEARS’ Troy Kinunen about the find.

He grew up with baseball cards but collector Pat Humphrey of Quincy, IL is now a memorabilia guy.

His collection of 19^th and early 20^th century baseball items was the subject of a Q&A with the local newspaper.

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About Rich Mueller

Rich is the editor and founder of Sports Collectors Daily. A broadcaster and writer for over 40 years and a collector for even longer than that, he's usually typing something somewhere. Type him back at [email protected].