A pair of 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle cards, both in near mint condition, drew bids of over $50,000 each in the first 24 
hours of bidding at Goldin Auctions. One card is rated SGC 84 (7) while the other is a PSA 7.
Among the 470 copies recorded in SGC’s census reporting, just 20 have been placed at a higher tier than the one in the auction. Just over three percent of examples examined by PSA rate greater than a 7.
Slightly better centering on the SGC graded card pushed bidding close to $60,000 by Tuesday morning while the PSA card was at $51,000 with 3 1/2 weeks left in the auction.
In addition to a well-publicized New England Patriots Super Bowl ring from last year’s game, the auction also includes several other Super Bowl and pro football championship rings, a 1959 Ted Williams game uniform, a 1972 Hank Aaron game jersey, the original plaque presented to Walter Johnson upon his Hall of Fame induction in 1939, Bobby Riggs’ Battle of the Sexes tennis racquet, Wayman Tisdale’s 1984 U.S. Olympic basketball gold medal an
d over 1,000 other items.
“Although we have sold many of the most valuable pieces of sports memorabilia and our auctions always feature many special items, I’ve never seen an auction as loaded as this one with more historically significant and unique museum-quality items,” said Ken Goldin Founder of Goldin Auctions. “We are very excited to see the response from collectors when they peruse this catalog.”
Goldin sold a Williams jersey for $144,000 in a previous auction but the current offering is a complete uniform—complete with undershirt. The opening bid of $50,000 has already been placed. The Aaron jersey is autographed on the left sleeve. MEARS awarded it an A10 grade, stating that the jersey is “the highest graded from [the 1972] season” and that “with respect to 1972 Hank Aaron game worn jerseys, this is only one of two known surviving examples.
The Riggs racquet auction comes not long after the one used by Billie Jean King in their famous 1973 showdown at the Astrodome sold for $125,000. Riggs used several rackets during the match in which he lost to King including this AMF Head model, which is the first to be offered for sale. The broken racquet is mounted in a 23 ½” x 32″ shadow box display with a photo from the event and a handwritten letter from Riggs to long-time friend Doug Dean reading; “Doug, I’m glad you have taken such good care of my tennis racket the one that I used and lost before 90 Million People around the world in 1973 – Bobby Riggs”.
Johnson’s plaque is the same one presented to him during the July 12th, 1939 ceremony in Cooperstown. Johnson was part of the inaugural class with Ruth, Cobb, Mathewson and Wagner. This item comes with an LOA from Carolyn Johnson Thomas, the daughter of Walter Johnson and Hank Thomas, the grandson of Walter Johnson.
Other key lots in the auction include:
Lot #9– The Original UFC V Superfight Championship Belt – Created for the Royce Gracie vs Ken Shamrock fight on April 7, 1995, it is the holy grail of UFC memorabilia. With the UFC still in its infancy, the organization decided that a single, marquee “Superfight”, — a rematch from UFC 1 Gracie VS Shamrock — would headline UFC V. UFC founder Art Davie commissioned legendary belt maker Joe Marshall to design the first-ever UFC V Superfight championship belt.
After a 35-minutes battle, the match was declared a draw and, as a result, the belt was not awarded. The lot also includes several documents related to UFC 1 (Gracie-Shamrock) accompanied by hand-signed descriptions from Davie.
Lot #4 – 1956-60 Ted Williams Game Used and Signed Hillerich & Bradsby W183 Model Bat (PSA/DNA GU9, MEARS A9.5 & Beckett) – Dating from Williams’ retirement comeback era and his final five seasons, the bat is un-cracked with several ball marks visible on the barrel. Williams has added his signature, which appears on the barrel lightly in blue pen, with the inscription “To Ed Best Wishes”.
Lot #14 – 1957 Willie Mays Gold Glove – The first of 12 straight gold gloves earned by Mays, it was gifted by Mays to his friend, major league pitcher Jim “Mudcat” Grant. It is the only Mays award that has ever been made available to the public.
Lot #7 – 1979 Thurman Munson NY Yankees Final Season Road Jersey (MEARS A10)
Lot #6 – 1961 Roger Maris World Series Louisville Slugger Bat(MEARS A8)
Lot #8 – 2017 Aaron Judge Yankees Rookie Season Game Used HR #17 Bat – The first Judge HR bat to come to market, the Chandler AJ99.2 model bat was used to hit his 17th home run of his historic rookie season on May 29 in Baltimore off Dylan Bundy. The bat which was used from May 27-June 1 was broken in an at-bat off Blue Jays pitcher Marco Estrada, an RBI single.
Judge has signed the bat in silver marker and inscribed “ROY”, “2017 Game Used” and “Rookie HR Record”. Comes with a LOA from PSA/DNA for game use, along with photo matches to two specific plate appearances and a LOA from Anderson Authentics for signature and game use. There is also a MLB Authenticated hologram which dates the bat to the June 1 game.
Lot #20 – David Ortiz Final Career HR Bat (#541) -The Marucci Papi34 Custom Cut III model bat was used by Ortiz to hit his final career HR (#541). There are numerous ball marks, stitch impressions, blue ink transfers and cleat imprints present on the barrel. Ortiz has added his signature on the barrel in contrasting silver marker and added the inscriptions “HR 541”, “Game Used 9/30/16 VS Blue Jays off Cecil”. The bat includes an MLB Authenticated hologram and a Fanatics hologram which authenticates that bat was signed by Ortiz and added the inscriptions on the bat.
Lot #18 – 1978-79 Pete Maravich New Orleans Jazz Game Used Home Jersey(MEARS A10)
Lot #992 – 1988-89 Michael Jordan Game Used &, Inscribed Bulls Home Jersey (MEARS A10, Meza LOA & Beckett) – Jordan signed the left chest in black marker, adding the inscription “To Steve Best Wishes”.
Lot #215 – 1966 Topps Football Unopened Wax Box (24 packs) – A rare surviving unopened box of Topps’ second AFL-exclusive set which included Joe Namath (second year) and other stars as well as the elusive Funny Ring Checklist.
The auction also features more than a dozen Super Bowl and championship rings in the catalog including: 2012 Baltimore Ravens Super Bowl Player Ring (Christian Thompson); 1992 Dallas Cowboys Super Bowl Players Ring (Jimmy Smith); 2015 Denver Broncos Super Bowl 50 Ring; 1999 St. Louis Rams Super Bowl Player Ring (London Fletcher); 1969 KC Chiefs Super Bowl Ring (scout Lloyd Wells); 1964 Buffalo Bills AFL Championship Ring (Head Coach Lou Saban); 1953 Detroit Lions NFL Championship Ring; and more.
Bidding continues through February 17 at GoldinAuctions.com.
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Notes: PWCC’s Trading Card Index; Mathis Talks of Selling Mint Mantle; Old Wrigleyville Shop Survives
Record Price for Mint 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle
