This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 8/19/2016
The current high bids for the cumulative group of singles, $318,951.00, is currently higher than the total for the complete set, $280,000.00 (this lot is currently winning)
"Welcome to the bigs, kid! We hear you're a heck of a hitter, can't wait to get you in the pinstripes and see what you can do. Not for nuthin', but we're an organization that has a long history of winning championships, the ultimate dynasty in professional sports history. Now I don't want to put any pressure on you, but we fully expect you to assume the role of leader that guides this team into the next generation of greatness, a tradition passed down from Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig to .... oh here is is now! Meet your teammate, Joe DiMaggio. Joe's won us the World Series, what ... 9 times? Yeah, he's gonna be the newest New York icon to go into the Hall of Fame. Anyway, you'll be replacing him in centerfield. Hey, Ruth was #3, Gehrig was #4, DiMaggio is #5 ... we're gonna give you #6. Yeah, Mickey Mantle, the next great superstar for the New York Yankees! Now kid, we ain't expect you to lead us to the World Series ever single year, just like, you know, most of the time. Hey, you OK kid? You look a little pale. I'd grab you a beer but you still can't legally drink it for another two years." It's hard to imagine that anyone could live up to that kind of enormous pressure, and for a while, Mantle couldn't. Plucked as a 17-year old from Commerce, Oklahoma, a town with barely 2,000 residents, Mantle was making his debut in "the house that Ruth built" just two years later. While most teenagers were saving up for a jalopy, Mantle was expected to save the greatest sports franchise in the greatest city in the world. After a tumultuous debut, Mantle was sent back to the minors, did a little soul-searching, got his swing together and returned to New York wearing #7. In 18 seasons, Mickey Mantle led the New York Yankees to the World Series 12 times, winning 7 championships. It's no wonder that the legend of Mickey Mantle shines brighter than any other athlete in the post-war era, and his 1952 Topps high-number card is far and away the flagship of the sports card collecting world. The presented card is an impressive specimen at PSA 7, the highest graded of a quartet of '52 Topps Mantles featured in this auction. Perfectly centered top to bottom with a slight preference toward the right edge, a common occurrence even for examples that rate as high as this and well within the tolerances for the NM grade. The depth of color in the aqua-green backdrop as well as the various pigments that comprise Mantle's likeness are outstanding, surpassing many higher graded examples in overall quality. The edges show no notable issues while the endpoints meet PSA 7 standards at each corner, even surpassing expectations at a point or two. The reverse is actually superior for the grade, well-framed with a problem-free canvas of gray supporting the red and black colors of the nameplate and bio print. Whether it's the final piece to completing a world-class set, an investment for the future, one that has proven unbelievably fruitful over the past few years, or just because you can and you want to, this 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card is a solid PSA 7 specimen that represents a true masterpiece in the world of sports card collecting!