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Keys to value: Anything Ruth, Mantle or signed by ’27 Yankees

A few years ago I had a radio caller on an open-line show who wanted to talk about baseball collectibles. But not just any baseball collectibles. He wanted to talk about Detroit Tigers memorabilia. He mentioned Norm Cash, Denny McLain, Jim Northrup, Mickey Lolich and even the Yankee killer, Frank Lary. He knew for sure that his 1960s team-signed Tigers baseball and a helmet signed by Cash were worth a fortune. I told him he was wrong, much to his surprise and dismay. I asked him if he had any Ty Cobb items, because those would be valuable. He said that Cobb was before his time.

And that is the problem with the most valuable collectible baseball players. With a few exceptions, they played before the baby boomer period. For the most part, the most collectible baseball players of all time already have taken their place in Cooperstown, or will be there shortly.

Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle and the 1927 Yankees are on an investment fantasy team of players for sports collectibles.
Photos: COURTESY OF JEFF FIGLER
My list of all-time collectible baseball players is inclusive for all their items, not for a select one or two.

However, here is my baker’s dozen list of the mostcollectible baseball players. These are not in any specific order, although the first two lead the way: Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Lou Gehrig, Ty Cobb, Ted Williams, Joe DiMaggio, Jackie Robinson, Bob Gibson, Willie Mays, Sandy Koufax, Honus Wagner, Roberto Clemente and Derek Jeter.

Again, let me emphasize that I am only referring to the memorabilia of baseball players that have appreciated in value over a period of time.

I am simply including players from a purely dollars-and-cents point of view. In other words, an investment fantasy team of players.

Ruth and Mantle would be the MVPs of my team. A few examples of each of these players will illustrate my point.

Ruth, credited with saving baseball in the 1920s, also can be credited with stuffing the pockets of some lucky people who are fortunate enough to own some items by being at the right place at the right time, by design or by luck, or both. Of course, most sports collectors are aware that it was Ruth’s Yankees jersey of circa 1920 that fetched a cool $4.415 million in an SCP auction, making it to date the most valuable sports item in history, slightly above the $4.3 million that was gotten for James Naismith’s original 13 rules of basketball.

Actually, one Ruth item that has never been found is the ball that he hit in the 1932 World Series off of Cubs pitcher Charlie Root. That was the “called home run,” when Ruth pointed to the outfield area where he would hit the next pitch, and he did just that.

But for the Ruth items that have been found and sold, here are some examples as to why Ruth is a good business investment.

Merely a signed Ruth bat, not even one that he used, has doubled in value in a few years. Likewise, with official American League baseballs that he signed. I have seen signed baseballs fetch nearly $100,000. Actually,

baseballs signed by the 1927 Yankees, considered by many
baseball experts to be the greatest baseball team ever assembled, have appreciated tremendously in value over the past 10 years as well. That 1927 team included the likes of Ruth, Gehrig, Tony Lazzeri, Earle Combs, Waite Hoyt, Miller Huggins and others. In fact, just recently the 1927 team-signed ball that was owned by Combs went for slightly over $149,000.

It is true that most Ruth items will probably be out of the financial reach of most collectors. Besides his circa-1920 jersey, his first Yankee contract sold for $1.2 million, and his commemorative 1923 Yankees World Championship pocket

watch sold for $717,000. What can a Ruth collector realistically get besides a baseball card? Even a card in good shape will cost a few hundred dollars. One that’s in near mint condition will set you back thousands. An original Hartland Ruth statue from the set issued from 1959-63 will only run you about two hundred dollars, if you are not asking for the box and tag.

Ruth’s fellow Yankee alum, Mantle, is a hot collectible commodity as well. His signed home-run bat from the 1956 All-Star Game went for $430,200 in a 2014 auction. His 1949 signing-bonus check sold for $286,800, and his 1952 Topps rookie card has gone for as much as a quarter-million dollars. A few years ago a radio guest of mine, Clay Luraschi of Topps, told the story of some of the higher end numbers of the 1952 Topps card, including Mantle’s number 311, being dumped into the Atlantic Ocean because of a lack of sales earlier in the summer.

Mantle’s popularity can be attributed to a couple of reasons. First, he was an extremely talented and charismatic athlete. He actually succeeded against all odds, having followed the likes of the legendary Yankee Clipper, DiMaggio. In addition, he played his entire career in New York, a lion’s den for players who are always under the microscope. For those very reasons, Mantle’s popularity soared. If you could make it in New York as a Yankee, the media adored you. Baby boomers grew up with three-star center fielders in New York, namely Mantle, the Giants’ Mays and the Dodgers’ Duke Snider. Depending on which borough you lived in, Mantle was usually regarded as the best of the trio. So it was easy to become a devout Mantle follower for life. As baby boomers aged they had disposable income to spend, and Mantle memorabilia was front and center.

Buying and selling collectibles is a business for many. However, it’s the top items that appreciate the most.

Jeff Figler (info@jefffigler.com) is a nationally recognized collectibles expert, author of six books on collectibles, and national director of Jeff Figler’s Sports Appraisals and Consulting. His latest book, “Picker’s Pocket Guide to Baseball” (Krause Publications), is available at bookstores and Amazon.

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