Auctions
Mickey Mantle, Shohei Ohtani flex hobby muscle in SCP auction
What do Shohei Ohtani and Mickey Mantle have in common?
Not much—unless you want to compare Hall of Fame stats, and consider what may be in store for Ohtani, baseball’s current superstar.
Mantle was one of the greatest players of all time, slugging 536 career home runs with 1,509 RBI in 18 seasons for the New York Yankees.
Ohtani, by contrast, already has 280 home runs and 669 RBI in nine seasons, the last three with the Dodgers.
But Ohtani is already closing in on Mantle in the categories that count most. Mantle won three AL MVP awards. Ohtani already as four MVPs, including the last two, and two each in the American League and National League.
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He has a ways to go to match Mantle in World Series victories (seven), but he’s well on his way, winning the last two Fall Classics with the Dodgers.
Where Ohtani and Mantle are most similar is on the trading card market, where Mantle is one of the most collectible players of all time and is featured on the holy grail baseball card—his 1952 Topps card holds the all-time record at $12.6 million.
Ohtani, meanwhile, is well on his way to building a hobby resume to match such legends as Mantle and Babe Ruth, with his cards and collectibles routinely selling for six and seven figures (and rising).
Mantle and Ohtani led the 2026 Spring Auction at SCP Auctions, with Mantle’s top card selling for five figures and an historic Ohtani baseball pulling in six figures.
The ball Ohtani hit for his first career World Series home run in Game 1 of the 2025 World Series was the top performer, selling for $114,000.
A hobby-fresh 1952 Topps Mantle card, graded Authentic Altered by PSA, sold for $78,000, a record for the grade.
Other key sales in the SCP auction included a 1986 Fleer Basketball complete set graded PSA 9 graded that sold for $54,000, and a 2005 Upper Deck Ultimate Collection Alexander Ovechkin Rookie Auto card graded PSA 10 went for a record $16,800.
Other historically significant sales included a pair of Novak Djokovic tennis racquets, with his 2011 U.S. Open Final racquet selling for $51,000, and a 2012 Australian Open racquet going for $39,000.
On the soccer front, a 1957 Pele Brazil match-worn soccer jersey sold for $39,000 while a 1965-66 Pele Brazil match-worn jersey took in $31,200. A 1981 Diego Maradona Boca Juniors match-worn jersey went for $39,000.
Other auction results include:
• Dec. 1, 2001 Michael Jordan (Wizards) game-worn, signed and Photo-matched Nike Air Jordan XVII shoes: $36,000.
• 1985 William Perry Chicago Bears Super Bowl XX Champions 10K gold ring (with presentation box): $36,000.
• 1980 Phil Verchota Winter Olympics USA Hockey 'Miracle On Ice' game-used stick: $33,600
• 1986 New York Giants Super Bowl XXI Champions 10K gold ring: $22,800
• 1999 New York Yankees World Series Champions 14K gold ring presented to team doctor: $20,400.
• 2000 New Jersey Devils Stanley Cup Champions player's ring: $20,400.
• 1998 New York Yankees World Series Champions 14K gold ring presented to team doctor: $19,200.
• 1998 Mark McGwire game-used, signed Rawlings 'MAC25' pro model bat from 70-home run season (given to Cards' bat boy): $19,200.
• 1978 Rick Barry NBA All-Star game-worn Western Conference jersey: $19,200.
• 1947 Jackie Robinson “Rookie Portrait at Wrigley” original photograph: $18,000.
