Mastro Auctions will kick off 2009 with a February Classic Collector auction loaded with a wide variety of sports and Americana items. The sale will begin on Feb. 16 and conclude on Feb. 25 and 26. The Classic Collector auction will feature more than 1,600 lots, each with an opening bid of $100.

The auction is headlined by a remarkable array of team and single-signed baseballs, including a number of New York Yankees World Champion team-signed balls from several different eras.

“Despite the challenging economic environment that surfaced in 2009, sports and Americana collectibles appear to be weathering the storm well,” said Doug Allen, COO and president of Mastro Auctions. “During the last part of 2008, prices realized, as well as bidding, remained strong in our sales events. Our outlook for 2009 is optimistic, and we are busy preparing for our upcoming Classic Collector auction, along with accepting consignments for most of our sales through 2009.”
Specific highlights from the February auction include:

• Babe Ruth single-signed ball
• Paul Waner single-signed ball
• May 12, 1962 Sandy Koufax vs. Bob Gibson game-used and inscribed victory baseball
• 1951 New York Yankees World Champions team-signed ball (24 signatures, including DiMaggio and Mantle, on a lightly toned OAL Harridge ball)
• 1931-32 Yankees team-signed ball (15 signatures, including Ruth and Gehrig on an OAL Harridge ball)
• Hall of Famers and superstars single-signed balls collection (23, including Mantle)
• 1960 Pittsburgh Pirates World Champions team-signed ball (29 signatures, including Roberto Clemente, on an ONL Giles ball
• 1938 Yankees World Champions team-signed ball (29 signatures, including Gehrig and DiMaggio)
• 1931 Yankees team-signed ball (14 signatures, including Gehrig and Ruth, plus six other Hall of Famers on an OAL Harridge)
• 1951 Yankees World Champions team-signed OAL Harridge ball

Cards

• 1922 Wm. Paterson Tris Speaker SGC 50, only example at its tier (with none graded higher) among a total of just two copies recorded in SGC’s census reporting.
• 1933 Goudey No. 92 Lou Gehrig SGC 50
• 1888 N162 Goodwin Champions King Kelly SGC 30
• 1909-11 T206 White Border Ty Cobb, Portrait, Red Background SGC 40
• 1909-11 T206 White Border Joe Tinker, Bat On Shoulder, Uzit reverse SGC 10
• 1909-11 T206 White Border Clark Griffith, Portrait, Hindu reverse SGC 50
• 1911 M110 Sporting Life Cabinet card Hal Chase SGC Authentic (shown lower left)
• 1911 Jones, Keyser & Arras Cabinets Roger Bresnahan SGC 20
• 1909 E92 Croft’s Cocoa Joe Tinker, with “Croft’s Cocoa” Overprint on the Front SGC 30
• 1938 Goudey Heads-Up Joe DiMaggio SGC 50
• 1909 E92 Croft’s Cocoa Christy Matthewson (Mathewson) SGC 40
• 1887 N284 Buchner Gold Coin Chris Von Der Ahe SGC 40
• 1913 WG5 National Game Joe Jackson PSA 7 (shown below)
• 1950 Bowman Jackie Robinson SGC 84 (shown upper left)
• 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle SGC 30
• 1954 Red Heart Mantle SGC 84
• 1954 Journal-American Mickey Mantle SGC 84
• 1950 Bowman Casey Stengel PSA 9
• 1952 Topps Harry Brecheen PSA 9
• 1965 Topps Hank Aaron PSA 9
• 1968 Topps Mantle PSA 9
• 1968 Topps Bench rookie PSA 9
• 1969 Topps Aaron PSA 9 (shown)
• 1970 Topps Willie Mays PSA 9
• 1952 Topps Joe Garagiola PSA 8
• 1940 Play Ball Shoeless Joe Jackson SGC 70
• 1935 R321 Goudey 4-in-1 PSA-graded complete set
• 1968-1970 Topps Collection (915), including Mantle, Mays, Aaron, Clemente and many other HOFers

Bats

• Thurman Munson 1979 H&B game-used bat PSA 5
• Mickey Mantle 1961-63 H&B game-used bat PSA 4
• Stan Musial single-signed bats collection (64)
• Willie Mays 1956 Louisville Slugger game-used bat
• Barry Bonds 1997 All-Star Game-issued NL All-Stars team-signed bat (25 signatures)

Equipment

• Andy Pettitte 2000 World Series Yankees game-worn home jersey
• Mickey Mantle 1956 Yankees signed replica jersey
• Ron Fairly 1963 Dodgers game-used road jersey
• 1930s Dizzy and Daffy Dean NMIB play suit

Photographs

• Original 1931 U.S. Baseball Tour of Japan photographs (3 different, two of Gehrig)
• 1916 White Sox panoramic photo with Joe Jackson
• 1951 Yankees AL Champions team photograph

Autographs

• Jimmie Foxx signed index card PSA/DNA 10
• Babe Ruth signed profile photograph
• Foxx 1933 Goudey No. 154 signed – PSA/DNA 9
• Whitey Ford signed Mantle/Ford photos (100)
• Lou Gehrig “1/1” cut signature custom card
• Honus Wagner 1917 signed check PSA/DNA
• Ty Cobb 1946-60 signed personal checks collection (9), all graded PSA/DNA 8
• 1955 Yankees World Champions Slugger multi-signed news service photograph (five signatures, including Mantle and Elston Howard)

Miscellaneous

• 1921 Babe Ruth “Pathé Frères” phonograph premium and record
• 1898 Cameo Pepsin Gum pinback collection (12), including three teams
• 1945-71 World Series programs collection (16)

Football

• Baltimore Colts late 1950s sideline jacket
• Walter Payton signed keepsake collection (8 items), including jersey, mini helmet and five photos
• 1970 Ohio State Big Ten Champ salesman’s sample ring, with rare “Woody Hayes” shank engraving
• 1964 NFL Championship full, unused ticket pair (2 items)
• 1935 National Chicle No. Dutch Clark PSA 6

Basketball

• 1969-70 Topps Lew Alcindor rookie PSA 8
• 1950 D290-15 “Bread for Health” label George Mikan SGC 20
• Hall of Famers and Legends signed memorabilia collection (55), including Michael Jordan, Larry Bird and LeBron James
• “The Best Ever” UDA signed Chicago Bulls display, including Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman

Boxing

• 1886-1948 boxing card collection (43), including Old Judges, Dixie Queens and Red Suns
• 1887 N174 Old Judge Prizefighters John L. Sullivan SGC 20
• 1988 Muhammad Ali “life mask” on marble base
• Rocky Marciano 1962 paychecks collection (10)

Hockey
1962-63 Parkhurst Gordie Howe PSA 9
1962-63 Parkhurst “Zip Game Card” PSA 9
1954-55 Parkhurst complete set (100)
1976-77 O-Pee-Chee complete set (396 cards) on three uncut sheets

Americana Highlights

• 1938 R69 Gum Inc. Horrors of War No. 2 “Bombers Raid ... Airdrome” PSA 9, “1 of 2”
• 1938 R69 Gum Inc. Horrors of War No. 152 “Shanghai University Head Slain” PSA 8, “1 of 2”
• 1938 R69 Gum Inc. Horrors of War No. 181 “Men Against Machines” PSA 8, “1 of 2”
• 1956 Topps “Hocus Focus” PSA-graded collection (14 different, including Custer, Buffalo Bill and Dwight Eisenhower, all “1 of 1s”
• 1957 C.W.S. Western Stars complete set (25)
• 1953 R707-4 Topps Wings complete set (200)
• 1956 Topps Western Round-Up high-grade complete set (80)
• 1936 Carreras Famous Airmen and Airwomen complete set (50)
• 1965 Topps Lost In Space high-grade set (55)
• 1953 Skelly Oil All American Space Fleet graded complete set (24), including SGC 96 examples
• 1961 Fleer Pirates Bold complete set (66), including PSA 8 Blackbeard
• 1957 UM22 Johnson & Johnson Robin Hood TV Action Scenes complete set (20), plus scarce membership card
• 1933 R78 World Wide Gum Jungle Gum set (48)
• 1936 Mitchell & Son Gallery of 1935 set (50)

Campaign collectibles

• Early 20th-century Eugene V. Debs/Socialist Party celluloids collection (8 different)
• Extremely rare 1924 John Davis “Clarksburg, West Virginia” 21/4-inch campaign pinback
• 1896-1900 Wm. McKinley Presidential Campaign Pinbacks Collection (4 different)
• 1930s-70s Classic Presidential Campaign Pinbacks Collection (8 different)
• 1920-24 Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge Presidential Campaign Pinbacks Collection (7 different)
• 1924 “Honest Days with Davis – Teapot Dome” Anti-Republican Pinback

Presidential

• 1900 Theodore Roosevelt signed letter geaturing phenomenal content: “I would rather be professor of history in some college” than be vice president
• Harry S. Truman single-signed OAL Harridge ball
• Andrew Jackson 1829 signed land grant
• 1860 Abraham Lincoln “Free Homes for the People” portrait campaign ribbon
• 1993 Bill Clinton Inauguration gold presentation charm

Historical

• U.S. Supreme Court Justices signed letters collection (9 different), including Taney and Rehnquist
• Signed “Flats” collection (34 items), including FDR, George S. Patton, Harry S. Truman and George Bernard Shaw

To register for Mastro Auctions’ February Classic Collector auction or to get more information, go to www.mastroauctions.com, or call (630) 472-1200.