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Mickey Mantle’s ‘these pens suck’ autograph sells for six figures at Lelands
Mickey Mantle didn’t mind signing autographs—he mostly enjoyed it, in fact—but he hated signing with a bad pen.
Give him a bad pen that didn’t write well and he might just complain about it—in writing and on your collectible.
A one-of-a-kind Mickey Mantle autograph display that includes the inscription “these pens suck” sold for $247,144 in Lelands’ Fall Classic Auction, which closed on Oct. 19.
The display of 99 Mantle signatures, plus the “these pens suck” inscription, appears on an autograph sheet that the Yankees legend gifted to a friend who owned a pro sports statue company in the 1980s-90s. Mantle had signed his name on the cardstock 46 times, but on the 47th segment, he improvised, writing “these pens suck” instead of his signature. Mantle then signed his name 53 more times.
Other top sellers in the auction included: a 1967 Topps Baseball unopened First Series 48-count Cello box (BBC) for $88,711; and Shaquille O’Neal’s 1993 NBA All-Star Game Eastern Conference game-worn, photo-matched uniform (Resolution) from his rookie season for $90,541. O’Neal had one of the best rookie seasons in NBA history in 1992-93, averaging 23.4 points, 13.9 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks.
Other auction highlights included:
• Jimmie Foxx’s 1932 AL Most Valuable Player Award: $97,804.
• 1928 R315 Babe Ruth (SGC MINT 9): $51,598.
• Nolan Ryan’s Angels game-worn signed jersey from April 13, 1978: $30,168.
• Madison Bumgarner’s 2014 San Francisco Giants World Series Game 7 signed, game-worn, photo-matched (Resolution LOA) jersey: $68,543.
• Hank Aaron 1963-67 Atlanta Braves signed game-used bat possibly used for home run #506: $30,949.
• Michael Jordan 1984 Bulls debut box office ticket stub (PSA EX-MT 6): $80,044.
• Jerome Bettis Steelers season-long, game-worn jersey photo-matched to nine games: $24,604.
