Willie Mays
Which sports card will be next to top $10 million?
The recent blockbuster sale of a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card for a record $12.6 million has led to predictions and speculation about the next card that will reach eight figures.
The ’52 Mantle, graded SCG 9.5, shattered the previous sports card record ($7.25 million for a 1909 T206 Honus Wagner) and also set a record for sports memorabilia. It sold for $7.4 million more than the previous record for a ’52 Mantle ($5.2 million for a PSA 9).
Despite the jaw-dropping sale, the card is, by grade, only the fourth-best Mantle known to exist. Three ’52 Mantles graded PSA 10 are known to exist. Two of them, owned by well-known collectors Marshall Fogel and Ken Kendrick, have been on display in the last two years and both are estimated to be worth $30-$50 million.
Also See: Top 10 sports cards of all time
The record Mantle card, sold by Heritage Auctions, raised the standard for elite high-end vintage cards, leading many to speculate about the next card to top $10 million.
Goldin Co. and PSA, both owned by Collectors, recently released a list of five cards it believes could top $10 million. Here’s a look at the iconic cards:
• 1951 Bowman Mickey Mantle PSA 10 (Pop 1)
Potential sale price: $20M
Current card record: $750,000 for a PSA 9 (Heritage Auctions, 2018)
Also See: Hobby celebrates first eight-figure sale
• 1914 Baltimore News Babe Ruth (Pop 1) PSA VG-EX 4
Potential sale price $12.5-$15M
Current card record: $6 million-plus for a SGC 3 in a 2021 private sale by Collectable. (The card, which is on display at the Babe Ruth Birthplace Museum in Baltimore, is now valued at more than $9 million.)
Potential sale price: $12.5M-$15M
Current card record: $1.42 million for a PSA 6 (Thomas Newman Collection, Memory Lane Inc. PSA estimates a PSA 8 to be worth at least $3 million.)
Also See: Ken Kendrick's $100 million collection
• 1955 Topps Roberto Clemente PSA 10 (Pop 1)
Potential sale price: $12.5M-$15M
Current card record: $1.1 million for a PSA 9 (Goldin, 2021)
Potential sale price: $10M-$15M
Current card record: $478,000 for a PSA 9 (Heritage, 2016)
Jeff Owens is the editor of SCD.
