Tom Brady not too skinny after all; 1952 Mantle card a bargain?

The text we read on the back of sports cards generally is positive: You’d think every player was headed for the Hall of Fame.

It usually turns out to be an exaggeration … but not always. Consider Tom Brady’s 2000 Playoff Momentum die-cut “X’s and O’s” insert card. The text on the back addresses a commonly held scouting criticism of Brady head-on: his physical build.

Playoff’s card-back copywriters brought up that concern, but quickly batted it down:

“Though many scouts considered Brady too thin to excel in the NFL, the Patriots liked his superior leadership ability enough to pick him in the sixth round. He has the poise, composure and accuracy to prove the scouts wrong.”

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Good call!

Yet Playoff wasn’t exactly convincing in its defense of Brady. The next line reads:

“Look for him to battle for the Patriots’ third quarterback position.”

Brady, of course, turned out to be far more than a third-stringer. His seven championship rings are proof enough. He’s also made a mockery of the NFL’s record book: He’s approaching 90,000 passing yards and 650 touchdown passes. Not bad for a scrawny sixth-round pick.

A Gold variation of the Playoff Momentum X’s and O’s card we quote above turned up on eBay in mid-November and sold for $17,623 on 59 bids. Marked #30/60, the card had a grade of BGS 8.5.

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In your travels, you may encounter a 2000 Brady X’s and O’s card that’s not a Gold variation. The more common version was produced in an edition of 199 and today sells for around half of the Gold version. In October, we saw two examples sell for prices of $7,260 on 41 bids and $6,877 on 38 bids. Both were graded BGS 9.

The most desirable (and expensive) Brady rookie card, as collectors know, is his 2000 Playoff Contenders Rookie Ticket. In Gem-Mint condition, it’s a six-figure item.

However, as his Playoff Momentum X’s and O’s card illustrates, there are Brady rookie-year options that can be had for far lower prices. Here are a few examples, each preceded by prices logged at eBay in recent weeks:

• $16,770 on 30 bids for a 2000 autographed Press Pass Standout Signatures Gold. Marked #86/100, it was graded BGS 9. Another example graded PSA 10 sold for a lower price: $13,100 on 26 bids.

• $14,410 on 33 bids for a 2000 Playoff Contenders Round Numbers Gold, with autographs from both Brady and Marc Bulger. Marked #55/60, it was graded BGS 7.5.

• $13,000 on 52 bids for a 2000 Upper Deck SPx Rookie Stars card graded BGS 9.5 and marked #661 of 1350.

• $12,500 on 1 bid for an autographed 2000 Score Rookie Roll Call. Marked #49/50, it was graded PSA 7 with a 9 for the autograph.

• $12,350 on 46 bids for a 2000 Bowman Chrome rookie graded PSA 10. Other PSA 10 examples of the same card fetched prices of $12,000 on 43 bids, $11,850 on 47 bids and $11,700 on 32 bids.

• $10,100 on 26 bids for a signed 2000 Fleer Autographics card marked #58/250 and graded PSA 7.

A luminary, according to Merriam-Webster, is “a person of prominence or brilliant achievement.” And no one was more, er, “luminarian” than Babe Ruth.

As such, he served as an ideal subject for a 1-of-1 insert card in Topps’ 2022 Luminaries set.

The card in question turned up on eBay and sold in December for $17,600. It bears a well-preserved cut signature from the Bambino along with a slice of a game-used bat. The reverse of the card vouches for the autograph: “Topps certifies the authenticity of the cut signature found in this card.”

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However, it also offers a disclaimer regarding the bat sliver, which doesn’t have a connection to Ruth: “The relic contained in this card is not from any specific game, event, or season.”

But let’s be honest: It’s the authenticated signature that matters. To that end, it’s a clean, bold, well-preserved autograph, with the bottom of the word “Sincerely” visible just above Ruth’s sig. 

A 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card graded 2 landed just outside our Top 10 chart, selling for $21,500. Was that price a bargain, even for a 2-grade card? It may well have been.

The grading company was WTP, a far lesser-known firm than PSA, BGS and SGC, among other commonly used services. We’ve seen Mantle Topps rookies with a 2 from PSA, for example, go for $30,000 to $40,000 or more. And if you watch enough of these auctions, you see a pattern where grading and authentication from one of the leading services produces a premium at auction.

Through 12/07/22

1. $89,769 on 88 bids: 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle (PSA 4)

2. $63,000 on 31 bids: 2019-20 Panini National Treasures Zion Williamson, #83/99, auto patch (BGS 8.5, auto 10)

3. $40,211 on 49 bids: 1961-62 Fleer Wilt Chamberlain (PSA 8)

4. $40,101 on 35 bids: 2018 Panini National Treasures Josh Allen, #62/99, auto patch (SGC 9, auto 10)

5. $35,100 on 8 bids: 2020 Panini Flawless Justin Herbert Rookie Booklets, #9/10, auto patch (BGS 9)

6. $34,913 on 54 bids: 1986-87 Fleer Stickers Michael Jordan (PSA 10)

7. $27,373 on 41 bids: 2017 Topps Chrome EUFA Soccer Kylian Mbappe Gold Refractor, #7/50 (PSA 10)

8. $27,500 on 30 bids: 2020 Topps Chrome Formula 1 Racing hobby case (12 boxes), factory sealed

9. $25,101 on 72 bids: 2000 Playoff Contenders Tom Brady Rookie Ticket, auto (BGS 8.5)

10. $25,000 on 1 bid: 1996-97 Topps Chrome Basketball sealed hobby box