Top cards, collectibles of Yankee greats Mickey Mantle, Joe DiMaggio and Aaron Judge maintain sky-high values

The market for Mickey Mantle and Joe DiMaggio memorabilia is and always has been strong. Aaron Judge collectibles have elbowed their way into the conversation, thanks to his home-run heroics, upstanding reputation, and another big offensive season. 

Let’s access the current market for these legendary pinstriped center fielders. Well, maybe it’s too early to call Judge “legendary,” but time is on his side. At this juncture, he’s at the top of a very short list of the 21st century’s best baseball players.

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‘THE MAGNIFICENT YANKEE’

By the numbers: 18 seasons, 536 HRs, 2,415 hits, 153 SBs, .298 BA

Baseball's greatest switch-hitter ever, Mantle was an electric player who enjoyed regular visits to the World Series, where he set the long-standing record of 18 Fall Classic homers. His accomplishments include three MVPs, a Triple Crown (1956), 20 All-Star Game nominations, and seven World Series championships.

Here’s a look at the best in “Mantle-bilia.”

• The Holy Grail. In the memorabilia marketplace, his most valuable card is his 1952 Topps, which set a record when a Mint+ (SGC 9.5) specimen sold for $12.6 million in 2022. 

A number of other examples have broken the million-dollar mark, including a PSA 9 that brought $2.8 million in 2018. Plus, three PSA 8 examples sold for $1.56 million, $2.029 million, and $2.112 million between 2021 and 2022.

• The Rookie. Yet the 1952 Mantle isn’t his true rookie card. That honor goes to his 1951 Bowman—an item that’s been climbing steadily over the years. In 2022 at Memory Lane Inc., a PSA 9-grade specimen reached $3.192 million. It was quite a lift over another PSA 9 that in 2018 went for “only” $750,000 at Heritage Auctions.

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• Worth A Look. Bowman’s 1952 Mantle features a colorful painted illustration of a young Mickey, arms folded over chest, looking off to the left. It’s a highly desirable alternative to his pricey 1951 Bowman. Yet it’s not cheap, with one PSA 9 specimen having sold for $504,000. And Topps’ colorful 1953 set included an iconic Mantle with a photo-inspired closeup illustration where he’s peering over his left shoulder. An example graded PSA 9 sold for $396,000 in 2019, while a PSA 8 sold for $108,000 in 2023.

• Collector Favorite. Mantle’s final player card appeared in Topps’ 1969 set, and it’s a beauty. Within a classic-looking design, we get a lefty batting pose from The Mick and—a stat-hound’s delight—and full career numbers on the reverse. It’s kind of a bittersweet card because it signals the end. As the flip-side note tells us, “The All-Star announced his retirement from baseball on March 1st, 1969!”

Topps actually issued two variations of this card. The more common version has “Mantle” in yellow letters on the front. A Gem-Mint 10 example of this one sold for $108,000 in 2018. In 9 condition, it goes for around $25,000.

The other version has “Mantle” lettered in white. This rarity sells for quite a bit higher; one PSA 9 example fetched $933,500 in 2022. That figure marked a whopper of an increase over a short amount of time. Between 2007 and 2009, PSA 9-graded white-letter variations sold for $14,000 and $17,000.

• Signed, Mickey. Any object with a legitimate and authenticated Mantle autograph is a desirable piece. Mantle was a generous signer, so there’s a rich inventory—and yet scammers also have introduced untold numbers of fakes into the market. So be careful if you’re buying—study his autograph on reliable examples. And know that it evolved over the years from a straightforward, methodically inked signature to a more ornate, attractive autograph (where the “M”s especially took on a flair). Important detail: His signature often found his last name lifting slightly from left to right. So put a ruler under “Mickey” and make sure the bottom of the letters in “Mantle” curve upward.

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You’ll find $500 quoted as a typical price for a signed baseball, but at major auction houses, it’s more like $1,000 and upward. In fact, we’ve seen multiple examples sell at major auction houses for prices between $10,000 and $15,000.

Best bet for a Mantle-signed item? Look for authenticated photos or cards, which typically go for $250 to $500.

JOLTIN’ JOE

By the numbers: 13 seasons, 361 HRs, 2,214 hits, 30 SBs, .325 BA

It was 1932 when the Double-A San Francisco Seals brought in a scrawny 17-year-old named Joe DiMaggio. Four years later, he was installed as the Yankees’ starting centerfielder. And how’s this for an MLB rookie season: 206 hits, 29 homers and 125 RBI? On a team that starred Lou Gehrig, Joe D. still played a major role in the Yankees’ 1936 World Series title over the New York Giants. They would repeat the feat in 1937, ’38 and ’39 (over the Giants, Cubs and Reds, respectively).

In all, DiMaggio would play 13 years, missing three full seasons (1943-45) because of military service. He earned three MVPs and starred in 10 World Series, winning nine. And don’t forget his still-remarkable 56-game hitting streak in 1941. Ted Williams hit .406 that season, but the AL MVP went to DiMaggio, who hit .357 with 30 HRs and 125 RBI.

The Holy Grail. DiMaggio’s 1941 Play Ball card is highly treasured, and when it’s in perfect condition, it soars. Heritage Auctions offered a PSA 10 specimen—the only Gem Mint example known—at a 2020 sale and it sold for $750,000.

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The card’s front side shows a painted illustration of DiMaggio in a swinging pose. The flip side cites his 31 homers, 131 RBI and league-leading .352 average in 1940.

Specimens of this card in 9 grade sell for upwards of $200,000. An 8-grade example goes for $70,000 to $100,000. For instance, an SGC 8 brought $90,000 at Robert Edward Auctions in 2023.

• The Rookie. DiMaggio’s 1938 Goudey Heads Up card is quirky, but it’s considered by most to be his “mainstream” rookie. There are two variations in Goudey’s set: No. 250 and No. 274. They look alike: Each bears the same colorized headshot photo of DiMaggio merged with a caricature-type illustration of his body. No. 250 has a plain background, but No. 274 features a group of small cartoons surrounding Joe.

The former version (No. 250, without cartoons) can be had for $15,000 to $25,000 if in 8 condition. The latter version (No. 274, with cartoons) commands higher prices. Heritage Auctions sold a PSA 9 specimen for $288,000 in 2017, while Goldin Co. sold an SGC 9-grade for $132,000 in 2022. The same year, Heritage sold one in 8 condition for $87,000. The cartoons provide a few superlatives and/or facts about DiMaggio—including his salary at the time (a princely $25,000).

Despite this Goudey card’s status as DiMaggio’s true rookie, some collectors point to an earlier (but regionally released) Zeenut PCL card. Zeenut was a San Francisco-based candy producer, and its Zeenut product (a coconut-based variation on Cracker Jacks) contained a coupon bearing a photo of DiMaggio as a San Francisco Seals slugger. (A variation of this card shows DiMaggio in a throwing pose.) Attached to the card is a coupon with an April 1, 1935 expiration date, so it likely was issued in 1933 and/or ’34. Heritage Auctions sold a PSA 5 specimen of the Zeenut card for $240,000 in 2020 and a PSA 3 example for $78,000 in 2021. (By the way, Zeenut got Joe’s name wrong, spelling it “DeMaggio.”)

• Worth A Look. Switching from cards to memorabilia, any game-worn DiMaggio piece draws major bidding. In 2023, we saw a prime example at Heritage Auctions: a 1948 game-worn Yankees road jersey. This history-drenched piece bears a black armband worn by all Yankees in 1948 in mourning for Babe Ruth, who died in August of that year. DiMaggio led the AL in homers (39) and RBI (155) but lost out in MVP voting to Lou Boudreau, whose Cleveland Indians marched to the AL pennant and World Series title. This one-of-a-kind item sold for $564,000.

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• Collector Favorite. DiMaggio’s 1939 Play Ball card, 2½ by 3⅛ inches in size, presents a rare smile in a black-and-white photo. He normally conveyed a more serious look. The card’s reverse notes that DiMaggio began in the minors as a shortstop (as Mantle would do years later). After switching to the outfield, DiMaggio tore up minor-league pitching, hitting .340, .341 and .398 for the San Francisco Seals of the PCL. Those stats beg the question: What took so long for his call-up? In 1936, DiMaggio landed in New York and didn’t miss a beat, hitting .346.

The highest-grade example of DiMaggio’s 1939 Play Ball—a PSA 9 Mint specimen—brought $102,000 at Robert Edward Auctions in 2023.

• Signed, Joe. DiMaggio’s signature reflected his quiet dignity and class—it was always clean and readable, just as he would have learned in school. On a photograph or card, expect to pay $200 to $400 for DiMaggio’s signature. On a baseball, it typically falls somewhere between $300 and $750 based on condition and authentication. 

But like Mantle’s, it can go much higher under certain conditions—especially if Marilyn Monroe is one of those conditions.

In 1954, the iconic Yankee (by then retired) married Hollywood starlet Monroe. However, it was a short-lived romance, as they divorced after only nine months. As such, there’s a limited inventory of dual-signed DiMaggio/Monroe baseballs. One example showed up at Heritage in 2021. The Official American League Joe Cronin baseball, according to provenance, was signed by both while they were vacationing in Florida in the 1960s—and supposedly considering a reconciliation. A newspaper photographer asked the pair to sign the ball during spring training.

Consigned to Heritage in 2021, it sold for $384,000. It was accompanied by a 1989 Newsday issue in which nearly two pages described the photographer’s meet-up with Joe and Marilyn.

THE JUDGE

By the numbers (through All-Star break 2024): 8.5 seasons, 289 HRs, 946 hits, 48 SBs, .284 BA

Judge was a bit of a late MLB bloomer. After college ball, he signed with the Yankees and started in Single-A in 2014 at age 22. He quickly progressed through High-A, Double-A and Triple-A, joining the Yankees in late 2016. In 2017, it was off to the races as Judge smacked 52 homers, scored 128 runs and drove in 114. Four years and 102 homers later, he put up his record-breaking 62-homer season, driving in 131 runs and scoring 133 while he was at it. This year, he’s on pace to approach or exceed those numbers.

The Holy Grail. The ultimate Judge item is one that includes neither his photograph nor his autograph. It’s his game-used 62nd home run ball from 2022.

The Official Major League Baseball that Judge blasted to left field to break the AL single-season home run record on Oct. 4, 2022 was quickly consigned to Goldin and sold two months later for $1.5 million. The ball includes an MLB hologram as authentication. Judge hit the historic homer in Texas off a 95-mph fastball from Jesus Tinoco.

• The Rookies. In this day and age, there are blurred lines around any player’s “true rookie card.” Collectors have all kinds of options—too many options—that include not just base-set cards but parallel versions with bells and whistles like Refractors, game-used patches, and/or autographs.

In Judge’s case, the choices come from multiple 2017 base sets put out by Bowman, Topps and Panini. But even then, things get murky. Bowman produced rookie cards of Judge for its regular set as well as its Chrome, Platinum and Best sets. Panini included Judge rookies within its Donruss, Donruss Optic, Chronicles, Diamond Kings and National Treasures sets. Topps went especially wild in 2017, giving us Judge rookies in more than a dozen sets, from Topps, Topps Chrome and Topps Finest to Topps Archive, Topps Gallery and Topps Stadium Club, to Allen & Ginter, Gypsy and Topps Heritage. In most cases, there are variations that further complicate any collecting effort.

To cloud things further, you can go back four years and find Judge’s earliest major-manufacturer issues. Those would include draft-pick cards of the just-signed minor leaguer in such sets as 2013 Bowman Chrome, 2013 Bowman Sterling, 2013 Panini Elite, 2013 Panini Prizm, 2013 Leaf, 2014 Bowman Draft Picks and 2016 Topps Now—among others. Whew!

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Take your pick. Searching out 2013 through 2016 pre-rookie Judge cards takes a deep dive. While it may produce bargains in the process, don’t count on it. Sellers who know what they have—even in non-autographed base-set cards—aren’t likely to let a Judge rookie slip away for a song.

Here’s a sampling of high-end prices paid on eBay in 2024 for signed Judge rookies:

• $24,000 on 58 bids for a 2017 Topps Chrome autographed Red Refractor marked #3/5.

• $10,688 on 91 bids for an autographed 2017 Topps Chrome Red Refractor designed after Topps’ 1987 set and marked #4/5.

• $7,100 on 65 bids for an autographed 2017 Topps Chrome Orange Refractor (again, designed after Topps’ 1987 set) and marked #3/25. 

On the low end, base-set Judge rookies from 2017 can be had for under $50, sometimes even under $10.

• Worth A Look. Speaking of pre-rookie Judge cards, one of the highest-selling examples we’ve seen was a 2013 Bowman Draft Picks & Prospects Orange Refractor card. It was produced in an edition of 25. In 2022, a BGS 10 example of this perfect card sold for $48,000.

• Collector Favorite. Who wouldn’t love to own a war club used by Aaron Judge? Game-used Judge bats do show up in the auction marketplace, and they can sell for thousands.

One uncracked example sold for $3,112 at SCP Auctions in 2018 but would almost certainly sell for a higher price now. Graded 9.5 and authenticated by PSA/DNA, the 35-inch, 34.2-ounce Victus model bat was traced to the 2016 season. According to the authentication report, it could have been used in either the minors or majors by Judge.

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In 2023, Heritage listed a particularly attractive Judge bat: one he used during his 62-homer season. This Chandler model bat also measures 35 inches and weighs 33.3 ounces. It sold for $13,800.

If that seems price-prohibitive, think about the price of a Mantle or DiMaggio game-used bat these days. They can go for $100,000 or more.

For example, the bat DiMaggio used in his final game (and later signed) sold for $408,000 at Heritage in 2021. And Heritage sold Mantle game bats from the 1956 All-Star Game and 1953 World Series for $384,000 and $324,000, respectively. The All-Star Game bat sold in 2019, the World Series bat in 2024.

• Signed, Aaron. Judge’s autograph is widely available on baseballs, photographs and cards. His signature isn’t terribly consistent, but it is identifiable. The easy part: He has an elongated and oval-shaped “A” in Aaron and a distinctive “J” in Judge. However, he sometimes spells out the “aron” part of his first name; other times, he gets right to the “J” in Judge.

Similarly, he’s sometimes more elaborate after the “J” in his last name, inking a distinguishable “U” and then dropping from the highest point of his “D” straight down to the “G”s descender—and then finishing with a straight-line “E.” Other times, you’ll see the “J” followed by that up-and-down “D” and “G” and nothing else. Still other times, you’ll see just a scribble directly after the “J.”

For research, look closely at the untold numbers of autographed cards issued by major manufacturers. They’re reliable guides.

Baseballs signed by Judge have been selling on eBay for anywhere from $200 to $900, depending on inscription, condition and authentication.

Manufacturer-issued Judge-signed cards are all over the map, from around $150 up to several thousand dollars.

On the lower end, we spotted a 2016 Bowman’s Best Stat Line Autograph and a 2019 Topps Finest Autograph card that each sold for $163. On the high end, we’ve seen a 2017 Topps Heritage Real One signed rookie card graded PSA 10 sell for $2,225.