Mantle baseball card sold for $17m

NEW YORK • A mint condition Mickey Mantle baseball card became the most valuable piece of sports memorabilia to be sold at auction, notching US$12.6 million (S$17.6 million) on Sunday.

The card, issued by collectible company Topps in 1952, features Mantle, the most powerful switch-hitter in baseball history.

It would have been sold at the time in a wax-wrapped pack that cost either a penny or a nickel, said Chris Ivy, director of sports auctions at Heritage Auctions, which sold the item. The card has now become the first sports item to be sold at auction for eight figures.

"We always knew this card would shatter records and expectations," Ivy said. "But that doesn't make it any less of a thrill."

The card surpassed the record of US$9.3 million achieved this year by the jersey worn by the late Argentina legend Diego Maradona when he scored the "Hand of God" goal in the 1986 World Cup.

The sale of the baseball card marks a new high for the sports collectible market, one that has been booming in recent years, especially since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020.

"People are starting to look at these collectibles as legitimate alternative assets," Ivy said.

Before 2020, there was little interest from hedge fund managers or private equity firms.

But in the past two years, Michael Osacky, lead appraiser for Professional Sports Authenticator, the largest third-party grader of sports collectibles, has been swamped with inquiries from people who see the collectibles as an investment.

He added: "All of a sudden people are like, 'Wow, this stuff could be art.'"

NYTIMES