In a traditional July, baseball settles into mid-season form. The All-Star game and all its related festivities are held. The trade deadline is quickly becoming a topic that lights up the internet and most importantly, the nascent stages of pennant races are beginning to show. In 2020, it was different. None of that occurred, but baseball did begin its season!
With baseball on the brain, this month we are going to review the top 5 cards sold on ebay during the month of July.
1952 Topps Mickey Mantle #311 PSA 6 EXMT
Sold for $82,401 via auction
In any given month, there is a strong chance that any 1952 Topps Mantle up for sale will generate both attention and big bucks. July was no different. This Mantle attracted 92 bids as it closed at $82,401. Interestingly, this wasn’t the only 1952 Mantle rookie in the top 5 for July.
1954 Topps Henry Aaron Rookie #128 PSA 8 P681
Sold for $29,000 fixed price
Do you know how many Aaron rookies have been graded? Just over 4300. Do you know how many have been graded PSA 8 and above? Without qualifiers, that would be just over 200. Thus any Aaron grade (without qualifiers) of 8 or above would be less than 5% of the total pop. This is rare in this condition.
1952 Topps SETBREAK #311 Mickey Mantle RC Rookie HOF PSA 3 VG " High # "
Sold for $25,107
As noted above, another Mantle rookie was in the Top 5. While this one isn’t one of the card’s highest (or scarcest) grades, there are almost 200 graded, the card is so iconic, that in any condition, its always a popular card and this was no different. It took 41 bids before the auction ended. Why is this card so popular? It’s 1952 Topps, it’s a high number (recall, most of those cases ended up being dumped in the Atlantic) and of course, its Mickey Mantle.
1989 Fleer Glossy Ken Griffey Jr RC PSA/DNA 10 AUTO #548 PSA 10
Sold for $24,999
This 1989 Ken Griffey Jr rookie sold at what is a record price considering it is a pop 1 given the autograph. The 1989 Fleer Glossy cards are identical to the regular 1989 Fleer cards although it has a glossy sheen to the card. These are considerably scarcer than the relatively overproduced regular card. It is estimated that Fleer only made 30,000 of this set. To put this into perspective, there are over 74,000 1989 Upper Deck Ken Griffey Jr rookie cards that have already been graded by PSA. One more little tidbit about the scarcity of this card relates to its grade of 10. It is notoriously known to have poor centering. Out of over 1400 cards graded, only 117 of those currently are graded a 10.
2011 Topps Update Diamond Mike Trout ROOKIE RC, PSA/DNA 10 AUTO PSA 10
Sold for $23,933
Just as we have Mantle rookies being perennial contenders for the top 5 cards sold each month, one must also include Mike Trout’s key rookies as well. The auctioneer, PWCC referred to this as a “blue-chip rookie” and it is certainly a card many investors are focused on. Part of the “algorithm” for ultra-key rookie cards are a) scarcity, b) the top player of his generation and c) loved by the fans and press. Clearly Trout fits all three and when the fragile nature of the card is added along with a perfect autograph, all the criteria are there for an investment worthy collectible.
In conclusion
Week in and week out, we look at the data behind investment grade sports collectibles. The data tells a story and its up to the market to interpret what it means. Sign up now to ensure that you don’t miss any of our insights as we listen to the “stories that are being told” all across this great pastime of ours.
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