The Five Essential Baseball Cards of Mickey Mantle
Collectors would be hard pressed to remember a time when Mickey Mantle wasn't king of the vintage Hobby. Grab your old Beckett Monthly from the 1980s, page to a random set from the 1950s or 60s, and good chance the highest priced card belongs to the Mick. Check the listings on eBay today, and find more or less the same result. While the rarest of collectors may have the means and ambition to "collect them all," most collectors can only dream of adding even a single playing era Mantle to their collections. With nearly every card of his a classic, it's an impossible exercise to narrow down the Commerce Comet's cards to only five. Still, here is at least one Hobby reporter's view as to his five most essential.
1951 Bowman Mickey Mantle
RELATED: Is Mickey Mantle is Still King of the Hobby?
Whether you're a buyer in earnest or simply a window shopper, it's impossible not to take notice of the Mick's 1951 Bowman card. For one thing, it's his rookie card, if you're into that sort of thing! For another, it may be one of the few vintage Mantle cards that feels underpriced.
1952 Topps Mickey Mantle
RELATED: The Five Essential Baseball Cards of Ken Griffey, Jr.
As the modern Hobby's most iconic card, Mantle's 1952 Topps card is a no-brainer for any list of essential cardboard. The mystique of this card is so great that many collectors either assume it's Mantle's rookie or assign disproportionate significance to labels like "first Topps card" to attach rookie-like status to the card. Though other collectors might justifiably wonder why this card carries a price tag leaps and bounds above rookie cards of Jackie Robinson, Ted Williams, Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, or even Mickey Mantle himself, the fact is that the 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle remains larger than life in a way these other cards simply aren't.
1956 Topps Mickey Mantle
Though one could easily make a case for other 1950s cardboard of the Mick, his 1956 Topps card wins out for two reasons. One, the 1956 Topps set is simply phenomenal. And two, 1956 was Mantle's Triple Crown year and first MVP season. Just how good was Mantle that year? How about a .353 batting average with 52 home runs and 130 RBI! And if more advanced metrics are your thing, then take a minute to admire an 11.3 WAR and preposterous 1.169 OPS. This was Mantle at his absolute peak, and as the action shot on the card shows, the Mick could also beat you with his glove.
1969 Topps Mickey Mantle
The Mick's 1969 Topps card is not only relatively affordable, at least compared to other playing era Mantles, but also a "career capper," meaning the back of the card shows the Yankee legend's complete career statistics. While today Mantle's 536 home runs seem a bit less superhuman, they were good enough for third all-time at the time of his retirement. Finally, the card offers good news for collectors who find it too affordable. There is a much scarcer "white lettering" variation that goes for considerably more.
1981 Perez-Steele Hall of Fame Postcard (SIGNED)
RELATED: Dick Perez Shocks Fans with His Favorite Diamond King
No Mickey Mantle collection is truly complete without an autograph, and no cards look nicer signed than the Perez-Steele Hall of Fame postcards. Just be warned. Fake Mantle signatures have plagued the Hobby for decades. Certifications are helpful here, assuming they themselves aren't forged, but the most careful buyers will want to seek out a trusted seller as well. For that matter, the same advice applies to just about any vintage Mantle card, autographed or not.
Jason A. Schwartz is a collectibles expert whose work can be found regularly at SABR Baseball Cards, Hobby News Daily, and 1939Bruins.com. His collection of Hank Aaron baseball cards and memorabilia is currently on exhibit at the Atlanta History Center, and his collectibles-themed artwork is on display at the Honus Wagner Museum and PNC Park.