A CURATED SELECTION OF GREAT CARDS
59. 1951 Bowman #253 Mickey Mantle (HOF RC) – PSA FR 1.5
This is Bowman’s distinctive rookie card for the Yankee legend and Hall of Fame switch- hitter, as photographed during spring training in 1951. There’s a hint of his first uniform number (#6) on its back, which he changed during that debut campaign. The card’s biography says a great deal about New York’s anticipation for Mickey’s arrival and helps us understand why his legend looms so large as hobby royalty today. Mickey’s SGC 1.5 grade demonstrates conventional handling wear to corners, edges, and its front surface. The image remains colorful and compelling and would catch anyone’s attention by design alone, let alone for a player who won so many personal accolades and World Series titles. The back is fully legible, with a small mark near one corner.
Mantle’s name alone sells almost any set that contains him and this card garners demand across all grades. Like his 1952 Topps version, the 1951 Bowman Mantle is part of a tougher high-number series, amplifying the challenge for anyone seeking one out. This collector-grade example of one of the postwar hobby’s most iconic cards will become a special piece of any collection that picks it up.
MINIMUM BID: $2,500
60. 1953 Hunter’s Wieners Stan Musial (HOF) – SGC FR 1.5 – Highest Graded
61. 1954 Topps #128 Hank Aaron (HOF RC) – SGC EX 5
This 1953 Hunter Wieners card features a portrait of legend and Hall of Famer Stan Musial of the St. Louis Cardinals. They printed two players per wrapper for packages of hot dogs, so surviving cards from this set show evidence of trimming and meat stains, often resulting in AUTHENTIC grades. Musial’s neater edges and lighter surface marks merit an SGC FR 1.5 and retain the set’s distinctive deep color and nostalgic contrast.
This colorful and well-centered example of Hank Aaron’s Topps rookie card continues to grow in popularity among top 1950s stars and collectors. Demand for standout examples at any grade will exceed available supply, so discriminating collectors seek singles like this one that exhibit outstanding print quality, with light peripheral wear that takes nothing away from his youthful portrait.
This SGC EX 5 shows terrific centering, with clean surfaces, even edges, and corner touches that set its technical grade. It will be tough to find better overall appeal at this level. Hank Aaron collectors can also find his Johnston’s Cookies rookie card in this Love of the Game auction.
As with other Hunter Wieners sets, this 1953 issue ranks among that decade’s most difficult cards to find today. SGC’s population report shows fewer than 175 encapsulated for this entire set and just 12 Musial examples, with none scoring higher than FAIR 1.5, a spot shared by three cards in all.
MINIMUM BID: $2,000
MINIMUM BID: $500
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