Unbelievably rare Mickey Mantle gamer surfaces for Heritage Auctions April Sports event

Feb. 5, 2010

Posted by Noah

An extensively photo-matched, researched and authenticated New York Yankees jersey worn by Mickey Mantle during the 1967-68 MLB season – truly one of the greatest Mantle-related pieces of memorabilia to ever surface in the hobby – will make its’ world auction premiere as part of Heritage Auction Galleries April 22-23 Signature® Sports Memorabilia Auction, live in Dallas and online via HA.com. It is estimated at $100,000+.

Let's turn to Chris Ivy, Director of Heritage Sports, for his opinion, yes?

“This amazing jersey truly represents the find of a lifetime for collectors of top shelf baseball memorabilia,” he said. “Even more incredible is the fact that it sat in a private collection for more than three decades with the owner completely unaware of how important and piece it actually is.”

Consigned by a South Florida collector, who wishes to remain anonymous, the jersey found its way to the area after Mantle’s final game in pinstripes when the great slugger participated in a youth baseball camp in spring of 1970. Before that, however, it saw active duty in the minor leagues with the Oneonta Yankees – a farm team for the great franchise – as they trained alongside the professional team in Ft. Lauderdale in 1969, evidenced by a very faint outline of the letter "O" appearing over the heart, which replaced the original iconic “NY” Yankees symbol.

After Mantle agreed to participate in the clinic, the “O” was stripped and replaced with a block lettered "NEW YORK," which is how the jersey appeared when it came to Heritage from the consignor, a friend of one of the boys who had attended the camp. The stitching path of the original "NY" logo still remains clearly visible, even after expert restoration to return the jersey to its original appearance. Importantly, however, the number "7" on the reverse shows no such sign of removal or replacement.

"In actuality, the jersey also saw active duty in the spring of 1969, and could therefore be justifiably billed as Mantle's last pinstripes,” Chris said. “We know for sure that this was the very jersey that The Mick wore on the cover of the Mickey Mantle Day program distributed to more than 60,000 fans at Yankee Stadium on June 8, 1969.”

The aging slugger couldn't help but think of a man honored on that same ground three decades earlier as he stepped to the microphone.

"I've often wondered how a man who knew he was going to die could stand here and say he was the luckiest man on the face of the earth,” Mantle said, “but now I guess I know how he felt."

Like Gehrig, the Mick had nothing left to give to the fans of the Bronx other than his gratitude, the sharp edges of his athletic gifts dulled by injury, hard living and the relentless, unforgiving passage of time.

“Now, in a magical moment, Mantle has once more surfaced to gift us with his immortal presence in the form of this long-hidden gamer,” Chris said. “It’s easily one of the most important and desirable Mantle artifacts ever to reach the public auction block.”

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-Noah Fleisher

How about that Cowboys memorabilia! - a Lone Star trip through the Heritage Auction Archives

Jan. 13, 2009

Written by Chris Nerat

(Before getting to Chris's blog post for today, I have to give him a heartfelt round of applause for picking himself up off the floor and writing this post about this subject, after his beloved Packers were so unceremoniously bounced from the playoffs by the pesky cardinals and some bad officiating. So here you go, Chris, listen closely right now and you'll hear my clapping.

The subject of Chris's post is indeed the Heritage hometown team, none other than the Dallas Cowboys, and - needless to say - Chris is not going to get a lot of sympathy for his dilemma down here. Right now people in Dallas are excited, yes, but wary. It's one game at a time for most Cowboy fans, nice and easy. It's been a dozen years since we tasted glory, and no one wants to get too overexcited. That said, thanks to Chris for pointing out some of the great Cowboys memorabilia that has come through Heritage, and that hopefully there will be more to come! -Noah Fleisher)

The Dallas Cowboys are probably the hottest team in the NFC, and possibly the team with the most momentum in the entire NFL right now. This late-season run has provided a lot of excitement around the Heritage offices, especially in the sports department. Whether it’s Cowboys memorabilia from yesteryear, such as game-worn jerseys from players like Roger Staubach and Tom Landry, or modern day superstars like Tony Romo, Troy Aikman or Emmitt Smith, our Dallas-based auction venue seems to have the inside track on obtaining pieces featuring “America’s Team.”

After a lengthy drought in the NFL Playoffs, the Cowboys finally proved victorious in a post-season game this past weekend, and serious Dallas collectors are definitely ready to take some of the funds they have saved up from the past 15 years, and unload their wallets on high-quality Cowboys memorabilia.

Let’s take a look at a few key pieces we have sold over the past few years, which are of similar quality that collectors can expect from our weekly and Signature auctions:

1969 Roger Staubach Game Worn Rookie Jersey:
There’s something about that little NFL 50th anniversary patch on the sleeve of a 1969 superstar jersey that drives collectors wild. When you combine that enthusiasm with one of the most iconic players in NFL history, and on his rookie jersey nonetheless, this combination transforms it into a piece that is Canton-worthy.Sold for $22,705 in May, 2007.

1971 Dallas Cowboys Super Bowl Championship Ring:
Salesman’s sample rings are some of the most attractive pieces in the hobby, and also help provide a nice alternative to an actual Super Bowl ring, which normally would break the bank. This beautiful 1971 Cowboys Super bowl ring featured Ten karat white gold, and a fantastic array of faux gem stones. Sold for $5,676 in October of 2009.

1970s Tom Landry Game Used Clipboard with Handwritten Plays, Coaching Whistle:
We sold this intriguing lot only a few months ago in one of our weekly sales. A killer investment for the lucky winning bidder, this lot was equally as affordable as it was significant. Any time you have the chance to purchase a piece that was used by an NFL legend, I advise you to snag it. You can’t go wrong when purchasing items from an iconic figure. Sold for $388 in October 2009.

1995 Super Bowl XXX Lombardi Trophy Salesman's Sample:
There’s nothing more breathtaking than walking into a memorabilia room and seeing a replica of the most recognizable trophy in sports. This salesman’s sample Lombardi Trophy from Super Bowl XXX would look extremely nice next to a Troy Aikman or Emmitt Smith gamer … By the way, we have sold those too! Sold for $2,031 in October 2009.

1961-63 Dallas Cowboys Bobblehead:
Vintage nodders will and always will be some of the most desirable pieces in the hobby. Due to their condition-sensitive nature, Mint examples command the most investment potential. This charming little fella comes from the early days of the franchise’s history, and he looks happy to have fetched a nice price of nearly $400. Actually it was $388 in August of 2008.

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-Chris Nerat

Significant, interesting and a little strange at times… Many reasons to check out Heritage’s archives database

Jan, 6, 2010

Written by Chris

It’s only natural to concentrate on the major sports of baseball, basketball, football and hockey when you think about some of the most notable and unique pieces in the hobby.

However, if you normally only have an eye for the classic pinstripes, the extraordinary lumber or the fantastic garments of the gridiron, hardwood and ice rink, I urge you to escape your comfort zone in order to explore the amazing memorabilia that surfaces from some of the more obscure sports.

All it took was a quick run through Heritage’s handy archive database, and I was able to pick out some of the most peculiar, and at the same time, significant pieces of memorabilia, which have nothing to do with the major sports.

When searching through the archives, I like to search from highest price to lowest, but there’s no rule when surfing through our amazing variety of sold auction lots. Here’s a select few I picked out in order to show the collecting public that even some of the “smaller” sports should still have a place in your memorabilia show room, right alongside some of the top dogs that regularly frequent the hobby world.

Some people refer to the legendary horse Secretariat as one of the best athletes to ever live, and others don’t feel comfortable placing an animal next to names like Ali and Jordan. All debating aside, this 1973 Secretariat Triple Crown worn bit and bridle, which the famed horse wore during the peak of its career has got to be one of the most intriguing pieces Heritage has ever offered. This Hall of Fame-caliber lot realized more than $26,000 in our May 2005 Signature sale.

The sport of boxing has graced the collecting world with many spectacular, and sometimes, downright peculiar robes and trunks over the years. Sold by Heritage in October 2008 for nearly $20,000, this beautiful blue and gold satin garment was worn by boxing legend Sugar Ray Robinson. There’s just something about this robe from Robinson’s Gold Glove days in New York that’s sure to impress collectors, even if they aren’t boxing fans.

Interesting and eccentric pieces of memorabilia don’t always have to be pricey. Now, I’m not sure if wrestling should actually be considered a sport, or merely entertainment, but there’s no question that these crazy guys are great athletes. Offered in September 2008, for a little more than $1 per card, is this set of 1954-55 Parkhurst Wrestling cards. Colorful characters such as Gorgeous George, Primo Carnera and Mighty Atlas are featured in this rare and affordable collection.

Now, I’m not going to lie. I am in no way a NASCAR fan, and don’t think I’ll ever spend more than a few minutes watching cars drive around a track, but how cool is this item that we sold in April of this year? This uniform, which was worn by the iconic Dale Earnhardt Sr. during his 1996 Daytona 500 race, realized $12,000 in our Signature sale.

Whether it’s these types of unique items you’re looking for, or you simply want to find out the realized prices of your personal memorabilia collection, I want to stress that our auction archive database is unmatched in the sports memorabilia industry. The photo quality and lot descriptions, and the vast array of pieces we have sold over the years are just as impressive as the site’s user-friendly features.

To leave a comment, click on the title of the post.

-Chris Nerat

The cautionary tale of Lenny Dykstra

Sept. 15, 2009

Posted by Noah

If you're remotely a fan of sports - as a concept and and industry - then the name Lenny Dysktra is familiar to you. If you follow any sport religously then you have watched SportsCenter enough times to have heard at least something about Lenny Dykstra. And if you are reading this blog post, then you probably know that Dykstra's demise has now partly intersected with Heritage Auctions in the form of the trove of his World Series and MVP memorabilia that will be in our Oct. 1-2 Sports Auction.

Over the weekend AP broke the story about the auction and it has since traveled to hundreds of outlets worldwide - yet it is a bittersweet PR victory. It's always good to have our name out there in association with an important collection or individual lot, and even better when it attracts potential bidders, but would that Dykstra had never pawned his memorabilia to a high-end shop in Los Angeles. Desperate times led the man known as nails to such measures. It is well-chronicled in the story from the New York Times that I have linked to here.

I'm not one to pile on the man, he certainly has his fair share of detractors, but I take his story as a cautionary tale, one so atypical yet sadly typical of professional athletes. His rise from MLB star to financial wizard - almost a poster boy for the lost wealth of the last year - is equaled only by the dizzying fall from grace at breakneck speed. If, for some reason you don't know the story, just Google his name and take your pick. Dykstra's hubris earned him much animosity when he was at the top, and it has resulted in an entire huge sector of Cyberspace dedicated to salaciously documenting the tumble.

From my perspective, I hope the auction makes a ton - it's a superb collection of amazing stuff, and the Dykstra material is just one course in a huge meal, a buffet, a virtual smorgasbord of the rarest stuff you've ever seen, even if it's not quite as juicy as the older, more-seasoned slice of Lenny Dykstra.

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-Noah Fleisher