Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Costco Wants to See if You'll Spend $250K on Mickey Mantle's Rookie Card
gvw_edward_smith
By Edward Smith
Published 7 months ago on
December 15, 2023

Share

Costco has a baseball card it wants to show you. Buried deep in the website is a rare 1951 Mickey Mantle rookie card by Bowman.

Now, it’s not mint condition, but it’s got The Mick’s signature and the signature rating couldn’t be better.

Grading company PSA rates the card as very good or excellent. The company gives the signature a “10.”

Costco wants $250,000 for it. And there’s only one of them.

Costco is selling one Mickey Mantle rookie card on its website for $250,000. (Costco)

A 1951 Bowman Once Sold for $3.2M

Requests to Costco about where the card came from or why it’s being listed on the website instead of an auction house weren’t immediately returned. In terms of collectability, though, this is a gem.

The 1951 Bowman is the Yankee great’s true rookie card and the second-most desired, according to Sports Collectors Digest. Cards graded as “very good” sell for an average of $17,364, according to PSA. The most recent sale went for $31,200.

Only one “Mint 10” exists and has never been sold. Sports Collectors Digest reports Arizona Diamondbacks principal owner Ken Kendrick owns that card.

The next grading down, a “Mint 9” sold for $3.2 million in January 2022.

“Very good to excellent” (VG-EX4) means the card’s corners may be rounded and surface wear is noticeable. Borders may have yellowed but centering must be decent.

What sets the Costco card apart is the signature rating. The “10” rating means that when Mantle signed it, the pen didn’t skip and he took his time to do it.

The Topps card that came out for Mantle’s 1952 year is the true designated hitter for collectors with a few extra million dollars to spend. The image comes from his first spring training with the Yankees. The sale of a mint one of those cards still holds the industry record, auctioning for $12.6 million in 2022.

Sports Collectors Digest says collector Marshall Fogel declined a $30 million offer for his top-rated card.

A 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle baseball card sold for $12.6 million in 2022, the largest dollar amount in history. (Ebay)

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

Jack Black, a Small Dog With a Big Heart, Is Looking for His Forever Home

DON'T MISS

Kamala Harris: A Baptist With a Jewish Husband and a Faith That Traces Back to MLK and Gandhi

DON'T MISS

What Italian Grandmothers Can Teach You About Healthy Eating

DON'T MISS

CA Has Seen Many New Towns, but This Big Project Is Stalled

DON'T MISS

Kern County Farmland Values Continue Downward Slide

DON'T MISS

Crescent View West High Celebrates New Clovis Home

DON'T MISS

Fresno Man Sentenced to 29 Years for Sexually Assaulting Children and Dog

DON'T MISS

Bulldogs’ Two-Position Standout Tommy Hopfe Signs With Rockies

DON'T MISS

Artists, Vendors Plan to Defy City’s ArtHop Crackdown

DON'T MISS

Former Bulldog QB Jake Haener: I Have a ‘Rare Form of Skin Cancer’

UP NEXT

Kamala Harris: A Baptist With a Jewish Husband and a Faith That Traces Back to MLK and Gandhi

UP NEXT

What Italian Grandmothers Can Teach You About Healthy Eating

UP NEXT

Kern County Farmland Values Continue Downward Slide

UP NEXT

Crescent View West High Celebrates New Clovis Home

UP NEXT

Fresno Man Sentenced to 29 Years for Sexually Assaulting Children and Dog

UP NEXT

Bulldogs’ Two-Position Standout Tommy Hopfe Signs With Rockies

UP NEXT

Artists, Vendors Plan to Defy City’s ArtHop Crackdown

UP NEXT

Former Bulldog QB Jake Haener: I Have a ‘Rare Form of Skin Cancer’

UP NEXT

The Many Names of GOP Vice Presidential Nominee JD Vance

UP NEXT

‘Fed Up’ Dyer, Councilmembers Unveil Plan to Crack Down on Street Campers

Edward Smith,
Multimedia Journalist
Edward Smith began reporting for GV Wire in May 2023. His reporting career began at Fresno City College, graduating with an associate degree in journalism. After leaving school he spent the next six years with The Business Journal, doing research for the publication as well as covering the restaurant industry. Soon after, he took on real estate and agriculture beats, winning multiple awards at the local, state and national level. You can contact Edward at 559-440-8372 or at Edward.Smith@gvwire.com.

CA Has Seen Many New Towns, but This Big Project Is Stalled

3 hours ago

Kern County Farmland Values Continue Downward Slide

3 hours ago

Crescent View West High Celebrates New Clovis Home

13 hours ago

Fresno Man Sentenced to 29 Years for Sexually Assaulting Children and Dog

14 hours ago

Bulldogs’ Two-Position Standout Tommy Hopfe Signs With Rockies

14 hours ago

Artists, Vendors Plan to Defy City’s ArtHop Crackdown

15 hours ago

Former Bulldog QB Jake Haener: I Have a ‘Rare Form of Skin Cancer’

15 hours ago

The Many Names of GOP Vice Presidential Nominee JD Vance

16 hours ago

‘Fed Up’ Dyer, Councilmembers Unveil Plan to Crack Down on Street Campers

16 hours ago

House Republicans Slam Trump’s ‘Worst Choice’ for VP Pick JD Vance

16 hours ago

Jack Black, a Small Dog With a Big Heart, Is Looking for His Forever Home

In October last year, a heartwarming tale of resilience and recovery began in the unlikeliest of places: a crate abandoned in an alley. This...

2 hours ago

2 hours ago

Jack Black, a Small Dog With a Big Heart, Is Looking for His Forever Home

2 hours ago

Kamala Harris: A Baptist With a Jewish Husband and a Faith That Traces Back to MLK and Gandhi

2 hours ago

What Italian Grandmothers Can Teach You About Healthy Eating

3 hours ago

CA Has Seen Many New Towns, but This Big Project Is Stalled

3 hours ago

Kern County Farmland Values Continue Downward Slide

13 hours ago

Crescent View West High Celebrates New Clovis Home

14 hours ago

Fresno Man Sentenced to 29 Years for Sexually Assaulting Children and Dog

14 hours ago

Bulldogs’ Two-Position Standout Tommy Hopfe Signs With Rockies

Search

Send this to a friend