(LOT 3)
1951 Bowman #253 Mickey Mantle Rookie PSA 9 MINT
MINT MANTLE ROOKIE!!! Memory Lane is beside ourselves in offering this hobby classic. A breathtaking PSA MINT 9 true Rookie Card of the "Mick"! This stunning example is just 1 of 9 that have ever EARNED the prestigious grade of MINT 9 by PSA, with just a one, One, ONE, card graded higher! It's been six long years since the last time a 1951 Bowman #253 Mickey Mantle Rookie Card graded MINT 9 by PSA has come up for auction.

Here are just a few things that happened in the world of sports the last time a 1951 PSA 9 Mickey Mantle card was put up at auction:

• Barry Bonds broke Henry Aaron's home run record.
• Michael Vick plead guilty to dog fighting charges. Criminal charges were brought against the Duke lacrosse team (who were later acquitted).
• The Anaheim Ducks (yes the Ducks!) won Lord Stanley's Cup.
• NYC radio icon Don Imus was rightfully terminated for his disrespectful remarks regarding the Women's basketball team at Rutgers University.
• David Beckham took his skills to Los Angeles, and the excitement for American Soccer fans reached a new level.
• And after six A.L. Pennants and four World Series Titles, Joe Torre's contract was not renewed by the New York Yankees.

ALL OF THAT happened in American sports, the LAST time a 1951 Bowman MICKEY MANTLE PSA MINT 9 Rookie Card went up for auction!

"The imprint of baseball greatness is upon Mickey Mantle just as the portrait of Thomas Jefferson graces the current three-cent stamp, but it may still take awhile before the American sporting public becomes aware of the magnitude of Mickey's talents." - Harold Rosenthal, popular New York sportswriter. Due to Mr. Rosenthal's reference of the "current three-cent stamp" baring Jefferson's image, it's safe to say that he spoke these words while the Mick was at the dawn of his prime. That said, I believe that if Mr. Rosenthal were with us today, even he would be shocked at how accurate his statement of decades ago, actually was. Because, when it comes to being "aware of the magnitude of Mickey's talents", no one is more aware than the "American sporting public"! Mickey Charles Mantle is simply the most collected figure in the history of Sports Collectables in America, period.

Many have tried to explain why we're still crazy about collecting everything and anything Mantle, but I don't think that there's any right answer or reason, other than emotions. Emotions from real memories of actually seeing him play. Emotions from getting his autograph in person. Emotions from opening a pack of TOPPS and pulling a Mantle card. Emotions from watching old film footage of him on ESPN. Emotions differ from person to person, and what ever Mantle had, we all resonated with it. We resonated with it like we had with no one before or after him. You don't even have to collect Mantle, in order to still long for a Mantle Rookie Card. Mickey his own self, never understood what the big fuss was over, often saying, "I'm just a country boy from Oklahoma." Well Mick, I think that was also part of the allure. When it comes down to it Mickey Mantle was the American dream, and who doesn't want a piece of that?

MIN BID $50,000

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