A quintet of high-grade 1933 Goudey Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig cards sold for over $2.7 million as Memory Lane closed out its Spring Rarities Auction early Sunday morning. The cards were part of a large collection curated by the late Manny Gordon, a diamond dealer and avid collector who sought out some of the best examples he could locate. The entire auction generated sales of over $13.9 million.
The top seller from the collection was a PSA 8 1933 Goudey Babe Ruth #53. One of 13 graded 8 by PSA, the card sold for $942,000, by far a record for the grade. Last year, Memory Lane sold the lone higher example, a PSA 9, for $4.2 million.
The other three Ruth cards from the collection were also graded 8 and included #144 ($384,608), #149 ($510,000) and #181 ($268,736).
One of just five PSA 9 examples of the 1933 Goudey Lou Gehrig #92 was the second highest selling in the item at a record smashing $672,000.
Other Goudey cards sold included a PSA 9 1934 Hank Greenberg ($218,579), a ’34 Gehrig #61 ($147,484), a ’33 Mel Ott PSA 9 ($149,794), a ’33 Mark Koenig PSA 9 ($95,761) and a ’33 Andy Cohen PSA 8 ($63,329).
Other pre-War highlights included the following record-setting cards (for the grade):
- 1909 T206 Ty Cobb Red EPDG Factory 17 PSA 3.5 – $26,969
- 1909 T206 Mathewson White Cap Hindu PSA 6 – $54,707
- 1932 Neilson’s Chocolate V61 Type ll Babe Ruth PSA 4.5 – $91,295
- 1933 Blue Bird Babe Ruth “Front View” PSA 7 – $37,895
- 1932 U.S. Caramel #7 Joe Cronin PSA 8.5 – $25,962
- 1922 E121 American Caramel Babe Ruth PSA 4 – $42,864
- 1933 Uncle Jacks Babe Ruth PSA 2 – $58,849
A group of high-grade 1958 Topps Baseball also saw numerous records fall. The lone PSA 10 Sandy Koufax went for a whopping $449,389, the only PSA 10 Frank Robinson reached $230,219, a PSA 9 Hank Aaron yellow letters variation netted $173,582 and a PSA 9 Ted Williams landed at $132,876. Two other cards topped the six-figure mark. Additionally, a near-set break of 11 Jackie Robinson Bread cards issued from 1947-1949 set numerous records.
Other post-War card highlights included:
- 1949 Bowman #50 Jackie Robinson Rookie PSA 8.5 – $169,906
- 1962 Topps #200 Mickey Mantle PSA 8.5 – $103,158
- 1951 Bowman #2 Otto Graham Rookie PSA 9 – $103,158
- 1971 Topps #20 Reggie Jackson PSA 9 – $52,738
- 1952 Bowman #11 Ralph Kiner PSA 10 – $31,558
- 1954 Bowman #1 Phil Rizzuto PSA 10 – $27,595
- 1955 Topps Roberto Clemente Autographed Rookie PSA Graded – $75,808
- 1953 Topps Mickey Mantle Autographed PSA Graded – $33,586
- 1961 Roberto Clemente Player Keychain Insert PSA 8.5 – $22,476
Unopened pack collectors chased a one-of-a-kind 1948 Leaf scarce series pack, which reached a final price of $135,484, and a 1976 Topps Football cello pack with a Walter Payton rookie card on top that netted $42,864.
Memorabilia collectors saw a 1920 New York Giants team signed baseball sell for $34,070, with provenance from the family of team member A.J. Statz and a 1970-72 era Johnny Bench game-used bat go for $28,030.
In all, auction sales totaled over $13.9 million.
Memory Lane is now accepting consignments for its upcoming Summer Auction. Visit the www.memorylaneinc.com for more information and a complete list of Spring auction results.
