LOT #80034 |
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1951 Willie Mays Triple-Signed Bowman Rookie Card Contract....
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Sold on Aug 29, 2020 for:
$28,800.00
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Description
Signed the day of his first career hit/home run!
1951 Willie Mays Triple-Signed Bowman Rookie Card Contract.
He was rated number two on The Sporting News' list of
"Baseball's 100 Greatest Players of the Twentieth Century," topped
only by the iconic Babe Ruth. There are many who would contend that
it was Mays deserved top billing--in the end, it comes down to your
particular definition of "greatness." That Babe Ruth was the most
noteworthy figure in twentieth century baseball is difficult to
dispute. And it's true that he was the game's premier pitcher
before he became the game's premier slugger. But if baseball's
"five tools" is the metric--hitting for average, hitting for power,
baserunning, throwing and fielding--Mays' superiority is clear.Within the 1951 Bowman issue, the Say Hey Kid likewise plays second fiddle only to a single New York Yankees legend--the great Mickey Mantle, whose rookie also derives from the set. Top examples of Mays' #303 card from this fabled issue have ticked the sixth digit on the pricing odometer, and many collectors consider the card to be undervalued even at that lofty height, suggesting that there's nowhere for the Say Hey Kid to go but up.
The superstar center fielder had made his Big League debut three days before the date listed on this document, and had gone hitless in his first dozen at-bats. But on May 28, 1951, his first-ever plate appearance at the Polo Grounds after a discouraging road trip to begin his Hall of Fame career, Mays sent a Warren Spahn offering over the left field roof of the Polo Grounds, his first of 660 career home runs. Later, the victimized Hall of Fame southpaw would lament, "I'll never forgive myself. We might have gotten rid of Willie forever if I'd only struck him out."
Heritage Auction regulars will recall our offering of a virtually identical document executed several weeks earlier to acquire the rights to the likeness of Mickey Mantle for the 1951 Bowman issue, a lot which commanded $105,000 in our February 2020 Platinum Night auction. Here again, a rookie bound for the pantheon agrees to placement within the 1951 issue and acknowledges receipt of a bonus wristwatch with a signature on each side of the first page, then consents to a four-year extension of the term with a third autograph on the second page. Like Mantle, Mays would ultimately ignore the exclusivity terms of that extension covenant, as any collector of early 1950's Topps cards could tell you.
Signatures from Bowman rep Jack Tanzer and a notary public also appear. We particularly love the "Polo Grounds" handwritten address, penned the day of Mays first home game. The two pages are no longer attached by their staple, but it's clear that they are a matched pair due to the identical dating penned on each. It's a remarkable birth certificate, both for one of the most iconic trading cards of the post-war era, and for Mays' history as one of the Major Leagues' all-time greatest home run artists. Full LOA from PSA/DNA.
Auction Info
2020 August 29 - 30 Summer Platinum Night Sports Collectibles Catalog Auction - Dallas #50029 (go to Auction Home page)
Auction Dates
August, 2020
29th-30th
Saturday-Sunday
Bids + Registered Phone Bidders: 12
Lot Tracking Activity: N/A
Page Views: 1,402
Buyer's Premium per Lot:
20% of the successful bid per lot.
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