Subscribe
Follow Us
Sometimes, there's a silver lining waiting around in the hobby, as a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle rookie card was found in the strangest of places – a cheese box. This unlikely discovery led to the said baseball card being saved after 60 years and sent to PSA for grading, which resulted in a $186,000 payday for the owner.
This is Terry, he pulled this Mantle from a pack in 1952. When he joined the Army his mom cleaned out the house and, like so many moms, threw out his comics and baseball cards. But his brother saved this one! 🙌 It’s currently at @PSAcard and will be part of our July Card Auction pic.twitter.com/gnDVRw9qMB
— Heritage Auctions Sports (@Heritage_Sport) June 6, 2023
A certain Terry, aged 82 from Wisconsin, discovered his long-lost rookie card of the New York Yankees legend inside a box of Farmdale processed cheese that was bought from a Red Owl grocery store decades ago. 60 years later, he received a call from his brother about the Mickey Mantle card he thought was lost.
“I made a humorous comment to my brother, telling him that I was mad that he had thrown out my baseball card collection — including my Mickey Mantle — and comic books. And he said, ‘Well, I’ve got a Mickey Mantle, is that yours?” Terry said. The said box was left inside a crawl space near the living room of Terry's old residence, where it was safe from harm and the elements.
Once the lost 1952 Topps baseball card was found, it was sent to PSA and obtained a six from the grading company. It was then set up to be auctioned by Heritage Auctions and ended up being sold for $186,000. Now dubbed as the Cheese Box card, this Mickey Mantle piece of memorabilia joins others of its kind as one of the most sought-after baseball cards in the hobby.
After being sold by Heritage Auctions, Terry promises to split the earnings with his brother for finding the card after all these years. While the final price is far from the record-setting $12.6 million card of the Yankees legend, the fact that it was found again after all these years and made a respectable profit for its owner is impressive.
