We should not conflate fame of specific players transcending the sport and impacting value of the cards with the fame of specific cards in the hobby transcending the player and impacting the value. Ruth, Gehrig, Robinson, Jordan, Ali, those guys transcend the sport. If you look at them in terms of global card issue diversity, there is no contest: Muhammad Ali has cards issued in every corner of the world, and Jordan is a distant second.
I don't think Mantle does, but Mantle's 1952 Topps card transcends the player within the hobby. it has been the marquee postwar baseball card for 40 years--the major boom in price started in around 1980--and is likely to remain so. It may very well be overtaken in terms of value by the MJ or LeBron RCs in the future because of the younger skew of their fans, the international sport market, and the demise of actual Mantle fans.
Last edited by Exhibitman; 08-16-2020 at 02:21 PM.
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