[Snowman]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

I think we are overthinking this.

Mays's hobby status (card prices) would be closer to Mantle's if Mays was card #313 instead of card #261 in the 1952 Topps set. Mantle became iconic in the hobby in large part because of the legend of the last series of 1952 Topps: the mass retail returns, the garbage scow in the harbor, the Mr. Mint 'find', etc., until "the Mantle" (and you know when someone says it that way it is exactly what they mean) transcends the hobby itself, like the Wagner. From that base, the prices on every Mantle card get pushed higher much as every Wagner card gets pushed higher.

You can test this theory by looking at 1953 Topps where the Mays is short printed and the Mantle is not.