The market for cards and the market for memorabilia are pretty distinct markets. Sure there is some overlap, but not a ton.
For people who like memorabilia, I think it is pretty much a given that the 'value per dollar' in terms of scarcity and history is far higher. There's a reason that when considered side by side but the buying is theoretical, that the bat will be the item selected 90% of the time (or some other high number). But practically, the card sold for as much, and could easily increase in value at a faster rate. Because the audience of people pursuing a Gehrig rookie functions largely independently from the audience who pursues a GU bat, even of Babe Ruth. And the card audience is much, much larger.
I was first clued into this when I bought a Roy Campanella minor league contract from his first Minor League season (the year that he integrated the Minor Leagues for a team in the United States) for much, much less than a high-grade rookie card. Despite him signing the contract in the same offseason as Jackie Robinson and being one of the first 4 black players to sign. Despite it being signed twice.
I would take the Ruth in a heartbeat for my personal collection. But as an investment, I would have to seriously consider the Gehrig rookie card.
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