Mickey Mantle Game Bat A9

[ooo-ribay]

I’m not seeing the “heavy” use and ball marks.

[ruth-gehrig]

It was pointed out in the REA description that the bat was consigned directly from Troy Kinunen's own collection. Graded by him and consigned by him

[yanks12025]

Probably has more to deal with the letters being on the knob, which point the bat being used by someone else and not all by Mantle. Another reason is probably Mears aint regarded that high anymore in this hobby..

[Mark]

Originally Posted by yanks12025

Probably has more to deal with the letters being on the knob, which point the bat being used by someone else and not all by Mantle. Another reason is probably Mears aint regarded that high anymore in this hobby..

I also think that this is a big factor. If I understand it correctly, MEARS sold the bat originally at auction for 11K. Later, the bat sold at REA for 17K. It then sold at ebay for 12.7 K. These are all low for a MEARS 9 Mantle. Wouldn't PSA/DNA lower the number from a 9 to a 7 or 6 because of another player's initials appearing on the bat?

[rlevy]

Mantle Adirondack bats always bring less money than H&B bats. And clearly, having initials carved in the knob casts doubt on who really used this bat. You can say Mantle used it, then gave it to someone who carved their own initials in it, but collectors prefer not having "story" bats.

And the issue of having Mears ownership and grading is also a factor. There was a time when collectors sought out dealers like Dave Bushing for their opinions and willingly bought from them. But times have changed (with good reason), and collectors strongly prefer independent evaluations.

Rick

[Forever Young]

Originally Posted by rlevy

Mantle Adirondack bats always bring less money than H&B bats. And clearly, having initials carved in the knob casts doubt on who really used this bat. You can say Mantle used it, then gave it to someone who carved their own initials in it, but collectors prefer not having "story" bats.

And the issue of having Mears ownership and grading is also a factor. There was a time when collectors sought out dealers like Dave Bushing for their opinions and willingly bought from them. But times have changed (with good reason), and collectors strongly prefer independent evaluations.

Rick

This is an H & B bat

[rlevy]

Yikes, need more coffee.