1952 Rosen Mantle SGC 9.5 Final Price – Too high, too low, just right?

[Frank A]

Originally Posted by jingram058

I think 12.6M for ANY baseball card, a piece of cardboard, with all that's going on in the world, makes me mad. That someone has that much disposable pocket change, to plunk down on a baseball card, no matter their "investment" or possible "flip" options or what the f%$# ever, makes me mad. I am not jealous. I find it ridiculous in the extreme and it makes me mad. And with that, I am done...

I agree with you 100%. Thousands of people will die this winter because they can't afford gas or heating oil or electricity and will freeze to death and some guy spends millions on a friggin baseball card. I wonder if he gives a shit about them. I will guess he does not. The priorities of things has gone to hell.

[campyfan39]

I'll take the minority view here. I am one of the ole timey "scrooges" who laments the fact that the hobby I love has turned into investment property. The more cards go up the less likely it is true collectors who care about the game and the sets will ever be able to attain them.

i think the buyer has every right to spend their money however they want and it likely was a good "investment." I just long for the days without some third party assigning a number to your treasure that determines its worth. I know I am a dinosaur and the ship is sailed but thats how I feel.

[Carter08]

Originally Posted by Frank A

I agree with you 100%. Thousands of people will die this winter because they can't afford gas or heating oil or electricity and will freeze to death and some guy spends millions on a friggin baseball card. I wonder if he gives a shit about them. I will guess he does not. The priorities of things has gone to hell.

Interesting take and probably worthy of its own thread but wealth disparity in this country is far from new.

[Exhibitman]

Originally Posted by Frank A

I agree with you 100%. Thousands of people will die this winter because they can't afford gas or heating oil or electricity and will freeze to death and some guy spends millions on a friggin baseball card. I wonder if he gives a shit about them. I will guess he does not. The priorities of things has gone to hell.

Originally Posted by jingram058

I think 12.6M for ANY baseball card, a piece of cardboard, with all that's going on in the world, makes me mad. That someone has that much disposable pocket change, to plunk down on a baseball card, no matter their "investment" or possible "flip" options or what the f%$# ever, makes me mad. I am not jealous. I find it ridiculous in the extreme and it makes me mad. And with that, I am done...

Well, the answer is not here, it is at the ballot box.

Meanwhile, I personally would not have paid that for the card. I'd rather have a nice midgrade card and a beach house in Malibu. There's more to life than baseball cards



Or so I have heard. After 27 years of marriage, I have no friggin' idea.

[jayshum]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

Well, the answer is not here, it is at the ballot box.

Meanwhile, I personally would not have paid that for the card. I'd rather have a nice midgrade card and a beach house in Malibu. There's more to life than baseball cards



Or so I have heard. After 27 years of marriage, I have no friggin' idea.

Adam, I think it may be time for you to update your signature line if you really believe this.

[Touch'EmAll]

The card went for 2.6 million over the target price about 10 million.

I understand the various feelings (good, bad, ugly) regarding the final price. Change happens and our hobby is no longer the way it used to be. Investment is now a motive perhaps more than anything else.

Lets assume the card went for 2.6 million under the 10 million estimate = 7.4 million final total. Interesting to contemplate the reactions if that had happened.

Rare art is really just some paint on a canvas. Do we knock the current market and what someone is willing to pay? A Ferrari is just a car with fancier sheet metal and motor. Do we knock what one is willing to pay? A baseball card is just cardboard with a players picture, should we knock what one is willing to pay? A rich person paying mega bucks for a 15 bedroom mansion ... you get the point.

On the one hand it sucks for us regular folks who can no longer afford what we used to buy. But on the other hand, the stuff we do have is now worth way more. Aw, jeez. It is what it is. Overall, I lean toward this Mantle sale as generally good for the hobby.

Steve Parmentier

[Exhibitman]

Originally Posted by jayshum

Adam, I think it may be time for you to update your signature line if you really believe this.

Well since I don't have the money or the beach house, my comments are purely aspirational, while my tag line is realistic.

[Shoeless Moe]

How come no winner has come forward?

Are we sure Heritage didn't win this? Aren't they allowed to bid in their auctions? Did they hit it one too many times?

[BobbyStrawberry]

Originally Posted by Shoeless Moe

How come no winner has come forward?

Are we sure Heritage didn't win this? Aren't they allowed to bid in their auctions? Did they hit it one too many times?

Maybe they're still in shock after coming to the realization that they just spent 12 million dollars on a baseball card.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by Shoeless Moe

How come no winner has come forward?

Are we sure Heritage didn't win this? Aren't they allowed to bid in their auctions? Did they hit it one too many times?

Some dude with a backward ball cap, a three day beard, sneakers shorts and a tshirt definitely should be all over social media with this by now.

[Carter08]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

Some dude with a backward ball cap, a three day beard, sneakers shorts and a tshirt definitely should be all over social media with this by now.

Steve Cohen purchasing it would be an interesting twist.

[Johnny630]

Originally Posted by Shoeless Moe

How come no winner has come forward?

Are we sure Heritage didn't win this? Aren't they allowed to bid in their auctions? Did they hit it one too many times?

Very Good Point/They Can Bid on their Items ….Does Someone Have Sour Grapes ?? I’m Shocked to see this being offered up on their site as a for-sale offer price now.

[cardsagain74]

Originally Posted by Frank A

I agree with you 100%. Thousands of people will die this winter because they can't afford gas or heating oil or electricity and will freeze to death and some guy spends millions on a friggin baseball card. I wonder if he gives a shit about them. I will guess he does not. The priorities of things has gone to hell.

Many people love collectibles. And some people in the world become excessively wealthy. Therefore, it's easy to have a marketplace where the prices for the most prized collectibles get incredibly high.

This is not anything new. Priorities are not "going to hell" all of a sudden. It's just how one part of the planet's economy has always functioned.

And the buyer might even have a big philanthropic side as well; there's no way of knowing (at least not yet) if he's the Mr. Burns that you guys want to assume.

But regardless, it's so pointless and unhealthy to let wealthy people spending their $ on an asset bother you so much.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by cardsagain74

Many people love collectibles. And some people in the world become excessively wealthy. Therefore, it's easy to have a marketplace where the prices for the most prized collectibles get incredibly high.

This is not anything new. Priorities are not "going to hell" all of a sudden. It's just how one part of the planet's economy has always functioned.

And the buyer might even have a big philanthropic side as well; there's no way of knowing (at least not yet) if he's the Mr. Burns that you guys want to assume.

But regardless, it's so pointless and unhealthy to let wealthy people spending their $ on an asset bother you so much.

If you want to be really bothered about money that could have helped needy people being wasted, look at some of the line items in reports on waste in the federal budget. One Mantle card is chump change. Now, back to cards.

[Stampsfan]

Originally Posted by Frank A

I agree with you 100%. Thousands of people will die this winter because they can't afford gas or heating oil or electricity and will freeze to death and some guy spends millions on a friggin baseball card. I wonder if he gives a shit about them. I will guess he does not. The priorities of things has gone to hell.

I am always somewhat intrigued at how some people are judged by others, who have never spoken to them, let alone gotten to know them really to the core.

I have friends that I've known for years. Some have shown their true colors and are no longer friends, and others volunteer their time at the local children's hospital and food bank. It took me years to find out their values and what they truly care about, and this happens over time.

Yet somehow, someone spends a lot of money (which is always relative) on a collectible (or a car, or art, or a purse) and that shows the world what their values are and how they are deep in their core? I doubt that. We don't even know their name.

[Johnny630]

I’ve never seen this amount of vitriol, anger, and bitterness over a Frigging Card. You either have one or don’t who the hell cares what other people do with their money? God Bless them. I’m just happy with what I have.

[Sean]

Originally Posted by Johnny630

I’ve never seen this amount of vitriol, anger, and bitterness over a Frigging Card. You either have one or don’t who the hell cares what other people do with their money? God Bless them. I’m just happy with what I have.

+1

[Sean]

Originally Posted by Frank A

I agree with you 100%. Thousands of people will die this winter because they can't afford gas or heating oil or electricity and will freeze to death and some guy spends millions on a friggin baseball card. I wonder if he gives a shit about them. I will guess he does not. The priorities of things has gone to hell.

I don't understand this. As a child, I spent a nickel for a pack of cards. As an elderly man I spent six figures on one card. While this may indicate a lack of personal growth on my part, it doesn't mean that I don't care about the homeless. And we certainly don't know how the buyer of the Mantle card feels about problems around poverty. Poverty, homelessness and hunger have been with us for as long as I'm aware. We've spent countless dollars and the problems are still here. And every advanced society has had the idle rich, who take much more from society than they contribute. But to imply that a guy who spends huge money for a card is heartless, or for that matter to imply any connection between his spending and poverty is wrong.

You can feel any way you like about his spending that much money. I personally couldn't care less about the card. But that's no reason to imply that he's a bad person.