The Morning Briefing: Mickey Mantle Card Sells for $5.2 Million in a Record Deal

The 1952 Mantle card is an obsession for sports card investors like Rob Gough, Theo Epstein Has a New Job and Technology and baseball, here are your morning's Washington Nationals and Major League Baseball Headlines.

by Richard Wachtel

Updated January 15, 2021

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Today's Top Story: Mickey Mantle Card Sells for $5.2 Million in a Record Deal

A mint 1952 Mickey Mantle baseball card sold for a record-shattering $5.2 million to entrepreneur and actor Rob Gough through a private transaction broken by PWCC market place.

The deal was announced yesterday morning, was sold ever for the highest amount for a trading card, exceeding a previous record of $3.4 million set by a purchase of a Mike Trout rookie card.

"I've dreamt of owning a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card since I was a kid collecting cards," said Gough in a statement. "It's the Mona Lisa of sports cards."

According to PSA, which is the world's largest third-party authentication company and the industry leader in card grading as well as autograph and memorabilia authentication graded the card as a Mint 9, which means "a superb card." According to reports, the card only exhibits only one of a few slight flaws—a tiny wax stain on the back, a minor printing imperfection, or slightly off-white borders, according to PSA's grading system. Jesse Craig, director of business development for PWCC, a trading card marketplace, believes the card is the finest 1952 Mint 9 Mantle in existence. Just five other such Mint 9s are known to exist.

Meet the 16-Year-Old Shortstop from the Dominican Republic: Armando Cruz. Today, we will find out if the 16-year old Shortstop from the Dominican Republic Armando Cruz will sign with the Washington Nationals as the International Signing period has started. We have you covered all-day on all the signing information. Before the day begins, here is our prospect profile.

Theo Epstein Has a New Job. The former GM of the Boston Redsox and Chicago Cubs has a new job with Major League Baseball. According to Major League Baseball, the former GM will work with baseball analytics experts from the Commissioners office and teams to "determine the likely effects of various contemplated rule changes." Commissioner Manfred said in the Press release: "Theo is one of the most accomplished and thoughtful people in our sport. I am greateful tha he has accepted our invitation to complement our ongoing efforrts and prove his insights on making the best game in the world even better for the next generation of fans." [Click here to read all about Epstein's newest job]

Tech & Baseball. In the age of analytics, why shouldn't the collected data be more accessible and understandable? That's why amateur baseball event host Perfect Game and analytics provider K-Motion have formed a joint venture, PG Tech, to make player development data more accessible—and understandable. According to a press release, "With the normal scouting circuit limited by COVID-19 last year, data took on even more importance in the evaluation process. MLB teamed with performance training company Driveline for a series of regional events, during which players were tracked using everything from launch monitors to force plates with help from tech companies like Rapsodo and K-Motion." It should be interesting to see how data becomes more accessible and understandable; the game will change even more.