1956 Topps #135 Mickey Mantle HOF $279,638
Imagine owning a piece of baseball history so rare, so pristine, it’s practically a time machine to 1956—a year when Mickey Mantle wasn’t just a player, he was the player. Enter the 1956 Topps Mickey Mantle Baseball Card (Gray Back), graded a near-mint PSA 8.5. This isn’t just a card; it’s a $279,638 ticket to the golden age of America’s pastime, where the Mick snagged the Triple Crown with a .353 average, 52 homers, and 130 RBIs. For collectors, it’s the holy grail—and for the rest of us, it’s a jaw-dropping splurge that screams “I’ve got cash to burn.”
Why’s this cardboard king so pricey? First, it’s the gray-back version—less common than its white-back cousin, with PSA grading over 9,500 total Mantles but far fewer in this elite condition. The 1956 Topps set marked Mantle’s big return after a Bowman contract hiatus, and its horizontal design—bold portrait paired with an action shot—captures him mid-leap, grinning like he knows he’s untouchable. At PSA 8.5, it’s got razor-sharp edges and vibrant colors, a near-perfect relic from an era when Topps bought out Bowman to rule the card game. Rough cuts and off-centering plague lesser copies, but this one? It’s a standout.