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1952 Topps Willie Mays Rookie Highlights Collection from Original Owner

Multiple Cards of Legends Willie Mays, Mickey Mantle, Hank Aaron, Jackie Robison, and More!

September 03, 2024

A huge collection of vintage cards including multiple Mickey Mantle, Hank Aaron, Jackie Robinson, Roberto Clemente, and Willie Mays cards have proudly been purchased by Just Collect. Among the beauties is a 1952 Topps Willie Mays rookie card. Each card is from the original owner!

After discovering the form we offer on the Just Collect site, a gentleman named David was interested in selling his complete 1961 Topps baseball set. We are always buying complete vintage sets! Once we reviewed the set, we made David a fair offer that he accepted. When it came to delivering the cards to our office in Summit, NJ., David was apprehensive about shipping his valuable cards via mail. Our Vice President, John, provided our fully-insured, two-day FedEx account number and tips on packing cards for shipping. Wanting to "test the waters", David shipped us his 1961 Topps baseball set and, and we mailed him a company check at his request. After cashing his check, David was pleased with our process and chose to sell us his entire childhood collection! Wait until you see the unboxing of the cards, and the pieces of history inside.

THE COLLECTION

SIXTEEN different Willie Mays cards were collected by David as a child, and made their way to the Just Collect office were these and all others will be finding new, loving homes. When you look at the first photo in our slide show below, you can see each of the different Mays cards. From the regular issue to the all-star cards, this collection spans Willie's entire career. As a baby face in 1952, he's pictured on on the iconic 1952 Topps set as a New York Giant. The Giants didn't move to their current residence in San Francisco until the 1958 season. Mays was just 21 in 1952, ready to embark on perhaps the greatest all-around player baseball has ever seen. Mays was THE five-tool player: hit for average, hit for power, throw well, field well, and run for speed. During his career, Mays led the league in stolen bases, hits, home runs, won multiple gold glove awards, multiple MVP wards, and a World Series championship. You can see Mays grow into the Hall of Fame player he was as you move right to left from the bottom to the top in the first photo. After his 1952 Topps rookie are cards from the 1953 Topps set, 1955 Bowman, 1956 Topps, 1957 Topps, 1958 Topps, 1959 Topps, and so many more incredible sets. We lost Willie Mays at the age of 93 this year. There may never be another player like Willie ever again.

Remember opening a wax pack of baseball cards as a kid? Inside were a few cards of your idols (or arch enemies you wanted to FLIP) and that old stick of crispy gum. We can't image how many sticks of gum David ended up with each year!

Mickey Mantle steals the show in the second photo. TEN Mickey Mantle cards are here from his 1954 Bowman card to the last card he appeared on as a player, 1969 Topps. Mantle has three MVP awards, seven World Series championships, and even won the Triple Crown in 1957 by leading the league in average, home runs, and RBI's. That 1954 Bowman baseball card you see in the bottom row, all the way to the right, in the second photo is unique! Mantle did NOT have a Topps card in either 1954 or 1955. If you wanted a Mickey Mantle card in those seasons, you had to buy Bowman packs. Looks like David enjoyed both Topps and Bowman!

TEN Roberto Clemente cards are in the third photo including his 1955 Topps rookie card. Clemente tallied 3,000 career hits, won 12 gold glove awards (12!), four batting titles, an MVP, and two World Series championships. There wasn't much Clemente couldn't do on the field! What Clemente tried to do off the field was even greater, and sadly Clemente perished while doing a heartfelt deed. While on a mission to deliver aid packages in Managua, the capital City of Nicaragua, after a massive earthquake, Clemente died in a plane crash. Gone at only age 38. It's an honor to buy Roberto Clemente cards any time we can. When looking at your cards, as you can see by David's collection in the third photo, Topps would occasionally put Bob Clemente instead of Roberto Clemente. Keep an eye out for both Bob and Roberto Clemente cards when looking through your shoeboxes and binders.

Hank Aaron and Jackie Robinson catch your eyes in the final photo in our slide show below. Two icons in one image! Aaron smashed 755 career home runs, more than all but one player (Barry Bonds) in baseball history. How good was Aaron? He made 25 all-star teams! Aside from hitting home runs, The Hammer could hit for average (won two batting titles), and defend (3 gold glove awards). Did you know that if Hank Aaron never hit a single home run, he'd still be in the Hall of Fame? Aaron finished his career with 3,771 hits; he'd still be in the 3,000 it club had he not hit one homer! David had SIX cards of Hank Aaron that you can see in the top row. From a 1955 Topps card (his second year) to a 1967 Topps card, David kept eating that gum!

THREE Jackie Robinson cards finish off the crème of the crop of David's childhood card collection. Robinson endured more than we could ever imagine in his lifetime by breaking baseball's color barrier. Through it all, Jackie Robinson made six all-star teams, won the MVP award in 1949, the World Series in 1955, and was a first-ballot Hall of Famer in 1962. With only 10 seasons in the bigs, Jackie became a phenom. Cards from the 1954, 1955, and 1956 sets are here, the last three seasons Jackie played baseball.

Other vintage cards and stars were included in the collection. Below, you can see us unbox the cards David shipped and learn how YOU can sell your collection to Just Collect.

SLIDE SHOW OF THE COLLECTION:

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VIDEO OF THE UNBOXING:

APPRAISAL AND PURCHASE

As he did when selling Just Collect his 1961 Topps baseball set, David opted to ship is cards to our office in Summit, NJ. We provided David our two-day, fully-insured FedEx account. Your local card shop is generally not well equipped to appraise or purchase vintage collections like this. The retail stores are focused on selling modern products and simply don't have the time or the knowledge to carefully evaluate vintage collections. This is where we are happy to help you. Our owner, Leighton, and Vice President, John, will carefully review your collection with the care it deserves. After the review, we made David a fair offer and paid him via company check. When you choose to sell your collection to Just Collect, we pay you how YOU want to be paid - cash, check, or wire transfer. David shipped us his collection, and we mailed him the check. Thank you for choosing us to sell your collection to, David!

If you're interested in selling your collection, we are buying! If you'd prefer not to ship your collect, we would love to meet you here at our office or we'd be willing to meet at a convention. Have a large valuable collection? We can travel to you! Here is how you can set up an appointment and a free appraisal today:

WE ARE ALWAYS BUYING

Just Collect is always buying vintage sports and non-sports cards from 1879 to 1979 as well as select modern cards. If you have a collection that you are considering selling, contact us today to discuss or get our industry-leading purchase offer. If you have a collection that you want appraised, please contact us and we would be happy to discuss your collection and help you understand the real cash value of your collection in the current marketplace. Check out the Just Collect Buy List.

We always offer a FREE APPRAISAL for your collection here at the Just Collect site. Just click here:

We offer may ways to evaluate your cards other than or using our website, too.

Travel to Us

If you can make the trip here like the son from my hometown did for this collection- we can make a deal at the office. We once met a father-son duo that drove eight hours from Virginia to meet us to sell a Michael Jordan rookie card stored in Tupperware since 1986 - great read here.

Come to convention

We keep a LIST of card shows we'll be attending. Come stop by the Just Collect table and chat.

Meet in-person

If you have a valuable collection and want us to come to you, we'll hop on the next plane out.

Meet in New York City

If you're near New York City and would like to meet in a public place, our owner, Leighton, would be happy to meet you; read all the information here.

SHIP your collection

If you choose to mail your cards for an appraisal, we will evaluate your cards for FREE still. If you choose not to sell the cards, we'll ship them back shipping fees paid by us! We can offer our FedEx account with 2-day shipping, fully insured, all covered by us. Simply contact the office to set up this option.

OUR BUYING PHILOSOPHY

We've run into a wide range of people and collections over the last 25 years. Although Just Collect is known for buying vintage sports cards and especially vintage baseball cards, we are also extremely interested in buying non-sports cards, too!

Every collection and every collector is different and we treat EVERY collection with the respect and attention that we show for our own collections. We understand that many have put their heart and souls into building their collections. So when you're ready to sell, we understand the feelings that you're going through and will work with you to help you reach a decision that is a WIN/WIN, because if you're not happy, we're not happy.