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1954 Topps Hank Aaron Rookie Card Highlights Inherited Collection

Hank Aaron, Mickey Mantle, and Babe Ruth Cards Left to Son

November 06, 2025

When Matt's dad passed away at the age of 81, he passed down baseball cards he owned for more than 50 years. As Matt looked at the cards, he recognized the names of Hank Aaron, Mickey Mantle, and Babe Ruth!

THE COLLECTION

Growing up a Yankees fan, Matt's dad would watch almost every game the New York team played on TV. We're going back to the days of Mickey Mantle roaming center field! The three-time MVP and seven-time World Series champion brought great memories to fans of the pinstripes in the 1950's and 1960's. Loving baseball and not being the type to throw anything away, Matt's dad did we what we all did - collected baseball cards.

When Matt's dad passed away at the age of 81, these vintage baseball cards were stored in a gun safe for at least 50 years! Not interested in the hobby, Matt wasn't quite sure what to do with the collection. A quick thumb through the cards let Matt know these were no ordinary players.

The highlight is a 1954 Topps rookie card of Hank Aaron! A 25-time All-Star, Aaron would hit the most career home runs by the time he retired from baseball with a whopping 755 round trippers. The set has 250 total cards and includes other icons of the diamond; a few Matt's dad held onto! Willie Mays, perhaps the greatest all-round player made 24 All-Star teams and hit the longball with the best; Mays retired with 660 home runs. Gil Hodges and Larry Doby cards were in the collection as well. The 1954 Topps set wouldn't have had Mickey Mantle, though; Mantle had a contract with Bowman that year!

When you look at the cards below, Matt's dad, the Yankee fan, made sure he kept that 1954 Bowman Mickey Mantle card. Bowman made a set of 224 cards and included other stars like Roy Campanella and Ed Mathews that were in the collection. Another famous name you spot - Babe Ruth! Not from his playing days, this Ruth card is from the 1952 Topps Look 'N See set. While not as valuable as a playing-days card such as the 1933 Goudey Babe Ruth cards, a Ruth in nice condition from this Topps set is very desirable.

Here are the cards in the collection:

APPRAISAL AND PURCHASE

Matt inherited these cards from his dad. Not being a collector, he wanted to sell these cards and allow someone else to enjoy his dad's treasures. Initially, he thought about coming to the National Sports Collectors Convention. Just Collect has multiple booths to buy and sell cards at the National each year! However, Matt didn't want to walk around the show floor with these cards. This is why we offer many ways to evaluate and appraise your collection!

Using our fully-insured, two-day FedEx account, Matt shipped his cards to our store here in Summit, NJ. From there, our owner Leighton, our Vice President, John, and Acquisitions Specialist, Dan, carefully reviewed each card. We have purchased thousands upon thousands of collections and bought and sold over 50 MILLION dollars in cards. 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.

After the FREE appraisal we offered Matt, we then made a fair offer to purchase each card. Matt accepted our offer and we then paid Matt how he wanted to be paid! When you choose Just Collect, we can pay you in cash, company check, or wire transfer.

We thank you for allowing us the privilege to purchase your dad's collection, Matt! These cards didn't see the light of day for half of Century! No Internet, no cell phones, no computers - these cards have been stored since the days when a gallon of gas was about 57 cents per gallon!

Do you have a collection you're interested in selling? We offer a ! You can fill that form out any time and we'll be happy to reach out.

Love this story? Check out other blogs featuring incredible collections such as:

The Cooperstown Collection purchased in the home of the Baseball Hall of Fame and has multiple rookie cards of Hank Aaron.
The Oregon Farm Collection with a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle discovered in an old barn!
Two 1979 O-Pee-Chee Wayne Gretzky rookie cards - a pair of rookies from the Great One!
1990's Precious Metal Gem basketball cards include some of the rarest, most sought-after cards in modern history.
The Aaron Judge Collection with high-end one of one cards and multiple rookie autos.

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WE ARE ALWAYS BUYING

Just Collect is always buying vintage sports and non-sports cards from 1879 to 2009 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.