There is only one single PSA 10 1952 Topps Willie Mays rookie card known to exist. The same owner also lays claim to other incredible, iconic cards including one of the three PSA 10 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle rookie cards. Who owns such hobby history?
This1952 Topps rookie card of Willie Mays graded PSA 10 is pretty rare; it's the only PSA 10 in the world. This card was on display at The National last month and we had the chance to see this beauty up-close and personal. The same owner of this card also has some of the rarest cards in the hobby in their collection, too.
We are always buying high-grade vintage cards! We recently proudly purchased a collection of high-graded 1909-1911 T206, 1933 Goudey, and 1952 Topps baseball cards you can see HERE.
1952 TOPPS WILLIE MAYS ROOKIE CARD PSA 10 - ONLY 1 EXISTS
Willie Mays is one of the greatest baseball players of all-time. On the diamond, Mays collected 3,283 hits, 660 home runs, a pair of MVP awards, and won the World Series. The value of his cards reflects Mays' feats; his cards are usually worth a pretty penny. There is one card that stands tall among the rest, though - the PSA 10 Gem Mint copy of his 1952 Topps rookie card #261.
PSA is a professional grading company. Cards are graded on a scale from 1 to 10 with 10 being absolutely perfect. Having a grade of 10 is VERY tough for vintage cards. Aside from the seven decades of handling, kids often put their baseball cards in bike spokes to make their ride sound cool back then or may have been used for a game of FLIP. To date, 2,696 of the 1952 Topps Willie Mays card have been graded and only ONE is a PSA 10.
KEN KENDRICK - OWNER
Owner in more ways than one! Ken Kendrick is the collector that has the only-known PSA 10 1952 Topps Willie Mays card. Kendrick is the owner of the Arizona Diamondbacks baseball team. You can see "THE DBACKS COLLECTION" on the label of the card. A long-time collector, Kendrick has a treasure trove of high-grade, iconic cards. A small sample of cards the Kendrick collection:
Kendrick even owns modern iconic cards like a PSA 10 1986-87 Fleer Michael Jordan rookie card.
How much is the only 1952 Topps Willie Mays card graded PSA 10 worth? Well, the Mickey Mantle PSA 10 is estimated at 30 MILLION dollars. A PSA 9 copy (there are 9 that exist) of the Mays rookie last sold in 2017 for $245,000. The value of vintage baseball cards has skyrocketed over the last five years, though. For example, five years ago a PSA 1 T206 Honus Wanger could be had for about $600,000. In April of 2022, a PSA 1 sold for a little over 3 million dollars. While we can speculate Willie is worth North of a million dollars, only Ken Kendrick truly knows!
WE ARE ALWAYS BUYING
If you have a Willie Mays rookie card that you're interested in selling, we are buying! We have purchased many Willie Mays rookie cards including one in The Black Box Collection.
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 to be 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 many ways to evaluate your cards other than using our website, too.
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.
We keep a LIST of the card shows we'll be attending. Come stop by the Just Collect table and chat.
If you have a valuable collection and want us to come to you, we'll hop on the next plane out. We recently took a trip to California to purchase a collection that included three Jackie Robinson 1948 Leaf rookie cards that you can read about here.
We have another location in New York you can meet us at; read all the information here.
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 with 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.
CONTACT US ANY TIME
Whether you have vintage cards or modern wax you want to sell, you can reach out to us any time!