An early-career Mickey Mantle jersey and a Babe Ruth bat from his prime will highlight the Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory live auction when it returns to Hunt Auctions next month.
The game-worn Mantle jersey, which the auction house has assigned a pre-sale estimate of $1 million to $2 million, comes from the 1953 season and is autographed by Mantle. The road jersey is photo-matched to images from early 1954 and 1955 and could have also been worn during the 1953 World Series.
The same jersey sold in 2010 at SCP Auctions for $62,256 and in 2017 at Grey Flannel for $141,480.
Early career Mantle gamers, particularly those accompanied by photo-matching documentation, are exceptionally rare.
Another highlight is the “Buckeye State” Ruth bat (estimate: $400,000-$600,000). The bat is dated to around 1920-22 and was recently discovered after being passed down through the family of former Ohio State athletic director Richard C. Larkins.
A unique corked barrel treatment is found on the bat that has not been seen on other examples. The experts at Hunt and Louisville Slugger explain, according to Hillerich & Bradsby factory records, Ruth might have been experimenting with various weights of his bat at the time and could have used this corking process in an effort to lighten the load.
The bat has never been sold publicly and even features a shipping label used to send the bat to Larkins.
“Each year as the MLB baseball season draws to a close, we look forward to traveling to the Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory for our annual live auction,” Hunt Auctions president David Hunt said in a statement. “For the 22nd year, we are honored to present an outstanding assemblage of historic baseball artifacts within the very location where many of them were originally manufactured.”
Items from Hall of Fame pitcher Jim Kaat’s personal collection have also been consigned, including a glove he used for 15 years.
Additionally, following the sale of part of Dr. G.B. Espy’s collection earlier this month at Christie’s — headlined by Lou Gehrig’s final Yankees pinstripe jersey — the second part of the collection will join the auction, including a single-signed Marilyn Monroe baseball.
The live auction will be held at the Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory on Nov. 15, 2025, starting at 10:30 a.m.
Will Stern is a reporter and editor for cllct, the premier company for collectible culture.