Iconic Piece is from ‘Called Shot’ Game
Any game-used Babe Ruth memorabilia demand top-tier prices.
So, it’s not far-fetched that the ultimate Ruth piece now owns the record for the highest selling sports collectible item of all time.
Over the weekend, the jersey legendary New York Yankee wore during his famous “Called Shot” in the 1932 World Series at Wrigley Field sold for $24.12 million through Heritage Auctions.
That almost doubled the previous record price for a sports memorabilia piece. A 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle graded SGC 9.5 sold in August 2022 for $12.6 million.
According to Heritage Auctions, the iconic jersey — which is photo-matched to Game 3 of the 1932 World Series — was last up for auction in 2005 with the description, “1932 Babe Ruth New York Yankees Game-Used Road Flannel Jersey Attributed To the Called Shot.” It sold for $940,000.
Chris Ivy, Heritage’s Director of Sports, calls the Ruth jersey “the most significant piece of American sports memorabilia ever offered at auction.”
“It has been an honor and a privilege to work with this incredible piece of American history, and I am proud that it will now be part of one of the finest private collections in the world,” said Ivy in a press release. “It is clear by the strong auction participation and record price achieved that astute collectors have no doubt as to what this Ruth jersey is and what it represents.”
The centerpiece of Heritage Auction’s Summer Platinum Sports auction stole the show. However, there were other amazing items that netted high figures. A “Shoeless” Joe Jackson bat from 1911 went for $2.01 million, a record sale for a baseball bat. Mantle’s game-used jersey, which is photo-matched, from the 1952 and ’53 World Series sold for $3 million. A Jackie Robinson game-used jersey from 1951 along with pants went for an incredible $5.52 million despite not being photo-matched.
