Mickey Mantle's 1-of-1 Autograph Up for Auction; Yankees Icon Wrote 'These Pens Suck'

A one-of-a-kind item from New York Yankees legend Mickey Mantle is being offered for auction at Leland's, per TMZ Sports.

Last July, The Collectibles Guru gave a full view on the item, which in essence is an autograph sheet of 99 Mantle signatures and one comment on his thoughts regarding his pen's quality, or lack thereof.

Leland's provided the context:

"Offered is a one-of-a-kind item: a display of 99 Mickey Mantle signatures, plus a small bit of signed Mantle improvisation. The autograph sheet was a gift from Mantle to our consignor during his time signing for Sports Impressions, a statue company that produced MLB, NBA, and NFL-licensed products in the 1980s-90s."

Leland's later added:

"Using a fine tip black marker, Mantle, in his big and bold, exquisitely crafted signature, signed 99 of the segments. On the 47th segment, Mantle wrote a change-up. Instead of his signature, Mantle wrote, 'These pens suck.' Then he signed 53 more segments, still as neatly scripted as ever. Mantle was a perfectionist about his signature and despite his protestations about the quality of his pen, his signatures are absolutely gorgeous."

The starting bid began at $10,000. As of 9 a.m. ET on Wednesday, the bidding is at $77,622 after 37 offers.

Mantle is one of the most beloved figures in baseball history, and his memorabilia and autographs have been highly sought after over the years. People are willing to pay well into the seven figures (and sometimes eight) for it.

In fact, a Mantle 1952 Topps card was sold for $12.6 million in 2022, setting the record for the biggest purchase for paid "any sports item, card or memorabilia," per ESPN's Dan Hajducky.

Mantle played for the Yankees from 1951-1968, winning seven World Series and 12 AL pennants. He was an All-Star in 16 of his 18 years and won three American League MVP awards. Mantle also won the 1956 Triple Crown with 52 home runs, 130 RBI and a .353 batting average. He finished his career with 536 homers, 1,509 RBI and a .977 OPS.

Mantle passed away in 1995 at the age of 63.