[KCRfan1]

I do not believe that anyone can put a production number on how many cards were made or available back in the day. That's just random numbers being tossed about with nothng to back them up. My thought is much simpler when it comes to those two cards: Timing. The Ruth card was a 1933 issue, Mantle a 1952 issue. What the Mantle card has going for it ( nothing to do with career stats between the players ) is Mantle was THE baseball figure for the babyboom generation, hence demand. He was the last tie to Yankee lore, the last great Yankee. All of those kids born in 1944 were 8 years old when Topps produced their 1952 set. Look at the population explosion that Topps had at their fingertips to work with from there on out. No wonder the Mantle has taken on a life of its own. The boomers had kids, and told their kids about Mantle because they collected his cards, and saw him play. Television and advertising put players and celebrities in our homes and made them more real. EVERYONE knew who Mickey Mantle was. Ruth never had the exposure that Mantle did. 1933 Goudey's were issued during The Depression. It is remarkable those cards survived at all.