The 3:1 supply ratio is a moot point, this time. Mr. Aaron is a fine gentleman, a quiet man that quietly (without pyrotechnic gyrations of his voice and arms) passed the mighty Babe for lifetime home runs. His home fields were Milwaukee and Atlanta, great baseball towns both, yet even combined do not come close to generating what New York does, and what New York seems to have always done in the minds and hearts of baseball fandom.
There have been many good explanations why Hank's baseball cards do not reach the stratosphere as Mickey Mantle's do. In a nutshell, it comes down to DEMAND, not the supply factor. The demand for Mick overwhelms that for Henry, period.
I won't say much, save that when I collected as a youngster, and I would open my Topps wax and cello packs, I'm sure I smiled when I got Henry Aaron. On the other hand, when I got Mickey Mantle, I inhaled audibly, my eyes got huge, and a great, big smile grew on my face. I usually REMEMBERED the occasion when I got Mickey each year, but I don't recall any given time I got Hank Aaron. Guess it comes down to this----I like and respect Hank Aaron, but I love Mickey Mantle.
---Brian Powell
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