1951 Bowman Mickey Mantle Advice
 

Hi all. I just recently got back into card collecting after looking through some cards my grandpa passed down to me when I was a kid. I'd never looked at them before, but there's a Bowman 1951 Mickey Mantle card in there, which I've discovered is quite popular in the collecting community.

I have also never had a card graded, so I was hoping to get some advice on:

• Whether you think the Mantle card is authentic
• Whether it's worth the high fee to get it graded by PSA
• What the condition of it is, in your opinion, based on my pictures

Thanks in advance guys — happy to be back into the sports card realm!

FRONT + BACK IMAGES: https://imgur.com/a/7i4b4ug

I'm not an expert, far from it, you'll defintely get a more informative answer from someone else on the board, but to my knowledge, Reprints aren't typically off center, which your card appears to be, which is fine, it'll just get graded with that designation.

Now assuming it's real and you want to sell it, it's 100% worth it paying the premium to get it graded by PSA, because graded cards sell for more, and PSA slabs are typically the most valuable. If you want to keep it, then it's entirely up to you, in terms of who you chose to grade with or if you want to get it graded at all.

I follow several baseball card collectors. Dave created a great video that discusses this card, and what to look for when determining whether one is real or fake. Here is the link.

https://youtu.be/hkZv5den16w

Sorry for not typing everything out, but this video with picture examples is better that what I can explain.

This is great — thank you!

Beautiful card. Looks authentic to me, and should grade out very nicely! I'd have a real hard time letting a card like that go, given its provenance. Thanks for sharing.

My first instinct (looking at it) is that your chances are pretty good, though naturally you can only make a best guess from just those pics.

Everything else said here so far is spot on too. Follow the advice on that video, and if it appears real after closer inspection, get it graded by PSA, especially if you might sell it

Beautiful card!

Can’t add anything new to conversation. If your plan is to sell it, then getting it graded by PSA is the way to go. Looks legit to me. And as far as the centering, I have seen off centered fake cards, probably for the reason you expressed, because people are less skeptical of off centered cards.

But if you aren’t planning on selling now, there’s no harm in just keeping that card raw in your collection. Maybe try and complete the set (you already have toughest card out of the way!).

I would say grade it now before PSA raise the price again. eventually down the line will have to grade it

I have a 1981 Fleer Harold Baines rookie card I'll trade you for it. Of course, you'd have to add some cash to the deal, too. I'm not letting Harold go for nothing. :D