The official Mickey Mantle Pickup Thread. All Mick, all the time!

[AustinMike]

Originally Posted by whiteymet

Hi Gang:

Not a Mick collector per se.

Saw this tray at the Philly show. Was told it is exceedingly rare. Especially autographed. Is that so?

Cool item none the less.

Fred

Hi Fred,

Sorry about the late reply, but I somehow didn't see this until now.

Here's what Kelly Eisenhauer had to say about the tray in his SCD article from around 10 years ago:

Carrying Tray – The plastic carrying trays that were used in the daily operations remain one of the most sought-after items from the restaurant. It features a nice black-and-white drawing of Mickey wearing his Yankees pinstriped uniform. It also has a facsimile autograph with the M.M. Country Cookin’ logo (Photo No. 118). These trays are so rare that, when available, they can command prices of more than $3,000.

I have been collecting Mantle items for probably a little over 5 years now and have seen two on ebay in that time. One in July 2017 and one in Dec. 2018. Neither autographed. Those are the only two I've seen until the one you pictured. The prices for the two trays were just under Kelly's estimated value for the first and around half his estimated value for the second. Do you remember what they were asking for the autographed tray?

Also, do you remember what they were asking for the Yoo-Hoo advertising item you have pictured?