This lot is closed. Bidding ended on 12/10/2001.
This fabulous lot of five items recreates a critical juncture in Mickey Mantle's trip up the minor league ladder en route to centerfield at Yankee Stadium. Mantle, signed at his High School graduation in 1949 by Yankee scout Tom Greenwade, made his first stop in pro ball as a powerful, switch-hitting shortstop with the Yankees' Class D team in Independence, Kansas where he played out the season, then moved up another notch to Class C Joplin, Missouri. Mantle-philes will pour over the four documents covering the Mick's arrival in Independence and his subsequent move out, including a letter on National Association stationery dated July 6, 1949 approving his contract with Independence; a Transmittal of Contract form dated June 13, 1949 denoting his monthly salary of $140 and a signing bonus of $1,150; an Official Release form and Conditional Assignment form, both dated February 7, 1950, to the Joplin Baseball Club of the Western Association. After Joplin, Mantle would go to the big club, be sent down briefly to the Yankees' Kansas City farm club, then call the Bronx home for the next 18 seasons. All of these rare documents are in excellent condition. The lot also includes an 8" x 10" photo of Mantle taking a cut in a Joplin uniform. The photo was signed by Mantle in black marker, "Mickey Mantle, 1951" with the signature rating a near-perfect 10.