Check if Paul Giamatti is this guy’s accountant
It’s the Holy Grail.
It’s the Mona Lisa. Entrepreneur Rob Gough believes he got both wrapped in one when he purchased a rare Mickey Mantle rookie baseball card for a record $5.2 million in November, writes Chuck Schilken of the L.A. Times.
“I’ve always wanted this card,” Gough recently told Forbes. “I’ve been searching for this Holy Grail, the Mona Lisa of sports cards.” He also believes he got quite a bargain. “I think I got a tremendous deal on this card.” Gough said, adding that he thought it was “massively undervalued” and “a steal” at that price.
The previous record price for a sports card was for a signed Mike Trout rookie card from 2009, which sold for $3.9 million in August.
Gough, CEO of Dope apparel and an investor with an estimated net worth of $75 million, has owned a 1952 Topps #311 Mantle rookie card twice before, but those were graded Mint 5 and 6, on a scale of 1 to 10, by Professional Sports Authenticator.
The one he recently purchased is one of only six Mint 9 versions of the card known to exist. (There are three known Mint 10 versions of the card, but the owners are said to have no interest in selling.)
It was last sold in 2018 to an unknown buyer for $2.88 million.
“As a kid, this card was the most iconic card ever,” Gough told the Indianapolis Star. “It’s always been the face of the hobby, the card that everybody knows.”
Trivia question
Happy birthday to Saints quarterback Drew Brees, who turns 42 today. Brees has come on in relief just once in his 287 career regular season games. Who started the one game Brees didn’t?
They said it
• From Janice Hough of LeftCoastSportsBabe.com: “James Harden, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant on the same team? Yes, they are all NBA stars. And I really like Steve Nash. But really hope his insurance has good mental health coverage.”
• From Bob Molinaro of The VirginianPilot: “Anyone, from the evidence of a single game, who cooled on Trevor Lawrence as the NFL’s No. 1 pick to jump on the Justin Fields bandwagon just might be a talk-show host.”
• From Eagles tackle Lane Johnson, to the “Pat McAfee Show,” on why he probably wouldn’t be watching the NFL wild-card games: “As a football player, it’d be like a cop coming home watching ‘COPS’.”
Trivia answer
Brees played only one game in his rookie season of 2001. Doug Flutie was the Chargers starter, but he left with a concussion in a Week 8 game against the Chiefs. Brees then led San Diego on four straight scoring drives worth 20 points in the second half for a 20-19 lead, but K.C. scored the winning touchdown with 1:26 remaining. Brees was 15 of 27 for 221 yards and a TD but never got on the field again that season. He started 58 games over the next four years with the Bolts.