Babe Ruth Cards Discovered in Ohio Attic Hit Home Run at Auction
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Turns out an old cigar box tucked away in a Northeast Ohio attic wasn’t just a place to store keepsakes — it was a hidden treasure chest. A massive collection of vintage baseball cards, featuring none other than Babe Ruth, sold for a whopping $120,000 during a recent online auction hosted by Stark County’s Kiko Auctions.
The sellers, siblings who asked to keep their names out of the headlines, stumbled across the dusty stash while sorting through their late parents’ belongings. According to auctioneer Jack Kiko, the family had a hunch these cards were worth something. Safe bet.
The Canton Repository rolled up its sleeves and crunched the numbers. The auction kicked off on May 28 and ran until June 2, featuring 623 lots in total — and the vast majority were baseball cards. Over 200 of them hailed from the 1933 Goudey Big League Gum set, a true heavyweight in the card-collecting world.
For those new to the hobby, the 1933 Goudey set was the first to sweeten the deal by adding a stick of gum to each pack — a move that helped skyrocket the set’s popularity. It’s also jam-packed with Hall of Famers, making it a must-have for serious collectors.
When the virtual hammer fell, buyers had racked up $120,699 in winning bids. Factor in a 10% internet premium and 6.5% sales tax, and the total spend ballooned to over $140,000.
One eagle-eyed bidder, based on their user ID, likely snagged a big chunk of the collection. The top prize was a 1933 Goudey Babe Ruth card featuring a red background that fetched $8,000. All told, five different Ruth cards sold for a combined $35,250 before fees and taxes.
While the cards varied in condition, none had been professionally graded, which means the winning bidders are taking a bit of a risk — but that’s part of the fun in the vintage card game.
So, from a dusty attic in the Buckeye State to an online auction viewed by collectors everywhere, these baseball relics prove that America’s pastime — and a dash of nostalgia — can still hit it out of the park.
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