Rare Babe Ruth baseball cards being auctioned in Lancaster

LANCASTER, Pa. (WHTM) – VSM Sports Card Outlet is currently running an online auction that includes several rare Babe Ruth baseball cards.

“There’s a good mix of autographs (and) old memorabilia,” said Chuck Whisman, owner of Wheatland Auction Services and VSM Sports Card Outlet. “Pretty much any iconic player, Hall of Famer, is in here.”

The crown jewel of the lot are the Babe Ruth cards, including a 1922 American Caramel card and a 1933 Goudy card. The 1922 card and two of the 1933 cards are graded from 4 to 4.5.

“The nice thing is, the quality of these cards,” Whisman said. “(Their grade) is very hard (to find) for. . . pre World War II collectibles in the baseball industry.”

One of the Babe Ruth cards is currently sitting at a $20,000 bid and some of the others have bids between $5,000-10,000.

Some of the other items in the auction include a handkerchief in its original box from over 100 years ago with a young baseball player stitched into it, autographs of Muhammad Ali, Thurman Munson items, and Wayne Gretzky and Michael Jordan rookie cards.

There are also unopened football card cases, which Whisman estimates will go for $5,000 to $20,000.

“It’s like scratching off a lottery ticket,” Whisman said. “Some boxes might be guaranteed a couple of autographs and if you get the right one, could be an amazing item.”

Inside their store, they have had someone pull a Babe Ruth cut signature from an unopened box of Topps cards.

“There are some individual cards that could be in those boxes that even are higher than (the amount being bid on them),” Whisman said.

As for fans of the local sporting scene, there are plenty of items featuring local franchise legends. There’s a Julius Erving autographed card, rookie Charles Barkley cards, Mike Schmidt items, Lamar Jackson items and Cal Ripken items included in the auction.

“We’re fortunate (that) where we are in Pennsylvania the history of baseball goes back to the 1870s, 1880s,” Whisman said. “So we tend to find some interesting pieces of history here.”

This auction is what is considered a consignment auction, meaning the items being sold belong to collectors. On average VSM’s auctions consist of 20 to 40 different individual collections. Some of the items come from people selling their collections as they prepare for retirement and others often come from the death of a loved one who was a collector.

“A lot of times we help families,” Whisman said. “We help them through the process, usually getting the cards graded if it’s worth it, and letting people bid against each other.”

VSM offers other services outside of their auctions at their storefront in Lancaster, including having autograph experts in the store for the public to have a chance to get their items authenticated.

“If you ever watch Pawn Stars, some of the same autograph people that are on that TV show, some of them come here every three months,” Whisman said. “You never know what might come in the door any day, but especially on that day when it comes to autographed items.”

This auction isn’t just about sports, although that is what a majority of the items are related to. There are also Pokemon cards, Star Wars figures, comic books, vintage foreign currency and other unique items available.

“These have been in collections for many years and are going to go into some new homes of people to collect,” Whisman said. “We’re helping people sell and we’re helping people buy.”

Some of the proceeds VSM receives from it will help them continue their mission of serving local nonprofit organizations. This past year they have helped to pay for daycare spots for low-income families at the Lancaster Early Education Center.

The auction is currently live and will run until Sunday, Feb. 18. People interested in items can come into the store to preview them as well. The items can be shipped or picked up at the store once the auction is complete.

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