This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 3/26/2022
The first letter in the lot is Mickey Mantle’s Handwritten letter to Merlyn Johnson (Later Mantle) during Yankees training camp. Mantle’s writings fill both the front and back of a sheet of "Continental Guest Lodge" stationery. After posting a .315 batting average with the 1949 KOM League Independence Yankees, the 18-year-old Mantle was invited by the New York Yankees to attend a January 1950 gathering to showcase his talent. It was a special training camp of all the teams most promising Minor League players. The content reads in part, "Hello Honey...I sure was glad to hear from you. All we do is play baseball all day from 8 A.M. to 3:30 P.M. I sure miss you a lot. I tell the boys here how good looking you are...How did the Commerce Jr. High come out in the tournament..." It concludes "Love Mick." A few small areas have been minimally affected by either age or moisture exposure (with slight bleed into the paper). There is a small doodle on the upper left back corner in Mantle’s hand. The envelope is addressed to “Miss Merlyn Johnson.”
The second letter in the lot is a Mickey Mantle handwritten letter to Merlyn Mantle filling both the front and back of a sheet of "Hotel Adams" stationery. The letter includes the original mailing envelope with the March 8, 1951 postmark. Mantle had joined the Yankees for Spring Training and would make his Major League debut just over a month later. His letter reads in part, "Dearest Merlyn, I just got through calling you + telling you I love you but I forgot to tell you how much. So, I will write you but you still won't know how much I really love you...be sure to address the rest of your few letters to Mickey Mantle c/o N.Y. Yankees...All My Love, Mick." The envelope has been signed "Mick Mantle" as part of the return address.
The third letter in the lot is another handwritten letter to Merlyn Mantle the front and back of a sheet of "Walesbilt Hotel" stationery and includes the original mailing envelope with a March 24, 1950 postmark. Mantle was presumably attending the "Yankees Prospects School" which was run by the team during the 1950s in Lake Wales, FL (home to the Walesbilt Hotel). Mantle writes in part, "Dearest Merlyn, I just got your letter...Boy you should see me. Yesterday me and Dave Waters laid out in the sun and I really am sun burnt. On top of that I got a GI haircut. I was talking to Lee McPhail, the guy who tells us where we are going to play. And he said I could go to Joplin...Well I had better close for now. Until I see you again, I'll just dream at night + think in the day of you. I love you very much. All My Love, Mickey." The envelope has been signed "Mick Mantle" as part of the return address.
The final letter in the lot is another Mickey Mantle handwritten letter to Merlyn Mantle filling both the front and back of a sheet of "Hotel Adams" stationery. The letter includes the original mailing envelope with the March 8, 1951 postmark. Mantle had joined the Yankees for Spring Training and would make his Major League debut just over a month later. His letter reads in part, "Dearest Merlyn, I just got through calling you + telling you I love you but I forgot to tell you how much. So, I will write you but you still won't know how much I really love you...be sure to address the rest of your few letters to Mickey Mantle c/o N.Y. Yankees...All My Love, Mick." The envelope has been signed "Mick Mantle" as part of the return address. All four letters come with Mickey Mantle Family Letters of Authenticity, James Spence Authentication (JSA) Letters of Authenticity and Gotta Have Rock & Roll™ Certificates of Authenticity.