Heritage Auctions’ Latest Smashed a Whole Bunch of Auction Records – Bleacher Nation
Heritage Auctions’ Latest Smashed a Whole Bunch of Auction Records
Aug 25, 2026
Aug 25, 2026
Collectibles
It would be a dramatic understatement to say that cards and collectibles have been running a little hot this year. It’s, uh, been kind of absurd. Whether it’s tethered to the boon in modern cards via breakers and digital content creators, whether it’s tethered to huge institutional dollars rotating into a hard asset class amid a booming stock market (I’m pretty sure it’s that one), or whether it’s a combination of lots of things (ok, actually, yeah, it’s that), the numbers are hard to argue.
Consider the latest auction at Heritage Auctions, the 2026 Summer Platinum Night, which blew away all kinds of records with its $62.9 million total. Two of the most iconic cards in history set new records, contributing in a significant way to that total. From Heritage:
‘More than 200 auction records were established during the three-day event, led by one of the hobby’s ultimate rarities: a 1909-11 T206 Piedmont Honus Wagner SGC Authentic, one of just three known with the prized Piedmont advertising back, which realized $5,856,000. The result set a record as the highest price ever paid for any Wagner card graded Authentic. The T206 Wagner that topped the auction occupies an extraordinary place even within the tiny surviving population of the hobby’s so-called “Holy Grail.” Nearly all known Wagners carry a Sweet Caporal advertising back.
“Every T206 Honus Wagner is a cornerstone of the hobby, but this card stands apart even within that legendary group,” Ivy says. “Its status as one of just three known examples with a Piedmont back, combined with provenance that reaches back to the earliest days of the organized baseball-card market, makes it an extraordinary artifact. The $5.856 million result confirms that collectors recognize the profound rarity and historical significance of this remarkable card.”
The Wagner was followed by a spectacular 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle #311 PSA NM-MT 8 – MBA Silver, which sold for $3,721,000, setting a record for the PSA 8 grade and surpassing the previous mark by more than $1.2 million. The card’s PSA NM-MT 8 grade already places it among the finest surviving examples of the most coveted postwar baseball card, while its additional Mike Baker “Diamond” designation further separates it within the grade. Just 14 examples have received a higher PSA grade.’
I was monitoring the auction as it happened, trying to get a steal on a MUCH LOWER COST item or two, but even then, I didn’t realize just how gargantuan this particular auction had become.
You can look over the full results from the auction here at Heritage.
There were multiple elite Michael Jordan sales, a 1963 game-worn World Series jersey from Sandy Koufax (which cleared $1 million), an exceedingly rare Shoeless Joe Jackson card, and a signed Topps Now 1/1 issued to commemorate Shohei Ohtani reaching 50-50 status last year (went for nearly $700,000). There was also a new record for any item associated with Cal Ripken Jr., when a signed jersey from his rookie season (the one he was wearing on his Topps rookie card, too) went for nearly $300,000. One of the finest existing 1933 Goudey Babe Ruth’s (a PSA 9) went for a little over $1.5 million, and dang if that one isn’t one of my favorite vintage baseball cards, together with the Wagner and the Mantle, obviously.
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Brett Taylor is the Lead Baseball Writer at Bleacher Nation. You can find him on X at @Brett_A_Taylor, on Bluesky at @Brett-Taylor, and on LinkedIn here.
Brett is also the founder of Bleacher Nation, which opened up shop in 2008 as an independent blog about the Chicago Cubs. Later growing to incorporate coverage of other Chicago sports, Bleacher Nation is now one of the largest regional sports blogs on the web.
