DALLAS, TX.- The first card ever made of the player widely considered the greatest in baseball history will claim the spotlight in Heritage’s Fall Sports Catalog Auction Oct. 24-26.

The Babe is known best, of course, as the New York Yankees’ biggest star over 15 seasons from 1920-34, and even casual fans know he started his Major League Baseball career as a lanky left-handed pitcher with the Boston Red Sox. But the 1914 Baltimore News Babe Ruth Rookie SGC VG 3 that headlines this event celebrates Ruth’s time as a player in the city where he was born: Baltimore.

“Not only is this an absolutely incredible rookie card of baseball’s first superstar, Babe Ruth,” says Chris Ivy, Heritage’s Director of Sports Auctions, “it is also one of the rarest cards of any issued during Ruth’s career, with only 10 examples ever graded and encapsulated. If a collector wishes to have a seat at this table for one of the finest Babe Ruth rookie cards in existence, then the price for that seat will reflect both the rarity and desirability of this fantastic offering.”

It is believed that 17 different subjects originally existed for the 1914 Baltimore News issue, only 11 of which are known to remain in existence. Ruth is by far the most important among them, and the example offered in this auction carries the second-highest grade of just 10 Ruth specimens in the census of any grading service. This also is the most famous example of the card, having spent years on display at The Babe Ruth Birthplace and Museum, which is near Oriole Park at Camden Yards, the current home of the Orioles.

This auction marks just the second time in the last decade that any Baltimore News Ruth card has reached the auction block.

Also in play in the auction is a photo-matched 1966 Sandy Koufax Game-Worn and Signed Los Angeles Dodgers Jersey, SGC Superior from the final season in the career of the lefty widely hailed as one of the greatest pitchers in the history of the game. Before chronic arthritis forced him to call it a career at the tender age of 30, he authored a résumé so dominant that the pitcher affectionately called “the Left Arm of God” was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame at the early age of 36, thanks to a career record of 165-87, an earned run average of 2.76, 2,396 strikeouts, three Cy Young Awards, one Most Valuable Player award, two World Series MVP awards and three World Series titles.

Some of the top cards in the auction will be offered together, in the form of a 1909-11 T206 White Border SGC Graded Near Set (518/524) that is just six cards shy of completion and ranks third-highest among all such sets graded by PSA. Unless otherwise noted, each card in the offered set displays a Piedmont or Sweet Caporal brand on the reverse. The set features a Who’s Who of the greatest players from the early 20th century, with names like Walter Johnson, Ty Cobb, Eddie Collins., Christy Mathewson, Johnny Evers, Cy Young, Willie Keeler, Nap Lajoie, Tris Speaker, Frank Chance and many more.

Also shimmering in the spotlight at the auction will be one of just two examples of a 1996 Select Certified Mirror Gold Derek Jeter #100 to receive a PSA Gem Mint 10 grade. The 1996 Select Certified release from Pinnacle marked a turning point in the hobby, helping to establish the now-standard chase for parallel cards and complete “rainbow” collections. The Mirror Gold parallel stood out as the most elusive of six different parallels, with an estimated print run of just 30 copies per card, and is both part of the card’s beauty and also its Achilles’ heel, as the delicate nature of the iridescent surface greatly complicates the search for perfection.

Other cards featured in the auction include a selection of 17 fresh-to-market 3-D card lots from a single consignor. The set originally came from a former Topps executive. Included in the set are 10 of the well-known 1968 Topps 3-D cards and seven prototypes.

The group includes among its highlights one of just three examples of a 1968 Topps 3-D Prototype Brooks Robinson PSA Authentic. Possibly the rarest card ever made of the Baltimore Orioles legend revered to this day in Charm City as “Mr. Oriole” who is considered by many to be the greatest third baseman of all time, this test card never made it past the prototype state, comes from a minuscule production run and never made it into public circulation.

Other treasures from the collection include, but are not limited to:

• A 1968 Topps Visual Panographics Inc. 3-D Prototype Captain America PSA Authentic

• The only PSA example of a 1968 Topps Visual Panographics Inc. 3-D Prototype Bart Starr (Blank Back) PSA Authentic

• The only 1968 Topps Visual Panographics 3-D Prototype Tucker Frederickson PSA Authentic found in the PSA Pop Report

• A 1968 Topps Visual Panographics 3-D Prototype Cané PSA Authentic that is the only card of its kind ever submitted

• The only 1968 Topps Visual Panographics 3-D Prototype Sarti PSA Authentic

Another top draw from the array of 3-D cards is one of just two PSA-graded examples of a 1968 Topps Visual Panographics 3-D Prototype Carl Yastrzemski (M. Clough - OF) PSA Authentic (none graded higher). This magnificent card featuring the icon known to Boston Red Sox fans simply as “Yaz” includes an element of mystery, as the name “M. CLOUGH” is stamped across the top. This experimental test card apparently was produced as a limited edition, not meant for public circulation or distribution, and likely was pulled from production at some point and kept under wraps for decades.

One collectible that has enjoyed a surge in demand is tickets from the first game played by some of sports’ biggest stars. Another will be up for grabs in this auction when a 1979 Wayne Gretzky NHL Debut Ticket Stub, PSA Mint 9 climbs over the boards on its way to the auction block. The legend known simply as “The Great One” played for four NHL teams, but is known best for his nine incredible seasons with the Edmonton Oilers, where he helped win four Stanley Cups. His spectacular NHL career began in the game that produced this ticket, an Oct. 10, 1979, visit to Chicago — a game in which he helped set up a first-period power play goal with the first of his NHL-record 1,963 career assists and 2,857 points.

The auction will find a new home for the star of one of the most memorable of all sports marketing campaigns when a 1995-97 “Lil Penny” Ad Campaign Production Puppet crosses the block. Launched in 1994 by Nike, the campaign featured a miniature puppet of NBA star (and current University of Memphis head coach) Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway in a series of commercials in which the character was voiced by comedian Chris Rock. Lil Penny was portrayed as the outspoken, humorous counterpart to the reserved Hardaway, often boasting about his own fame and influence while promoting Hardway’s signature Nike Air Penny line of sneakers. Like the other puppets used in the Nike campaign, all the various joints — elbows, wrists, shoulders, knees, neck — are fully poseable to simulate movement.

Other auction highlights include, but are not limited to:

• A 1968 Topps Mickey Mantle #280 PSA Gem Mint 10
• A Signed 1933 Goudey Babe Ruth #144 PSA Good 2, Auto 7
• A 1916 M101-5 Blank Backs Babe Ruth Rookie #151 SGC Good 2
• A 1910 E98 “Set of 30” Ty Cobb (Red, Black Swamp Find) SGC Gem Mint 10
• A 1915 Cracker Jack Ty Cobb #30 PSA NM-MT 8
• A Signed 1933 Goudey Lou Gehrig #160 PSA Poor 1, Auto 8
• A Signed 1984 Star Co. Michael Jordan Rookie #101 PSA EX-MT 6, PSA/DNA Auto 8
• A 1982 Wrestling All-Stars Hulk Hogan (Series A) Rookie #2 PSA Mint 9