The jersey Babe Ruth reportedly wore when he hit his "Called Shot" home run in Game 3 of the 1932 World Series is now the most expensive piece of sports memorabilia in history.
Heritage Auctions, which is auctioning off the jersey Saturday night, revealed Tuesday the item has no reserve price.
That means even if there's not another bid, the jersey will sell for an all-time record. The current top bid is $15.1 million. With buyer's premium, the total to the winner would be $18.12 million, a final number that is $5.5 million more than the 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card, graded SGC 9.5, that sold for $12.6 million two years ago.
The previous all-time auction record price for a game-worn jersey was the $10.1 million paid at Sotheby's in September 2022 for Michael Jordan's jersey from Game 1 of the 1998 NBA Finals.
Heritage execs projected the Ruth jersey could sell for $30 million and, like many auction houses, Heritage can help push it there. Heritage rules provide that "from time to time, the Auctioneer, its affiliates, or their employees may place bids on lots in the Auction."
The jersey has been photo-matched to the legendary "Called Shot" game by three companies: MeiGray, PSA and End-to-End. However, cllct reported July 24 that Resolution Photomatching had failed to return a definitive photo-match for the jersey in three examinations (2019, 2021 and 2022). Heritage then added a letter from Resolution to its auction description on Aug. 1.
Said Chris Ivy, director of sports auctions for Heritage, "We are confident beyond a shadow of a doubt that this jersey is exactly as described and listed for auction."
The Ruth jersey last sold for $940,000 at Grey Flannel Auctions in 2005 to Dr. Richard Angrist, an ophthalmologist from New Jersey.
Darren Rovell is the founder of cllct.com and one of the country's leading reporters on the collectible market. He previously worked for ESPN, CNBC and The Action Network.