#97-year-old New Jersey man leaves behind treasure trove of signed baseball cards

A 97-year-old former janitor from New Jersey who died in March left his relatives swinging for the fences with a treasure trove of vintage baseball memorabilia that is expected to fetch millions at auction, according to a report.

James Micioni had amassed hundreds of collectibles — including a signed Babe Ruth card from 1933 that could go for over $100,000 – in what experts say is one of the most remarkable private collections in the history of the hobby, NJ.com reported.

Uncle Jimmy, as he was known around his hometown of Boonton, actually owned six cards signed by The Sultan of Swat himself, as well as signed Lou Gehrig and Jimmie Foxx cards from the same Goudey collectibles set, the news outlet reported.

The collection, which has been authenticated and graded by Professional Sports Authenticator, will be auctioned off as 2,000 separate lots.

The first 650 lots will go under the hammer beginning Sunday as part of a four-week online auction hosted by Wheatland Auction Services in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, NJ.com reported.

Wheatland owner Chuck Whisman told the outlet the entire collection came out of left field.

“Maybe once a decade something like this comes around,” Whisman said. “The cool thing is, nobody knew of his collection. He just collected his whole life. He didn’t show it off to anyone.”

Also included in the auction will be a 1969 Topps Super Rookie Reggie Jackson card, graded PSA Gem-Mint 10; a 1949 Bowman #50 Jackie Robinson card graded Near Mint-Mint 8 and a Topps #207 Pete Rose card from 1965 graded Mint 9.

Micioni acquired each of the four versions of “The Bambino” cards that Goudey released in 1933, as well as two duplicates. Only one of them will be part of the auction Sunday, but the rest will be included in online auctions hosted by Wheatland over the next few months.

“Jimmy went to games that Babe Ruth played in and hit home runs,” Whisman told NJ.com. “He had pins from when he went to games and was a supporter of Jackie Robinson. He was there for Willie Mays’ first home run.”

The so-called Uncle Jimmy Collection is notable not only for its rare cards and autographs, but also for the almost immaculate condition of the sheer number of the rare items.

“You’re not just talking about an enormous amassment of unsigned cards that have been preserved,” Joe Orlando, CEO of Collectors Universe, PSA’s parent company, told NJ.com.

“You’re talking about cards that needed to be handled and sent to the players and autographed and then returned and then preserved. Overall, the preservation is terrific,” he said.

“Because Uncle Jimmy preserved them so well, the colors retain their freshness and their brightness, so the eye appeal of the cards is tremendous because he took the time to preserve them the right way,” Orlando added.

Micioni never paid for autographs, according to his relatives, who said he would send lengthy letters and return envelopes to teams and players – including his favorite Yankees — requesting them.

The former janitor at Boonton High School never had children, but shared his passion for card collecting to many nieces and nephews, as well as his great-nieces and great-nephews.

“No one in the family was as knowledgeable about the baseball card industry as Uncle Jimmy,” one of the nephews, Peter Micioni, 59, told NJ.com. “So we really didn’t know a good card from a not-so-good card.”

He said Uncle Jimmy handed over part of his collection to his relatives when they visited him over the past 15 years.

“‘You’ll figure it out when I’m gone,’” Peter quoted his uncle as saying in response to their questions about his grand slam collection.