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There was always something special about Mickey Mantle. It was a mystique that captivated a generation of young baseball fans.His baseball cards have always been special, too. They seemed to be harder to get than those of other stars. And, in those days when cards were traded for cards and not cash, a Mantle was worth a stack of other players' cards.Even though Mantle's rookie card was a 1951 Bowman (No. 253), his first Topps card (No. 311 in 1952) has become the most valuable of the post-war era. The Topps carries a Beckett book value of $25,000, while the Bowman is listed at $8,200.

When football Hall of Famer O. J. Simpson was arrested in June, he had signed contracts for a number of memorabilia ventures.The publicity surrounding his being charged with the murders of his ex-wife and her friend sent demand for -- and prices of -- Simpson memorabilia soaring.One contract was canceled last week by the manufacturer, and another is being re-examined.Sports, Accessories & Memorabilia, which had a contract with Simpson and had produced a prototype bobbing head doll of him, will not manufacture the doll and has destroyed the mold.

When I download forms from the IRS, I receive the information in a format that my computer can't decipher. How can I get the forms in normal text?The IRS lets you download forms and publications in several formats, none of which is straight text. Generally, the most convenient format is PDF, which was developed by Adobe Systems. PDF (portable document format) makes documents look exactly the same on the computer as they do in print.To use PDF files, you'll need the Acrobat Reader software, which is free.

Pitchers and catchers, with 12 days until they report, may have begun to think about packing. But it's midseason for baseball cards.Collectors can add Upper Deck, Pinnacle and Fleer Series 2 to their score cards.Score is bringing its mid-priced Pinnacle line back for a second season. The first series, 310 cards, will be available this month and the second series in June.Preview cards have strong action shots from games of players as you think of them -- Deion Sanders running the bases, John Kruk getting ready to make contact, Cal Eldred coming over the top. The color scheme is still basic black, and subsets and insert sets abound.

Magic Johnson returned to the NBA last week, and he'll be back on basketball cards by next month."He's an active player again, and . . . as [an active player], [he's] automatically included in NBA trading cards," says Donna Goldsmith of the NBA. "They're all going to try to get him into the Series II products."Upper Deck, whose second series is scheduled for a late February or early March release, might be first."We'll definitely include Magic in the Upper Deck Series II," says Marilyn Van Dyke of Upper Deck.

Cal Ripken's consecutive-games streak has gotten collectors interested in Lou Gehrig, the man whose streak Ripken broke.But people used to buying new collectibles are discovering that vintage Gehrig material is rare and expensive."

Baltimore's expansion CFL team lost its name in court before its first game. It also lost merchandise that could not be sold because it bore the banned name.But it seems to have a winner of a logo -- a stylized horse head with flowing mane.Now the merchandise is nickname-less, but it doesn't seem to have hurt sales."I think sales have been pretty steady," says Tom Renedo, manager of licensed merchandise. "The logo's going to stay."He says the biggest sellers have been T-shirts, media guides, coffee mugs and lapel pins.

Since major-league baseball players went on strike in August, irate fans have abused players at autograph sessions and vented their feelings on radio talk shows.However, the Tufton Group in Lutherville might as well be on another baseball world. The company, which handles Cal Ripken's appearances and endorsements, continues to receive a lot of phone calls and mail -- all positive."There have been supportive letters, and letters calling on Cal as a team leader to do something to end the work stoppage," says JoAnn Peroutka.

A Baltimore Circuit judge refused last night to issue an injunction to stop next week's execution of John Frederick Thanos, as lawyers from the American Civil Liberties Union had sought in a civil suit.Judge Joseph McCurdy Jr. said he was not convinced that there would be "irreparable harm" to Maryland taxpayers if he didn't issue an injunction to stop the execution of Thanos, 44, the confessed killer of three teen-agers. ACLU attorneys filed the suit yesterday, challenging the state's new lethal injection law as unconstitutional because the execution could be botched, causing a slow, torturous death for Thanos.

There seems to be a lot of talk here regarding former Atlanta Braves center fielder Andruw Jones. His name is sure to come up during the Orioles' organizational meetings that begin Monday in Sarasota, Fla. Manager Dave Trembley seems in favor of keeping Corey Patterson if the two sides can work out a deal. He likes Patterson's defense and speed. But Jones will get some consideration - and then the Orioles will be outbid for him. How much would you pay Jones after the season he had (.222, 26 homers, 94 RBIs)