Price tags · Puzzle #20 · Monday, October 19

Price tags: the answers

Four questions, each with one true number. Here they are with their answers, how to reason each one out, and where the number comes from. Play today's Price tags.

1. 1. Holiday spending per person: How much did the average US consumer plan to spend on the 2025 winter holidays, according to the National Retail Federation?

   

   Measured by

   NRF and Prosper Insights & Analytics

   Includes

   Gifts, food, decorations and other seasonal items

   Survey history

   23 years

   The answer: about $890. It was the survey's second-highest figure ever, just under 2024's record of $901.99; $627.93 of it was for gifts.

   1. 10gifts for family and friends
   2. ×$50a gift
   3. +$200for food and decorations

   ≈$700

   The answer comes to about $890 (National Retail Federation, as of October 2025). On a napkin, take 10 gifts for family and friends, times $50 a gift, plus $200 for food and decorations, and you get about $700. It's 1.3 times too low, which as a guess would still have scored 9.0 out of 10. The target is wider than it looks: every guess between $450 and $1,800 scores at least 7.0.

   Source: National Retail Federation, Consumers to Spend Second-Highest Amount on Record, According to NRF Holiday Survey

2. 2. Every MLB payroll: What did all 30 Major League Baseball teams pay their players in total on opening day 2026?

   

   Active roster

   26 players a team

   Top spender

   New York Mets

   The answer: about $5.0 billion. The Mets led spending at $352.2 million, more than five times Cleveland's $62.3 million.

   1. 30teams
   2. ×26players a team
   3. ×$5Meach

   ≈$3.9B

   The true figure is about $5.0 billion (Associated Press). Without looking anything up, take 30 teams, times 26 players a team, times $5 million each, and you get about $3.9 billion. That comes out 1.3 times too low, and a guess that far off still scores 8.9 out of 10. Because only the ratio counts, anything between $2.5 billion and $10 billion was worth 7.0 or more.

   Source: Associated Press (via WTOP), AP study: MLB average salary hits a record $5.34M as the Mets lead spending again

3. 3. Babe Ruth's Called Shot jersey: What did Babe Ruth's 'Called Shot' jersey from the 1932 World Series sell for at auction in 2024?

   

   What

   The jersey Ruth wore in Game 3 of the 1932 World Series

   Story

   Ruth seemed to point to center field before hitting a home run

   Sold

   At auction, 2024

   The answer: $24.12 million. It holds the record for the most expensive sports collectible ever sold.

   Napkin math: Top baseball cards sell for around $10 million; a game-worn jersey from baseball's most famous home run could be worth double that.

   The real answer is $24.12 million (CNN). With no neat arithmetic to lean on, start with the order of magnitude: this one is in the tens of millions. Any guess from $12 million to $48 million scores 7.0 or better, because the game only counts how many times off you are.

   Source: CNN, Michael Jordan’s ‘Last Dance’ 1998 Finals jersey sells for a record $12.26 million

4. 4. A year of groceries: How much did the average US household spend on groceries (food at home) in 2024?

   

   Measured by

   BLS Consumer Expenditure Surveys

   Counts

   Food from stores, not restaurants

   The answer: about $6,224. Grocery spending rose 2.8% from 2023.

   1. $100of groceries a week
   2. ×52weeks a year

   ≈$5,200

   The true figure is about $6,224 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). On a napkin, take $100 of groceries a week, times 52 weeks a year, and you get about $5,200. The estimate is 1.2 times too low, close enough to score 9.2 out of 10. Any guess from $3,100 to $12,000 scores 7.0 or better, because the game only counts how many times off you are.

   Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Expenditures--2024 (Table A, 2022, 2023 and 2024 columns)

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