This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 12/8/2017
While Harmon Killebrew, Sandy Koufax and Roberto Clemente make up a pretty awesome rookie card trio in the 1955 Topps series, all three players toiled in relative mediocrity over the first four seasons of their careers. Entering the 1959 season, Killebrew had 11 total home runs, Koufax had a 20-21 record and Clemente averaged just 5 homers at a .282 clip. Yet all three highly-touted prospects became Hall of Famers, taking widely different paths on their way to Cooperstown. The famed 1955 Topps Roberto Clemente rookie card has been on a wild ride as of late with PSA 9 copies soaring close to the half million dollar mark in the last two publicized sales. While NM/MT examples like the card featured here have followed the path upward, they've become a lot tougher to find on the open market, especially one as well-balanced as the example featured here. Most noticeable upon initial inspection is the vibrancy of the colors, which remain as bold and fresh as the day they left the Topps factory. The portrait image of the tragic hero, forever the last name on the list of 3,000 hit club members, presents with striking clarity and detail with the full-body image to the right equally precise. The borders are clean and free of stray print while corners easily fall within the standards for the grade. Even examples as high as PSA 8 usually show a light centering shift but not here; this one is almost dead-on perfect. A truly stunning example, offered in enticing NM/MT condition.