This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 4/1/2022
It could be the biggest blunder in all professional sports. I'm talking about the 1966 MLB Amateur draft, and the lowly New York Mets were on the clock. The Mets had some work to do, having selected pitcher Les Rohr with the #2 overall pick of the inaugural MLB draft the prior year, and he pitched just a total of 24 innings in his major-league career. But the New York squad owned the #1 overall pick this time and selected catcher Steve Chilcott, whose string of injuries eventually ended his career at age 24 without setting foot on a major league diamond. Kansas City selected #2 overall and snagged Hall of Famer and baseball legend Reggie Jackson, who would lead both the A's and later the New York Yankees to championships. Jackson made his Topps debut in the 1969 set, becoming one of the very few examples in any given Topps series with the ability to outshine Mickey Mantle's pasteboard. Although Reggie made a quick climb to the major-league level, it appeared at first that he might be a bust as well, recording just one home run with 46 strikeouts in 118 at-bats for a .178 batting average in a mid-season call-up. Two years later with the team relocated to Oakland, fans were singing his praises when he posted 47 round-trippers and drove in 118 runs. Even if you put aside the impressive body of work that Reggie put together over his 21 seasons, including 563-lifetime homers and 14 All-Star game appearances, Jackson might still be a Hall of Famer strictly on his amazing post-season performances that earned him the nickname "Mr. October"; 18 home runs, six World Series appearances, two World Series MVP Awards and a total of 77 playoff games. Adding insult to injury, while Reggie secured his spot in baseball history with a three-homer performance in Game 6 of the 1997 World Series; the crosstown New York Mets, the team that could have had him, finished that year 64-98 and in last place in the National League East division. The offered card, Reggie's coveted 1969 Topps rookie issue, rarely sees a grade of PSA 9 MINT but the honor is well-earned here. Pretty close to perfectly centered, a rarity for the issue, this card displays central image color that is clean and bold with a pleasing combination of blues and greens that captivate the senses. Each of the four corners is exact, all qualified as MINT by PSA specifications with legitimate cases for GEM MINT status while the surface is shimmering with a stunning layer of gloss that encompasses the entire card. The reverse is splendid with an uncommonly radiant salmon tint that is chip-free along the perimeter, a sight usually reserved for 1969 Topps cards arriving fresh out of the pack. Well over 8,000 have been graded and just one has graded higher.