After two reasonably successful campaigns in the baseball card business, the Topps Company faced their biggest challenge to date as the beloved Mickey Mantle, along with several other significant stars, signed exclusive rights contracts with rival Bowman and could not be in the upcoming Topps collection. But as fate would have it, the rookie cards of Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks, and Al Kaline, in addition to a wildly colorful and eye-pleasing three-border design, would make the 1954 Topps series an iconic collection that ranks near the top of many vintage collector's favorites.
The featured 5-cent, 4-card (5-4) pack appears as bright and enticing as it did on the store shelf over 70 years ago. To put in perspective how truly scarce an item this is, taking all price and card count variations into consideration, PSA has graded 17 examples of a 1954 Topps baseball wax pack and just 8 examples for packs identified as a 5-4, far fewer than the 30 examples graded from the inaugural year of 1952. The green and red wrapper sits tightly around the cardboard and gum, displaying a wonderfully nostalgic look that ably honors a golden age of baseball.