For decades, Topps World Series cards mimicked our baseball lives.
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For true fans, baseball pervades all seasons of the year and all seasons of our lives.
We spend all winter pining for a break in the weather so we can play a game of catch, and any whiff of baseball news makes our pulse quicken.
Then, even before the snow stops falling in the north, our heroes head to Spring Training to breathe new vigor into our obsession.
And from Opening Day until the final pitch of the summer, our own lives ebb and flow with the fortunes of our teams. No matter how high they rise or how low they fall, we’re there to share in the glory or wallow in the misery.
But the bottom line of baseball, the goal for 30 teams from their birth in mid-February until the standings or the playoffs squeeze the last breath from their collective bodies, is to win the World Series. Even an appearance in the Fall Classic — win or lose — is cause for celebration and commemoration.
For nearly a quarter century, baseball card collectors had a hand up on the average fan when it came to holding onto our October memories.
Thanks to Topps, we could sort through our new cards each spring and instantly be transported back to that time that Hank Aaron knocked a big bomb against the Yankees, or when Blue Moon Odom was cut down at home plate.
The moments were all there, nestled among our other wax pack gods.
Here, then, is a brief history of Topps’ foray into World Series (and playoff) baseball cards. May they keep you warm as the flurries begin to fly.
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1958 – 418 World Series Batting Foes – Mickey Mantle / Hank Aaron
Something very unusual happened in the 1957 World Series — the New York Yankees lost.
It was big news when Hank Aaron and his Milwaukee Braves held off the Yanks in seven games, and Topps decided to celebrate the occasion the following year with their first World Series card.
Number 418 doesn’t mention the Braves’ victory, but it does feature Mickey Mantle and Aaron, “probably the most talented hitter in the majors today.”
This was the only time that Mantle and Aaron appeared on a regular-issue pasteboard together.
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1959 – 467 Thrills – Aaron Clubs World Series Homer
Topps didn’t issue specific World Series cards in 1959, but they finally got around to acknowledging the Braves’ 1957 championship with card #467.
Dubbed, “Aaron Clubs World Series Homer,” the card recalls Hank’s three-run shot in the fourth inning of Game 4 in ’57 that allowed the Braves to tie the Series. And that nod to Milwaukee’s eventual Series triumph?
It was this type of clutch hitting that helped the Braves beat New York in the thrilling 7 game series.
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1960 Topps (1959 World Series)
In 1959, the “Go-Go” Chicago White Sox caught the country’s imagination with a brand of small ball that emphasized base-running, lock-down pitching, and stellar defense over bang-bang, homer-smacking offense. As a result, the ChiSox finished last in the American League in homer runs, but first in stolen bases, first in team ERA, and first in the AL standings.
Alas, their run-stingy approach couldn’t quite hold up against the National League champion Los Angeles Dodgers, as Don Drysdale, Larry Sherry, Johnny Podres, Charlie Neal, Gil Hodges, and company fueled LA’s first championship.
To celebrate, Topps unveiled their first full-blown World Series subset in 1960, dedicating one card to each of the six games plus a seventh to summarize the postseason.
If you’re looking for the only set to feature Charlie Neal on two consecutive cards, this is your horse.
385 Neal Steals Second
386 Neal Belts 2nd Homer (World Series Game 2)
387 Furillo Breaks Up Game (World Series Game 3)
388 Hodges’ Winning Homer (World Series Game 4)
389 Luis Swipes Base (World Series Game 5)
390 Scrambling After Ball (World Series Game 6)
391 The Champs Celebrate (1959 World Series Summary)
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1961 Topps (1960 World Series)
The 1960 World Series was one of the most dramatic in history, with the Pittsburgh Pirates taking on the Yankees in a seesaw battle that was dead even entering the bottom of the ninth inning in Game 7.
That’s when Bill Mazeroski put his foot down, smacking a leadoff home run off Ralph Terry to end the whole shootin’ match, the only time a World Series has been decided on a walk-off homer.
Topps captured the magic the next summer with an eight-card subset, again devoting one card to each game of the Series, plus a summarizer.
306 Virdon Saves Game (World Series Game 1)
307 Mantle Slams 2 Homers (World Series Game 2)
308 Richardson is Hero (World Series Game 3)
309 Cimoli Safe In Crucial Play (World Series Game 4)
310 Face Saves The Day (World Series Game 5)
311 Ford Pitches Second Shutout (World Series Game 6)
312 Mazeroski’s Homer Wins It! (World Series Game 7)
313 The Winners Celebrate (1960 World Series Summary)
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1962 Topps (1961 World Series)
Compared to the previous few Series, the 1961 Fall Classic was anticlimactic.
The Yankees once again steamrolled the American League during a regular season inwhich Roger Maris broke Babe Ruth‘s single-season home run record with teammate Mantle hot on this heals most of the summer.
In the National League, the Cincinnati Reds were surprise champions, led by an MVP year from Hall of Famer Frank Robinson. The Redlegs were no match for the Yanks, though, and dropped the Series in five games.
In spite of the lack of October drama, Topps treated collectors to a six-card follow-up in their classic wood-grain 1962 issue.
232 Yanks Win Opener (World Series Game 1)
233 World Series Game 2 – Jay Ties It Up (World Series Game 2)
234 Maris Wins It In The 9th (World Series Game 3)
235 Ford Sets New Mark (World Series Game 4)
236 Yanks Crush Reds In Finale (World Series Game 5)
237 The Winners Celebrate (1961 World Series Summary)
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1963 Topps (1962 World Series)
The Yankees had a tougher time of it in the 1962 Fall Classic, requiring the full seven games to defeat the San Francisco Giants.
It was San Fran’s first appearance in the World Series since moving from New York before the 1958 a season, and the match-up was a reprisal of the franchises’ tilt in 1951.
The teams alternated wins all Series long, with the Yanks eventually prevailing when Ralph Terry outlasted Jack Sanford and Billy O’Dell in Game 7 at Candlestick Park.
Topps was back with a seven-card tribute set in their 1963 set, though they ditched the summary card from the mix.
142 Yanks’ Ford Wins Series Opener (World Series Game 1)
143 World Series Game 2 – Sanford Flashes Shutout Magic (World Series Game 2)
144 Maris Sparks Yankee Rally (World Series Game 3)
145 Hiller Blasts Grand Slammer (World Series Game 4)
146 Tresh’s Homer Defeats Giants (World Series Game 5)
147 Pierce Stars In 3-Hit Victory (World Series Game 6)
148 Yanks Celebrate As Terry Wins (World Series Game 7)
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1964 Topps (1963 World Series)
The Los Angeles Dodgers of the early-to-mid 1960s featured one of the strongest pitching staffs of all time, and they had little trouble shutting down the mighty but aging New York Yankees.
The next spring, Topps commemorated the four-game sweep — including two wins by Sandy Koufax — with a five-card subset.
And, yes, that means the summary card came back.
136 Koufax Strikes Out 15 (World Series Game 1)
137 World Series Game 2 – Davis Sparks Rally (World Series Game 1)
138 L.A. Takes 3rd Straight (World Series Game 3)
139 Sealing Yanks’ Doom (World Series Game 4)
140 The Dodgers Celebrate (1963 World Series Summary)
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1965 Topps (1964 World Series)
The 1964 World Series was a seven-game nail-biter that also happened to be the last of Mickey Mantle‘s career.
The St. Louis Cardinals took the crown after a bloody battle that featured an 10-inning thriller in Game 5 and two victories each by Jim Bouton and Bob Gibson. Though Topps’ eight-card subset in 1965 celebrated the Cards’ victory, the Old Gum Company was able to squeeze in one more Mantle card in honor of the slugger’s clutch home run in Game 3.
132 Cards Take Opener (World Series Game 1)
133 World Series Game 2 – Stottlemyre Wins (World Series Game 2)
134 Mantle’s Clutch HR (World Series Game 3)
135 Boyer’s Grand-Slam (World Series Game 4)
136 10th Inning Triumph (World Series Game 5)
137 Bouton Wins Again (World Series Game 6)
138 Gibson Wins Finale (World Series Game 7)
139 The Cards Celebrate (1964 World Series Summary)
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1967 Topps (1966 World Series)
The 1966 World Series was all about the pitching, as the Dodgers and the Baltimore Orioles sported four-men rotations that were the envy of teams from coast to coast.
As it turned out, the O’s needed only one trip through their staff to nail down Baltimore’s first championship, as they swept the Dodgers in four games.
Apparently uninspired by the Dodgers match-up with the Minnesota Twins in 1965, Topps had skipped issuing World Series cards in 1966. They were back with their customary one-card-per-game-plus-a-summary setup in 1967, though. Why they eschewed their stellar base design in lieu of a cheap knockoff of the 1955 Bowman woody TV design is anyone’s guess.
151 Moe Mows Down 11 (World Series Game 1)
152 World Series Game 2 – Palmer Blanks Dodgers (World Series Game 2)
153 Blair’s Homer Defeats LA (World Series Game 3)
154 Orioles Win 4th Straight (World Series Game 4)
155 The Winners Celebrate (1966 World Series Summary)
