(LOT 97)
1968 Topps #50 Willie Mays PSA 10 GEM MINT - Highest Graded PSA Example!
GEM MINT MAYS!!! In May 2023, a PSA 10 GEM MINT 1968 Topps #50 Willie Mays fetched a record-high $81,000, with this previously underrated 10 finally achieving its rightful respect. Presented here just happens to be one of the thirteen PSA 10 GEM MINT '68 Topps Say Hey Kid subjects, a breathtaking example that just happens to exhibit atypically near-perfect centering. The foremost PSA Registry collectors would surely attest to the painstaking task of finding any 1968 Topps subject revealing virtually dead-on 50/50 positioning, let alone the #50 card of the immortal Mays. By 1968, the great Willie Mays was starting to show some signs of finally slowing down, although he still managed to belt 23 round-trippers and post a very respectable .289 batting average.

Most significant, he was only one year removed from becoming the second player in baseball history to wallop 600 home runs, a feat he accomplished on September 22, 1969. His extraordinary list of world-class accomplishments includes 660 home runs, 1,903 RBIs, 3,283 safeties to the tune of a .302 lifetime batting average, two National League MVPs (1954 & 1965), 12 Gold Gloves, and a record-setting 24 All-Star appearances. Yet, for all of these achievements, he will always be best remembered for his remarkable over-the-shoulder catch in Game One of the 1954 World Series, racing down a mammoth Vic Wertz blast in the deepest confines of the Polo Grounds. The Giants would go on to sweep the Cleveland Indians in four straight games, with Willie's acrobatic catch saving Game 1 and setting the tone for the remainder of the series.

Possibly baseball's greatest five-tool all-time player, Mays' Topps and Bowman cards are on an abundance of collector's want lists, especially when one comes along such as this spine-tingling best of the best marvel. This offering certainly provides all of the necessary aesthetic qualities to appropriately earn the sanctified 10 technical assessment, with its overall radiance placing it as one of the finest looking 1968 Topps Mays cards on the planet. First and foremost, a flawless Willie Mays batting stance image graces the obverse side, with the classic bats-over-shoulder pose revealing sensational resolution, contrast and sparkling hues. The crystal-clear illustration jumps off of the card, turning the clock back to an era when the legendary Mays played the center field position better than anyone who ever graced a baseball diamond.

The flawless surface highlights his San Francisco-road flannels and sheepish grin, and as previously mentioned, the museum-worthy illustration exhibits magnificent positioning between four impeccable borders. Incredible to say the least, the corners still exhibit their ultra-sharp right-angled formations, no blemishes are evident to the naked eye on either side, and the elaborate hues still retain their original rich color. The finest 1968 Topps Mays we have ever had the honor to handle, its pristine eye-appeal, extremely scarce 10 assessment, and previous $81K pricing point all combine to substantiate its appropriate place in any exalted Willie Mays PSA Registry gathering. We cannot imagine any of the other twelve PSA 10 subjects matching the overall brilliance of this 55-year-old masterpiece that, via its king of the hill grade, mirrors the Say Hey Kid's unparalleled stature that will surely echo for eternity!

MIN BID $15,000

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