(LOT 68)
1952 Topps #396 Dick Williams "High Number" Rookie Card PSA 9 Mint - "POP 2"; Highest Graded PSA Example!
Hall of Famer Dick Williams played 13 MLB seasons with five different ballclubs, commencing his career with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1951. While a formidable hitting 3rd baseman/outfielder, his Cooperstown stature was primarily based on his managerial success with Boston and Oakland. In 1967, he led the Red Sox "Dream Team' to the Fall Classic, eventually losing to the Cardinals and Bob Gibson's heroics in a tightly contested seven-game Series. However, in both the 1972 and 1973 campaigns as the Oakland A's manager, he led his Athletics to two consecutive World Championships. The Topps Chewing Gum Company commemorated his inaugural June 10, 1951 appearance with Brooklyn by including Williams in their landmark 1952 set as the #396 "high number" subject. The true rookie card for Dick Williams, this PSA 9 Mint '52 Topps #396 offering has only been joined by a single other example as the highest graded specimen on the PSA population report! Indeed, only one other copy has managed to achieve the hallowed "Mint" assessment with not a sole '10" ever graded by PSA. A virtually pristine card, image quality, coloring, resolution, contrast, surfaces and a razor-sharp perimeter all border on sheer perfection. The only microscopic imperfection is the image's ever so slight partiality towards the right edge. A bona fide "POP 2" highest graded marvel, it irrefutably stands as one of the most significant "low-pop" 1952 Topps subjects on the planet!
MIN BID $4,000
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