Fresh to the hobby (a multi-generational heirloom hailing from Colorado) comes this 1958 Topps Baseball complete set of 494 cards in mostly mid-grade or better condition (EX to NM), with dozens of high-grade examples mixed in. With another strong lineup of Hall of Famers, Topps continued to raise the bar on its seven-year run during the Golden Era of baseball cards. With its unconventional design, the '58 set features a vibrant color background and a die-cut player posed profile. The top displays oversized letters spelling out the player’s name, while the bottom indicates position and team name. 1958 Topps was the first to carry subsets (identified as “Sport Magazine All-Stars") and features a number of variations, including 33 cards (between #s 2-108) that have player or team names in either yellow or white lettering. Topps withdrew #145 after Ed Bouchee was suspended from Major League Baseball for indecent exposure.
We submitted 14 cards to SGC for grading and the results came back rather harsher than what was deserved. They are: #1 Ted Williams – SGC VG/EX 4; #5 Willie Mays – SGC GD+ 2.5; #30 Hank Aaroon – SGC EX 5; #47 Roger Maris RC – SGC EX/NM+ 6.5; #52 Roberto Clemente – SGC EX/NM 6; #150 Mickey Mantle – SGC Authentic/Color Added (appears NM); #187 Sandy Koufax – SGC EX/NM 6; #307 Brooks Robinson – SGC NM+ 7.5; #343 Orlando Cepeda RC – SGC EX/NM 6; #370 Yogi Berra – SGC EX 5; #418 W.S. Batting Foes – SGC EX/NM 6; #485 Ted Williams All Star – SGC EX/NM 6; #486 Willie Mays All Star – SGC NM 7; #487 Mickey Mantle All Star – SGC EX-NM+ 6.5.
The remaining raw cards offer many grading opportunities. Notables are: #2 Lemon EX/NM, #9 Bauer EX/NM, #20 McDougald NM, #25 Drysdale VG/EX (OC), #40 Kell EX/NM, #42 Roseboro RC EX/NM, #70 Kaline NM, #71 Dodgers Team EX, #74 Face NM-MT, #85 Aparicio NM, #88 Snider GD, #90 Roberts EX/NM, #94 Skinner NM-MT, #115 Bunning NM, #120 Podres NM, #134 Phillies Team NM,#142 Slaughter EX, #161 Larsen NM+ (PD), #162 Hodges NM, #185 Boone NM+, #188 Bolling NM/MT, #190 Schoendienst EX/NM, #230 Ashburn EX/NM (ST on back); #238 Mazeroski EX/NM (OC), #240 Skowron NM+, #246 Yankees Team EX, #258 Erskine EX/NM, #270 Spahn EX/NM, #271 B.Martin EX, #275 Howard EX/NM, #285 F.Robinson EX/NM, #288 Killebrew NM, #295 Minoso EX/NM, #300 League Presidents EX/NM (OC), #310 Banks EX, #304 Tigers' Big Bats VG/EX+, #314 Dodgers' Boss & Power EX, #320 W.Ford NM, #321 Sluggers Supreme EX/NM, #324 Wilhem NM (MC on back); #340 Newcombe EX, #351 Braves' Fence Busters NM, #368 Colavito NM+, #375 Reese EX/NM, #377 Braves Team NM, #380 Maxwell NM, #393 Kubek EX, #400 Fox EX/NM, #417 Furillo NM, #420 Pinson RC NM/MT, #424 Doby EX-MT (OC), #436 Rival Fence Busters Mays/Snider EX/NM+, #438 Herzog EX/NM, #440 Mathews NM (OC), #464 Curt Flood RC EX, #476 Musial AS NM+, #477 Skowron AS EX/NM, #479 Fox AS EX/NM, #480 Mathews AS NM, #481 F.Robinson AS EX, #482 Banks AS NM, #483 Aparicio AS NM/MT, #488 Aaron AS NM (PD), #489 Jenson NM, #493 Turley AS NM/MT, #494 Spahn AS EX. #495 Score AS EX/NM.