This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 4/2/2021
Imagine a team with Willie Mays and Hank Aaron in the same outfield! It almost happened as in 1950, the Boston Braves sent scout Bud Maughn to provide an evaluation of Mays when he was playing for the Birmingham Black Barons. Maughn recommended signing Mays to a contract, but it never came to fruition. Had the Braves taken the advice of their scout, "The Hammer" and "The Say Hey Kid" might have spent the better part of a generation as teammates, not to mention having Eddie Mathews in the lineup as well. Few teams, if any, could have boasted a more powerful middle of the order than a trio of Mays-Aaron-Mathews. That honor ended up in the hands of the Giants and Mays became part of a different trio, along with Mickey Mantle and Duke Snider, as legendary centerfielders that represented the three New York teams. From 1950-59, one of those three New York teams was crowned World Series Champion with one ironic exception; the 1957 Milwaukee Braves. One of the greatest baseball players in major league history, Willie Mays also carries the distinction of being arguably the most talented. A "five-tool" star with no weakness, Mays consistently demonstrated his dominance in hitting (.302 lifetime average, over 3,200 hits and a batting title), hitting with power (660 homers, four time home-run king), base running (four time stolen base leader) and fielding (12 consecutive Gold Glove Awards). While Mickey Mantle was quickly becoming the new darling in the Bronx, Willie Mays and his squad from Manhattan had become perennial challengers in the senior circuit. The debut card of Mantle may dominate the 1951 Bowman series but the rookie appearance of Willie Mays is nonetheless one of the most powerful issues of the post-war era. Offered is an absolutely stellar PSA 8 example that boasts a flawlessly focused image within its pure white borders, very mildly positioned toward the southwest horizontal corner but well within the specifications of the rarely-seen PSA 8 grade and overcompensated by above-grade endpoints, two of which are much are MINT or better. The image of Mays is defined by deep hues of brown and green supporting the bright white of his home jersey and the jet black coloring of his Giants cap, which commands the attention of any hobbyist, while the reverse is a clean, problem-free canvas with sharp red and blue lettering. Overall a phenomenal specimen of one of the games greatest legends in almost unfathomable NM/MT condition.