Johnny Bench (born 1947) is best remembered as a phenomenal catcher for the Cincinnati Reds from 1967 through 1983. He was a major part of the Big Red Machine, the Cincinnati Reds dynasty from the 1970s.
Bench finished his career with a .267 batting average, 2,048 hits, 389 home runs, and 1,376 runs batted in. He was a 14 time All-Star, a two time NL MVP, 10 time Gold Glove Award winner, two time NL home run leader, three time NL RBI leader, and he was a part of two World Series Championships.
Bench was born and raised in Oklahoma with the expressed desire to make it to the majors. When he was as young as seven years old, he told friends, parents, and teachers that he was determined to follow his idol, Mickey Mantle, to professional baseball.
He was a standout in baseball, basketball, and academics, in which he was named valedictorian of his high school. He took up the position of catcher because his dad said it would get him into the pros.
Selected 36th by the Reds in the 1965 amateur draft, Bench joined a minor league for the 1966 and 1967 season. In 1967, Bench faced Jim
Palmer, perhaps the greatest pitcher of the 1970s, in a minor league game, and Bench hit a grand slam. In his 19 years as an MLB pitcher, Palmer never let up a grand slam.
Bench continued to impress, and he was brought up to the Reds a few months later. Many were impressed, including Ted Williams who called Bench a “Hall of Famer for sure!”
In his first full season the next year, Bench became the first catcher to win the NL Rookie of the Year. His best season came from 1970 and 1972 where he was the RBI leader, HR leader, and MVP for the National League.
His best team performances lay ahead for Bench and the Reds. They were the “Big Red Machine,” and between 1970 and 1979, they averaged 95 wins a season, while winning four NL pennants and two World Series. Along with Pete Rose, and future Hall of Famers Tony Perez and Joe Morgan, as well as a solid supporting cast, the Big Red Machine had one of the best lineups ever.
Bench traversed his major league career with a famous social life as “baseball’s most eligible bachelor.” His dates and tribulations with models and actresses was well publicized during and after his career.
Upon retirement, Bench’s jersey was retired by the Reds, and he was inducted into the Reds Hall of Fame. Later he was named to the MLB All-Century Team and the MLB All-Time Team. Finally, Bench was inducted into the Hall of Fame on the first ballot in 1989 on 96.42% of the vote.
Many old timers, experts, and publications, including ESPN, consider Bench as the best catcher of all time. For anyone who has heard various “GOAT” discussions before, the debate will continue for evermore (Yogi Berra fans would never let that go without a fight).
In the meantime, here are some great cards that forgo the heated arguments and show off a great player.
1968 Topps Johnny Bench Rookie Card
There are 598 cards on this set of standard size. The borders are condition sensitive. Johnny Bench’s rookie card sits at #247, but he is somewhat overshadowed by Nolan Ryan’s rookie card at #177.
Bench is on a card titled “Reds Rookies”, so he shares a card next to Ron Tompkins.
The card was well preserved because Bench was a beloved player who got a strong start, and many, such as Ted Williams, saw him as a future All-Star as a rookie. PSA has over 7,500 cards registered, though less of them are in top grade.
PSA Gem Mint 10 have sold for anywhere between $20,000 and $40,000 since 2016. Mint copies are traded much more frequently, and they have gone for about $2,000 to $4,000 over the same time period.
1969 Topps Johnny Bench
This set has 664 cards that measure 2 ½” x 3 ½”. It is a famous set because of its rookies of Reggie Jackson, Rollie Fingers, and Bobby Bonds, but most significantly, this set has the last Mickey Mantle card.
Johnny Bench was an effective player from the start. Only in his second season, he made the All-Star in 1969, and he is featured on a less expensive All-Star card in this set.
The more popular base card is well treasured. PSA has about 3,000 cards registered. Eight of them are PSA 10’s and over 150 of them are PSA 9’s.
The PSA 10’s are infrequently traded, but they have sold for $8,000 or more since 2016. While Mint copies go for a couple thousand, you should be able to find a PSA 8 for well under $1,000.
1970 Topps Johnny Bench
This set has 720 cards of standard size. Johnny Bench sits at #464 for the All-Star card and #660 for the base card.
There are over 400 copies of this card preserved by PSA for the #464. Twelve of them are in Mint conditions, and the rest are lower grade.
For #660, there are over 2,000 cards preserved with over 100 Mint copies. So, there are drastically different population reports within the same set.
The All Star card (#464) is highly competitive with the base card. Mint condition cards are worth about $3,000.
For the base card (#660), Mint condition cards have sold for around $1,000.
1971 Topps Johnny Bench
Bench had had a great season in 1970, so he was featured on a few cards for the 1971 Topps, such as the base card (#250), NL HR Leaders (#66) and the NL RBI Leaders (#64). Those last two cards can be worth hundreds in top grade, while the base card is the most valuable.
The set itself had 752 cards of standard size. Along with Johnny Bench, some keys include Hank Aaron, Roberto Clemente, Reggie Jackson, Willie Mays, Pete Rose, and Nolan Ryan.
The base card has 1,500 copies registered with PSA. Only eight of those cards are in Mint condition.
Since Mint copies are so rare, one sold for $12,000 in December of 2020. PSA 8’s are much more common, and you can acquire one for $1,000.
Conclusion
Johnny Bench was tremendously famous during his lifetime. He was a standout on the field, and the press could not get enough of him off the field. His fame has faded, and he is remembered much less today.
Yet, there are some great Topps cards that help to vitalize his days as one of the best catchers ever, if not the greatest. Topps has some excellent base cards, as well as additional All-Star or leader subsets. This article took you through some of the best Johnny Bench baseball cards, which help fans pay tribute to Johnny Bench and The Big Red Machine.