Tom Seaver Baseball Cards

Tom Seaver (1944-2020) played for 20 seasons in Major League Baseball, most significantly with the New York Mets from 1967 to 1977. He finished his career with the Cincinnati Reds (1977-1982), back to the New York Mets (1983), Chicago White Sox (1984-1986), and the Boston Red Sox (1986). Seaver finished his career with a 311-205 win-loss record, a 2.86 ERA, and 3,640 strikeouts.

A few of his accolades include him being a twelve time All Star, a three time NL Cy Young Award winner, three time NL wins leader, three time NL ERA leader, and five time NL strikeout leader.

Born in Fresno, California, Seaver was considered too small and too weak to effectively pitch. Until his size developed, Seaver formed exceptional control from the mound during high school. He was also a standout basketball player, but he preferred baseball. After graduating from high school, Seaver enlisted with the United States Marine Corps. He spent a year in the service, and Seaver was part time member in the reserve of the Marine Corps until 1970 when his commitment ended.

Seaver attended USC on a scholarship in 1964. He had a breakout season as a sophomore in 1965, and he was selected in the 10th round of the MLB Draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers. Seaver asked for $70,000 and was rejected. Too bad for the Dodgers!

In 1966 there was a kerfuffle between a few teams, the MLB Commissioner, and the NCAA. The Mets won a brief lottery, and Seaver entered their minor league system in 1966.

By the next year in 1967, Seaver had not only made the Mets’ roster, but he was also named an All-Star in his rookie season. Though the Mets were in last place in 1967, Seaver went 16-13 with 170 strikeouts and a 2.76 ERA.

There was no sophomore slump for Seaver, and then he won a league high 25 games as well as the NL Cy Young in his third year.

Seaver carried on with his career in that manner, which was filled with league leading stats, awards, and other achievements. A great quote comes from Reggie Jackson, “Blind men come to the park just to hear him pitch.”

Nicknamed “The Franchise,” Seaver was critical for the Mets success in the 1969 World Series, and his best seasons were with the Mets.

However, the Mets absolutely bungled the 1977 free agency with Seaver. Although Seaver was simply asking to be compensated at the same rate as top pitchers across the league, the Mets chairman refused to negotiate. It was a media storm, and the tabloids had a field day.

Sick of the fighting and unfairness, Seaver reached out to the owner for an immediate trade. By today’s standards, it was an incredible front office disaster by the Mets.

Though Seaver was past his prime, he was not finished with the game, and he was a consistent producer for the Cincinnati Reds for the next five years.

He was brought back to the Mets in 1983, and he continued to pitch until 1987 through which he gradually petered out. Out of his love for the game, he kept pitching until his last, even ending back up in the minor leagues. In his retirement speech Seaver said, “There are no more pitches in this 42-year-old arm that are competitive. I’ve used them all up.”

Seaver was inducted into the Hall of Fame 1992 on the first ballot. He was inducted on 98.84% of the vote which was the highest percentage ever made.

Additionally, the Mets retired his jersey and brought him into their Hall of Fame. They even celebrated a “Tom Seaver Day,” and the Mets’ stadium sits on the newly named street 41 Seaver Way. Seaver is one of two players who is wearing a Mets ball cap in his Hall of Fame photograph.

Along the same lines, the best cards of Seaver are of him in a Mets uniform. This article will take you through a few of them.

1967 Topps Tom Seaver Rookie Card

There are 609 cards of standard size in this set. Seaver’s rookie card lies at number 581 on a card titled “Mets Rookies”. He shares the card with Denehy.

In addition to Seaver, Rod Carew is the major rookie card. Other keys to the set includes Whitey Ford, Al Kaline, Frank Robinson, Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Mickey Mantle, and Roberto Clemente.

There are a significant number of these cards that have survived today. For reference, PSA has over 250,000 cards. Seaver’s rookie card is well preserved. PSA has over 2,700 cards registered. 90 of those are Mint, but only three are Gem Mint.

This card is infrequently sold in Gem Mint quality. In two registered sales from 2009 and 2012, one card sold for $18,467.48 and $24,450, respectively.

Mint copies are sold much more frequently, and prices have soared during the pandemic. Copies typically sold for around $6,000 to $7,000 for years, but they jumped to over $20,000 in early 2021.

Due to covid pricing, with a budget of $1,000, you may have to drop all the way to a PSA 3.

1968 Topps Tom Seaver

The 1968 Topps set has 598 cards of standard size. Seaver’s card sits at number 45. The important rookies on the set are Johnny Bench and Nolan Ryan.

Seaver’s card has been cherished for decades. For reference, PSA has 4,170 cards registered.

One registered sale for a Gem Mint card comes from 2016 for $15,702. The price of Mint copies falls hard to about $2,000. With a budget of $1,000, you are safe to get a PSA 8.

1969 Topps Tom Seaver

The 1969 Topps baseball set has 664 cards of standard size. The major rookie cards include Reggie Jackson, Rollie Fingers, and Bobby Bonds. The set also has the interesting honor of Mickey Mantle’s last card.

Tom Seaver’s card sits at #480. There are over 2500 cards registered with PSA. While Mint copies will sell for a couple thousand, you should be safe for a PSA 8 if you have a budget of $1,000.

1970 Topps Tom Seaver

Seaver sits at #300 in this set of 720 cards that are standard size. Seaver sits on the NLCS Game 1 card too.

For reference, PSA has over 200,000 cards from this set registered, and most cards have a couple hundred cards registered. However, a Hall of Famer like Seaver has a couple thousand or more.

While a Gem Mint copy went for over $10,000 in the past, Mint copies have been selling for under $1,000 more recently.

1971 Topps Tom Seaver

The 1971 Topps set has 752 cards of standard size. Seaver’s card sits at #160.

There are over 1700 cards registered, but only one card is Gem Mint and only five are Mint.

Per usual, the rare top graded card goes for thousands. The PSA Gem Mint card sold for $29,520 in December of 2020. Mint cards go for a few thousand, and PSA 8’s have been sharply on the rise since covid. Before the pandemic, PSA 8’s were selling for under $200, but prices began to approach $1,000 as the pandemic progressed.

1972 Topps Tom Seaver

Seaver is on several cards on this set including, NL ERA Leaders, NL Pitching Leader, NL Strikeout Leaders, and a few more like in action and a boyhood photo card. We are going to cover #445, which is the base card and the most valuable.

There are 787 cards on this set, and the cards are standard size.

This card is less popular and valuable than the others. Still, there are over 1000 registered with PSA, and a Gem Mint card will cost you several thousand, but a Mint card will go for under $1,000.

Conclusion

Seaver is not just one of the best pitchers of his generation, he is an all time great pitcher. He will always be remembered as one of the best Mets of all time, and we went over some of the best cards of Seaver.