Presented is a simply incredible example of the classic 1959 Fleer Life of Ted Williams set, found here with each and every card – including the rare No. 68 Ted Signs card – either a PSA 8 (37) or PSA 9 (43) holder. It’s always a good sign when the Mint roster edges past the Near-Mint to Mint lineup. That kind of firepower earns you a No. 15 ranking on the PSA Set Registry, with a GPA of 8.508. For six different PSA 9 Gem Mint cards – No. 4, No. 6, No. 12, No. 19, No. 57 and No. 67 – the number of cards graded higher winds up a big, fat zero; for five others the number of higher-graded examples is only one, and for another 31 cards the number of high-graded specimens ends up in single digits, often two or three cards. As the iconic decade of the 1950’s drew to a close, Topps sat alone atop the baseball card realm, having absorbed archrival Bowman in 1956 to launch a monopoly that would stand largely unchallenged for the next quarter century. But another longtime gum company, Fleer, was eyeballing Major League Baseball and itching to nudge its way into the party, and its first tentative steps came in 1959. With virtually all major league players tied to exclusive Topps contracts, Fleer rolled the dice by securing the rights to perhaps the biggest name in the game: Ted Williams. Fleer’s charming “Life of Ted Williams” set was sold in packs and through vending machines, offering an 80-card set of standard-size cards, with each and every one depicting Teddy Ballgame. The offered set includes a breathtaking PSA 8 example of that coveted card, even though the set is generally sold as “complete” with 79 of the 80 cards; No. 68 was withdrawn from production because of contractual conflicts with Topps. This remarkable accumulation provides a great opportunity to pick up a blazing Near-Mint to Mint or better example of the sole vintage card set with national distribution that was focused on a single MLB player, one that chronicles the life of one of the most beloved figures in baseball history. And, for many, the Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived. Ted would have wanted us to add that last line. Here's a link to the PSA Registry listing: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/350562

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