Wrapping Up a Legendary Decade
This is the final installment on our series of rare and expensive cards from the 1950s. In this final article, we will look at cards from 1957 through 1959. As in the two previous articles, the focus is on rare cards that are expensive, not necessarily the most expensive cards from these years.
Let’s get into it.
1958 Kahn’s Roberto Clemente
Roberto Clemente has 10 different Kahn’s cards from 1967 through 1966, but for some reason the 1958 just doesn’t come up for sale making it a quite expensive card.
In 2024 a PSA 4 sold for $20,400, while a SGC 1 sold for $12,600.
1958 Packard Bell Willie Mays
This was a regional issue for Packard-Bell, who sold radios and TVs in the ’50s and ’60s. The set featured seven cards of players from the Giants and Dodgers who had recently moved over to the West Coast. The backs of the cards feature the 1958 game schedule and mention different Packard-Bell products.
1958 Menko Doyusha
A Menko is a type of Japanese children’s game card, traditionally used in games where players attempt to flip their opponent’s card by striking it. Many Menko cards have uncertain origins, with little evidence linking them to a specific manufacturer or distributor. However, this particular Jackie Robinson card is an exception, with confirmed ties to Doyusha as the manufacturer. The image of Robinson was captured during the Dodgers’ overseas barnstorming tour in Japan.
Released in 1958, this card is considered a post-playing career issue, as Robinson retired following the 1956 season. In 2025, a PSA 3 copy sold for $67,000, while even a low-grade 1.5 fetched $25,676.
1958 Hires Root Beer Test Willie Mays
In 1958, Hires Root Beer released two sets of baseball cards. For the purposes of this article, we’ll focus on the rarer orange test issue.
Often, you’ll find the bottoms of both of these cards cut off. While cards with trimmed bottoms can still receive a numerical grade from PSA or SGC, they are generally valued significantly lower than fully intact examples.
1959 Topps Venezuelan
1959 marked the first year Topps released baseball cards in Venezuela. Due to their limited print run and the common practice of pasting them into albums — often damaging the backs — these cards are exceptionally rare in well-preserved condition. And, unlike the U.S. set, not every card was issued in the Venezuelan version.
The best cards from this release are Sandy Koufax and Mickey Mantle. While there are 17,026 graded U.S. Topps Mickey Mantle cards from this year, only 52 Venezuelan versions have been graded.
1959 Home Run Derby
This set was released alongside the very first Home Run Derby (Filmed in 1959 and released in 1960). Unlike today’s version, which is a marquee event during the All-Star festivities, the original Home Run Derby was actually a television show.
In it, players faced off in head-to-head matchups to see who could hit the most home runs. The winner would continue for the next episode to face off against a different player. The biggest names were featured in the TV show and accompanying card set, including Mantle, Mays, and Aaron.
In 2021, a Mantle PSA 7 sold for slightly under $30,000.
1959 Fleer Ted Williams #68
In 1959, Fleer produced a set of exclusive Ted Williams cards. Card #68 was most likely pulled from production early just like the ’54 Bowman which we featured in our last article. This one, however, was pulled due to a contract issue with Bucky Harris.
A PSA 10 sold for around $35,000 in 2020, with most copies in low to mid/high grade selling for between $400 and $1,000.
1959 Dad’s Cookies Exhibits
These cards feature the same design as the American Exhibits but were distributed in Vancouver, Canada, being stapled to bags of Dad’s Cookies.
While the staple holes typically result in a PSA 1 grade, these cards are incredibly rare and can command a crazy premium. The set includes iconic stars like Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Stan Musial, Ernie Banks, and Yogi Berra. Mays examples have sold for about $10,000, and Mantles for close to $20,000.
1959 Yoo-Hoo Mickey Mantle
This is another food and beverage-related issue from the late 1950s, featuring a facsimile signature endorsing Yoo-Hoo drinks. In 2022, a PSA 4 copy sold for just under $50,000.
1959 Morrell Meat Sandy Koufax
Morrell Meats produced regional issue cards for the Dodgers from 1959 through 1961. Much like the 1959 Venezuelan card, this is one of the rarest Sandy Koufax cards ever produced and is notorious for its condition issues. A PSA 1 typically sells for over $1,000, while a PSA 7.5 fetched $25,000 at auction back in 2018.
1959 Bazooka Mickey Mantle
1959 marked the first year of Bazooka cards. PSA grades a few different versions of this card: Full Box, Card With the Tab, and just the card. The Full Box and Tab are the rarest, as most kids would cut these cards out. Additionally, the no-tab-with-card values can fluctuate quite a bit based on the quality of the cut.
