The Reggie Jackson Rookie Card and Other Vintage Cards
Reggie Jackson Rookie Card Facts
The regular issue 1969 Topps Reggie Jackson card is the one most collectors think about as the Reggie Jackson rookie card. However, 1969 was an interesting year for sportscard collecting that produced a lot of obscure sets. Reggie Jackson was included in a lot of these because he had already played parts of two seasons and had established himself as a bonified slugger with 29 home runs in 1968. In this post we’ll talk about the ’69 Topps rookie and several other oddball Jackson rookie cards.
1969 Topps Reggie Jackson card #260
The 1969 Topps Reggie Jackson rookie card #260 is one of the best cards of the late 1960 and is also the best rookie card in the set. Reggie Jackson is a legendary power hitter who crushed 568 home runs during his 21-season career. He also struck out 2,597 times which is more than any other player in history. Reggie’s nickname was “Mr. October” because of his clutch hitting in the playoffs and World Series. Reggie Jackson was an extremely popular player and is a member of the MLB Hall of Fame. You would expect his cards to be highly collectible, but other factors increase the collectability and value of his rookie card:
Key Factors:
- Solo Rookie Card: A lot of players in this era shared their rookie cards with other players. For example, many collectors like the 1964 Pete Rose 2nd-year card more than the 1963 rookie because the ’64 card is Pete Rose’s first solo card. Reggie Jackson doesn’t present this dilemma to collectors. His 1969 Topps rookie card (#260) features a great photo of a young Reggie Jackson in an A’s uniform.
- Postseason Heroics: Reggie Jackson played some of his best baseball during the postseason when his audience was the biggest. He is one of the greatest postseason hitters of all time with 18 postseason home runs and 48 RBIs. He was twice named the World Series MVP — in 1973 and 1977. During the 1977 World Series against the Dodgers, Reggie hit three home runs in a single game.
- The Yankee Factor: Reggie Jackson spent 21 years in the Major League with five of them being a member of the New York Yankees. The Yankees are the most decorated team in baseball history. They have a rabid fan base and are located in the nation’s largest media market. Athletes who played for the Yankees often get a boost in collector interest and value. Because of his time in New York, Reggie Jackson cards are even more sought after.
1969 Topps Baseball Set Details
The 1969 set is a surprisingly high-quality set for the era and remains a collector favorite. The set features many of baseball’s best all-time players including Mickey Mantle, Nolan Ryan, and Pete Rose. The Reggie Jackson rookie card #260 is the most valuable rookie card from the set, but it also contains the rookie card of Hall of Famer Bobby Cox and stars Craig Nettles (#99) and Bobby Bonds (#237), who is the father of Barry. This set is also notable for the Topps Decals and Deckle Edge insert sets.
- Year: 1969
- Manufacturer: Topps
- Number of cards: 664
- Subsets
- League Leaders (#1-12)
- World Series Highlights (#162-169)
- The Sporting News All-Stars (#416-435)
- Checklists (featuring stars)(various numbers)
- Insert Sets
- Topps Decals
- Deckle Edge Inserts
1969 Topps Reggie Jackson Card #260 Details
- Card no: #260 of 664
- Name on Card: Reggie Jackson
- Height: 6′
- Weight: 195
- Bats: L
- Throws: L
- Born: 5/18/46
- Home: Baltimore, MD
Front of the card
Design: The front of the 1969 Topps Reggie Jackson (#260) card is a vertical layout that features only Reggie Jackson. The card has a white border with a photo with rounded corners being the focus of the card. The photo shows Reggie from the waist up wearing a green Oakland A’s jersey. Reggie Jackson’s name and position both appear in a blue circle in the upper right corner of the card. The card lists his position as “Outfield.” He played all three outfield positions in his career but spent more than 90% of the time playing right field. The team name “Athletics” is at the bottom of the card in yellow text with a black outline. Because Reggie is the only player featured, we get a nice look at what “Mr. October” looked like as a young ballplayer.
Note: Although there was an O-Pee-Chee version of the 1969 set, Reggie Jackson was not included in that set.
Shop for the 1969 Topps Reggie Jackson rookie #260 on eBay (affiliate link)
Back of the card
The back of the 1969 Topps Reggie Jackson Rookie (#260) card has a horizontal layout with a pinkish-orange background. The upper-left corner has the Topps logo, card number, and biographical information. The 1969 set has statistics at the bottom and uses the available space above for a paragraph and cartoon. Because this is Reggie’s rookie card, not that much space is needed for his stats. That leaves plenty of room for a paragraph of information and a cartoon. The cartoon informs the collector of Reggie’s 17 minor league triples in 1967.
The Athletics were excited with the fantastic progress shown by this 22-year-old in 1968. His 29 home runs was tops on the Athletics and the 4th best mark in the American League. He also led Oakland with 74 runs batted in last year.
1969 Reggie Jackson Rookie Card #260
Reggie Jackson Rookie Card Value
The Reggie Jackson rookie card is one of the most valuable cards made in the late 1960s. The chart below was pulled from the popular card grading site PSA on 09/24/2021. It shows prices for the Reggie Jackson rookie card in various conditions.
Keep in mind that prices fluctuate. While PSA is a great way to find out the value of a card, we recommend going to eBay to see what cards are currently selling for on the world’s most popular auction site. Click here to view current auctions for the 1969 Topps Reggie Jackson Rookie card #260.
Other Relevant Reggie Jackson Cards
The 1969 Topps Reggie Jackson rookie card #260 is the only card in the hobby that is considered a Reggie Jackson rookie. It’s not uncommon for a player to only have one Rookie card in this era, but there are a few other cards, and a game, that warrant discussion in this post.
1969 Topps Decals Reggie Jackson
The 1969 Topps Decals set contains 48 decals of the biggest baseball stars of the time including the likes of Hank Aaron, Mickey Mantle, and Willie Mays. It says a lot that Jackson was included in this set after just one full year in the majors. Each cellophane card measured 1 1/2″ x 1 1/2. One decal was inserted into each pack of 1969 Topps Baseball cards. These decals do not have a number, the design is similar to the design of the regular Topps cards and the photo of Reggie Jackson is a cropped version of the photo used for his 1969 Topps rookie card #260.
Shop for the 1969 Topps Decals Reggie Jackson on eBay (affiliate link)
1969 Topps Super Reggie Jackson #28
1969 Topps “Super Baseball Cards” is a set of 66 high-gloss cards that are slightly smaller than standard at 2 1/4″ by 3 1/4″. The cards are notable for the clean photography that covers the entire card and the rounded corners. The Reggie Jackson card uses the same photo as his 1969 Topps #260 rookie card and 1969 Topps Decal. This card has a printed signature reading “Reginald Jackson” across the front of the car. These cards were issued separately from the standard 1969 Topps set and are rarer.
Shop for the 1969 Topps Super Reggie Jackson on eBay (rare) (affiliate link)
1969 Reggie Jackson Oakland Athletics Picture Pack
This card is from a 12-card Oakland A’s team set of 4 1/4″ x 7″ black and white photo cards. This is a rare and valuable oddball Reggie Jackson card.
Shop for the 1969 Reggie Jackson Picture Pack on eBay (rare) (affiliate link)
1969 Reggie Jackson Milton Bradley
Another Reggie Jackson card made in 1969 was issued as part of a board game by Milton Bradley called Official Baseball Game. Even though this card wasn’t intended to be a collectible card, collectors have taken notice of the set. It contains a lot of star players including this rookie-year Reggie Jackson. Some collectors do consider this to be a rookie card, so we wanted to make sure and mention it.
Shop for the 1969 Reggie Jackson Milton Bradley card on eBay (affiliate link)
Milton Bradley Official Baseball Game (1969)
The 1969 Reggie Jackson card mentioned above is from Official Baseball Game by Milton Bradley. Reggie Jackson was a young player, but he hit 29 home runs in 1968. Because of this, it made sense to include him in the game. The game came with 296 player cards including Pete Rose, Willie Mays, Roberto Clemente, and many other stars.
Shop for the 1969 Milton Bradley Official Baseball game on eBay (affiliate link)
Reggie Jackson’s Legacy
Reggie Jackson is one of the most prolific power hitters in MLB history. He excelled as a hitter when the stakes were the highest. Because of this, he was nicknamed “Mr. October” and is considered one of the most clutch hitters to ever step in the batter’s box. Reggie was a very popular player with a marketable look due to his muscular physique and signature glasses. The power of his swing is legendary, and even though he struck out a lot, advanced metrics show that he was an offensive force who is easily worthy of his place in the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame. Here is a list of some of his accomplishments:
- 4 time AL Home Run leader
- 3 time AL Slugging % Leader
- 1973 AL MVP
- 14 time All-Star
- 2 time World Series MVP
- Inducted into the MLB Hall of Fame in 1993
Get Your Reggie Jackson Rookie
Do you want to own a 1969 Topps Reggie Jackson Rookie (#260)? If so, we recommend starting your search on eBay – the world’s #1 card trading place. Even if you’re not planning to buy one just yet, it’s fun to look at all the great cards currently for sale.
Want Reggie Jackson Merch?
Amazon.com is the world’s largest eCommerce marketplace. They have Reggie Jackson books, memorabilia, and so much more. See what you can find today.
The links above are Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
All About Reggie Jackson Rookies Infographic
Share this Reggie Jackson rookie infographic on your site
<p><strong>All About Reggie Jackson Rookies infographic provided by <a href="https://www.rookiesportscards.com">RookieSportsCards.com</a></strong><br /><br /><a href='https://www.rookiesportscards.com/the-reggie-jackson-rookie-card/'><img src='https://www.rookiesportscards.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/reggie-jackson-rookie-cards-infographic-scaled.jpg' alt='All About Reggie Jackson Rookies' border='0' /></a></p>See our web story, Learn All About the Reggie Jackson Rookie
