The 1962 baseball season marked several significant changes and milestones in the sport. The expansion New York Mets and Houston Colt .45s (who later became the Astros) joined Major League Baseball. Roger Maris of the New York Yankees hit 61 home runs, breaking Babe Ruth’s single-season record. And the 1962 baseball card season reflected these changes while also highlighting the sport’s biggest stars of the era.
1962 was a transitional year for baseball cards. The dominant manufacturers in the 1950s, like Topps, had faced new competition from Fleer and Post Cereal in the late 50s/early 60s. This increased competition led to innovations in design and production quality. The 1962 Topps set featured vibrant color photos for the first time. Previously, Topps had used black and white or sepia-toned images. Fleer also adopted color photography that year. Both companies produced cards with higher gloss and sharper images compared to just a few years prior.
Some other notable aspects of the 1962 baseball card releases:
Topps released their standard design red, white and blue bordered cards in wax packaging. The set totaled 520 cards after several years of sets in the mid-400 range.
Fleer released their third and final baseball card set with 168 cards featuring players from both the American and National Leagues. This was Fleer’s first true “baseball” set after experimenting with rookie and team formats.
Post Cereal issued baseball cards as inserts in boxes of cereal with 144 total cards featuring players and managers.
The 1962 Topps and Fleer rookies included future Hall of Famers Willie Stargell, Dick Allen, Reggie Jackson, and Rusty Staub.
Roger Maris’ record-breaking 61st home run was captured on card #130 in the Topps set, one of the most valuable from the year.
The Mets and Colt .45s expansion teams were featured prominently with card designs unique to the other teams.
Some of the biggest stars of the early 1960s had defining cards in 1962. Mickey Mantle’s familiar batting stance graced the #7 card in the Topps set. Willie Mays’ athleticism was on full display jumping for a catch on the #24 card. A young Hank Aaron, still playing for the Milwaukee Braves, hit .328 with 13 home runs and his powerful left-handed swing was pictured on card #72.
The 1962 season marked a transition to larger, more vibrantly designed baseball cards that better captured the action and personalities of the players compared to designs of the 1950s. While Topps, Fleer and Post Cereal all produced sets that year, Topps would soon dominate the baseball card market for decades. Their higher quality color photographs set a new standard that remains influential in baseball card design today. The 1962 Topps set in particular stands out for commemorating Roger Maris’ home run record and featuring the debut of the expansion New York Mets and Houston Colt .45s franchises.
