The 1968 Topps Bazooka baseball cards were released midway through that MLB season as part of the longtime Bazooka bubblegum brand owned by Topps. These postage stamp size cards featured color images of Major League players and managers on one side and jokes, cartoons, puzzles and other non-sports related content on the reverse.
While the small card size and less serious nature of the back content made these cards primarily a novelty item targeted towards younger collectors, the 1968 Bazooka set is highly coveted today among serious vintage baseball card collectors for its rarity and historical significance. Only a limited run of these cards were produced and distributed mainly through Bazooka bubblegum displays at local corner stores and supermarkets across America.
The 1968 season was one characterized by intense social upheaval and change in the United States. It was the year that Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy were both assassinated, racial tensions were at an all-time high following the tumultuous previous years of the Civil Rights Movement, and the Vietnam War was escalating with no end in sight. Against this turbulent backdrop, the national pastime of Major League Baseball seemed to many Americans like a welcome distraction and sense of normalcy.
It was also a year of transition on the diamond. The “Year of the Pitcher” saw pitching dominance at an all-time high as the mound was lowered and the strike zone expanded following the 1967 season. Legendary sluggers like Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays and Hank Aaron were entering the twilight of their career. An exciting new generation of talent like Reggie Jackson, Tom Seaver and Nolan Ryan began to emerge. It was the final season for iconic ballparks like Cincinnati’s Crosley Field and Detroit’s Briggs Stadium before they were demolished.
Within this context, the 1968 Bazooka baseball cards offered a lighthearted glimpse at the players and personalities of MLB during an turbulent year in American history. Some of the notable rookie cards featured included future Hall of Famers Reggie Jackson and Tom Seaver as well as Jose Santiago, Sonny Jackson and Dick Bates. Managers depicted included future Hall of Famer Earl Weaver of the Baltimore Orioles along with Dave Bristol of the Houston Astros and Dick Williams of the Boston Red Sox.
In addition to the player and manager photos on the front, the backs of the cards featured a variety of mostly non-sports related artwork, puzzles, jokes and cartoons. Some examples included hangman games, dot-to-dot drawings, mazes and riddles. The lighthearted nature of the content on the backs of these small cards reinforced their intention as a novel fun product aimed at younger collectors rather than serious adult hobbyists.
While production numbers for the 1968 Bazooka baseball cards are not definitively known, it is believed only a small fraction of the nearly 800 player photos included in the full Bazooka and standard sized Topps issues were utilized for the postage stamp sized Bazooka cards. Reports indicate they may have had a very limited distribution through Bazooka chewing gum displays initially placed in grocery and corner stores. Their scarcity has only increased in the decades since as many have likely been lost, damaged or thrown away over the years.
The combination of featuring the players of an iconic year in baseball history, their tiny nostalgic size appealing to younger collectors of the time, and their exceedingly scarce surviving population has made the 1968 Bazooka baseball card set one of the most coveted and valuable in the hobby today. Even well-worn, partially intact examples in flimsy condition can fetch hundreds or thousands of dollars depending on the player featured. Mint condition rookie cards of future Hall of Famers like Tom Seaver are valued in the five figure range or higher.
While not quite as prestigious or historically significant as the standard sized 1968 Topps issues which told the full visual story of that MLB season, the 1968 Bazooka baseball cards occupy a unique niche in the collecting world. They distilled the stars and personalities of baseball’s tumultuous 1968 season into a child-friendly novelty format that stoked the imagination. More than 50 years later, their lighthearted charm and accentuation of baseball as an oasis amid trying times still resonates with collectors and history buffs seeking a glimpse into American life during that pivotal year.
In sum, the 1968 Bazooka baseball cards were a glimpse of the MLB season packaged for younger collectors in a tiny, nostalgic wrapper. Their lighthearted take on the players and teams of a turbulent year in history, coupled with extreme scarcity, has made them highly valuable collectors items today appreciated by fans and historians alike seeking to reconnect with baseball’s past.
