1960 Topps – Bobby Thomson #153 (Outfielder) (b: 25 Oct 1923 – d: 16 Aug 2010 at age 86) – Autographed Baseball card (Boston Red Sox)

Robert Brown "Bobby" Thomson (b: October 25, 1923 – d: August 16, 2010 at age 86) Nicknamed "The Staten Island Scot", he was an outfielder and right-handed batter for the New York Giants (1946–53, 1957), Milwaukee Braves (1954–57), Chicago Cubs (1958–59), Boston Red Sox (1960) and Baltimore Orioles (1960).

His pennant-winning three-run home run for the Giants in 1951, known as the "Shot Heard Round the World", is one of the most famous moments in baseball history. It overshadowed his other accomplishments, including eight 20-home run seasons and three All Star selections. "It was the best thing that ever happened to me," he later said. "It may have been the best thing that ever happened to anybody.

Link to video of the "Shot Heard Round the World"
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrI7dVj90zs

Thomson became a celebrity for his walk-off home run off Brooklyn Dodgers pitcher Ralph Branca to win the 1951 National League pennant. The home run, nicknamed the "Shot Heard ‘Round the World". The decisive contest, played on October 3 at the Polo Grounds, was the first major sporting event televised coast-to-coast in the United States.[5] The Dodgers took a 4–1 lead into the bottom of the ninth inning; but Giants shortstop Alvin Dark singled, advanced to third on a single by Don Mueller, and scored on a double by Whitey Lockman. With Lockman on second and pinch-runner Clint Hartung at third, Thomson’s walk-off home run turned looming defeat into a 5–4 victory. The moment was immortalized by Giants play-by-play announcer Russ Hodges’s excited multiple repetitions: "The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant!"

Waiting in the on-deck circle to hit behind Thomson was rookie Willie Mays. The Giants’ season ended, however, at the 1951 World Series; the Yankees swept the last three games to win the best-of-seven series, 4 games to 2. Thomson batted .238 in the Series with no home runs.

The bat from the "Shot Heard ‘Round the World" is in the collection of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, New York. The uniform worn by Thomson on that day is apparently a part of a large private collection owned by Dan Scheinman, a member of the San Francisco Giants ownership group.

Posted by Treasures from the Past on 2013-10-12 01:24:14

Tagged: , 1960 , Topps , baseball , card , vintage , signed , autograph , autographed , auto

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