Nolan Ryan / Jerry Koosman 1968 Topps Baseball

This Nolan Ryan/Jerry Koosman 1968 Topps Baseball combination piece was given a perfect 10 by PSA and sold for $612,359 at the previous auction. Over 8,000 Nolan/Koosman rookie cards were graded, and this was the only one that received a perfect ten.

Ryan, like most players, had some time to mature into the dominant force that fans and collectors have come to admire. While Ryan's development took a few years, it appears that the baseball card market anticipated what was to come from the flame-throwing righty, since four distinct copies of his rookie card are known to exist.

Ryan made his Topps debut in 1968 on a card (#177) that he shares with Jerry Koosman, another great pitcher. Along with Johnny Bench, Nolan Ryan is one of two crucial Hall of Famer rookie cards in the collection. They add up to quite a charge. Three different versions of the same card were issued in the same year. Ryan rookies were also released by Milton Bradley, O-Pee-Chee, and Venezuelan Topps.

All three are more difficult to get than the conventional Topps Ryan, particularly the Venezuelan Topps card, although the Topps card is the most popular. Despite the fact that all four Ryan rookies share the same basic design, there are some minor variances. The back of the Milton Bradley card, for example, has a brighter yellow hue, with a faint white line on one or more borders that carries over from the white-bordered football and hot rod cards on the same sheet.

Cost: $612,359