It never came to fruition, but before the 1974 season the still-fledgling San Diego Padres (they were a 1969 expansion team) nearly moved to Washington, D.C. Anticipating the move, Topps printed two variations of many Padres cards, one (as here) listing them as the San Diego Padres and one listing them as the Washington “Nat’l Lea.”, since any Washington team was yet-to-be-named. The team didn’t move, and the Washington cards became sought-after variations.
Up for auction, however, is the ultimately correct version of the card, and marks McCovey’s departure from the Giants after 15 seasons. His 1974 campaign, his age 36 season, was his last that measured up to his Hall-of-Fame caliber production. He batted only .253, but hit 22 home runs, drove in 63, and with 96 walks still managed a .922 OPS. Both his OPS and his 3.2 WAR were the eighth-best of his 22-season career.
This Dutch auction began on December 8th, 2025, at $115.63. It will be reduced by 5% every four days.
It never came to fruition, but before the 1974 season the still-fledgling San Diego Padres (they were a 1969 expansion team) nearly moved to Washington, D.C. Anticipating the move, Topps printed two variations of many Padres cards, one (as here) listing them as the San Diego Padres and one listing them as the Washington “Nat’l Lea.”, since any Washington team was yet-to-be-named. The team didn’t move, and the Washington cards became sought-after variations.
Up for auction, however, is the ultimately correct version of the card, and marks McCovey’s departure from the Giants after 15 seasons. His 1974 campaign, his age 36 season, was his last that measured up to his Hall-of-Fame caliber production. He batted only .253, but hit 22 home runs, drove in 63, and with 96 walks still managed a .922 OPS. Both his OPS and his 3.2 WAR were the eighth-best of his 22-season career.
This Dutch auction began on December 8th, 2025, at $115.63. It will be reduced by 5% every four days.
