If ever you were looking for a glimpse of things to come in baseball, you might have wanted to tune in to Game 1 of the 1960 World Series.

There at Forbes Field, the mighty New York Yankees hunkered down to the face the hometown Pittsburgh Pirates … and it didn’t take long for the fireworks to begin.

After surrendering a single to Tony Kubek to open the game, Bucs starter Vern Law coaxed a double-play grounder from Yanks leftfielder Hector Lopez. That brought up the man who would cop the American League MVP award the next month — slugging rightfielder Roger Maris.

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With the bases empty and two out, Maris took Kubek deep, putting New York up 1-0.

The next batter, Mickey Mantle, was already a bona fide legend, but he flied out to center.

It was a microcosm of how the 1961 season would play out — Maris doing big things, and Mantle not quite able to catch up to his teammates spotlight.

An unusual position for The Mick, to be sure.

But even that blast for The Rajah couldn’t keep the Yankees in the driver’s seat for long, as the Pirates struck back with three runs in the bottom of the first.

The Yanks scratched out a score in the top of the fourth, and it looked like we might have a real game on our hands.

But then, in the bottom of the frame, Pirates second baseman Bill Mazeroski strode to the plate with one out and third baseman Don Hoak standing on first, courtesy of a walk.

All the 24-year-old keystone man did was smash a Jim Coates pitch deep to leftfield, and Pittsburgh was suddenly up by three, 5-2.

The Bucs would add one more in sixth, and an Elston Howard two-run bomb in the ninth pulled the Yanks back within two, but the rally died there.

And so, Pittsburgh headed into the night, up one game to none, with Maz’s homer providing the full margin of victory.

Eight days later, Pittsburgh was back at home, with the Series once again knotted up, this time at three games apiece.

That magical Game 7 went to the bottom of the ninth knotted at nine.

And, wouldn’t you know it? Yankees reliever Ralph Terry watched leadoff man Bill Mazeroski stride to the plate, and then stroke the Series-winning home run to deep leftfield.

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Forbes Field erupted into sheer bliss while the Yanks slipped into the darkness to lick their wounds.

By the next spring, though, folks were already talking about what sort of encore the M & M boys might put together, when Maris and Mantle would attack a new season, healthy and hungry for cosmic vengeance.

Why, if things went just right in 1961, one — or both! — of them might even make a run at Babe Ruth’s single-season home run record.

Wouldn’t that be something?

Wow! Wax of the Day

If you were a kid in 1960 or thereabouts, you might have dug the World Series that dominated the early part of October, but Halloween has always been the main attraction as the month wears on. And who better to hellp celebrate the greatest holiday ever invented (look it up!) than Casper himself!

This eBay lot brings you a colorful, sparkling unopened wax pack from the 1960 Fleer series. Must have been a real trick to keep it under wraps all these years, but it’s certainly a treat to behold these days!

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LOT OF 10 DIFFERENT 1960 TOPPS BASEBALL CARDS

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1960 Topps Baseball Cards - 100 Vintage Cards

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1960 Topps Baseball Cards, complete your set

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1960 Topps Baseball Cards Lot of (12)

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