Perhaps the most popular baseball card in the 1970s, young Yankees catcher Thurman Munson was photographed by the Topps photographer during in-game action, something the company did for the first time in its history with the 1971 issue.  Munson, known for his hard-nosed play, is seen here in the grit of a play at the plate, tagging a player obviously wearing the uniform of the Oakland Athletics.  Years after the shot was taken, it was revealed that the subject in the photo was A's pitcher Chuck Dobson, sliding into home during the first game of a doubleheader played on July 16, 1970. Though it looks like quite the collision, Dobson was safe.

Regardless, this is a beautiful example, graded NM-MT 8 by PSA.  Well-centered with sharp corners and no edge chipping, it is one of the finest of a large group of high-grade 1971 Topps cards to be featured in this auction, and easily one of the key cards to the issue.  One of Munson's most desirable cards, one of the key Topps cards in the entire decade, featuring a horizontal action image of the Yankees captain.