George Foster grew up playing in the same Hawthorne, California Little League as future big leaguer slugger Dave Kingman. After Kingman moved away, Foster remained, starring at Leuzinger High School. Upon graduation, George attended El Camino College where he caught the eye of the Giants.

San Francisco thought highly enough of him to select him in the third round of the 1968 draft. Foster spent a season ’68 and most of ’69 in the minors before making his major league debut on September 10th.

In 1970 he at Triple-A where he hit .308. before again receiving a September callup. Then 1971 proved to be a turning point. After 36 games, San Francisco dealt him to Cincinnati in a lopsided swap. His time by the Bay ended.

Shown here is Foster’s Topps rookie card from 1970. The outfielder added his autograph across the bottom portion.

After two and a half seasons in San Francisco, the Giants shipped 22-year old George Foster to Cincinnati on May 29, 1971. In return they got shortstop Frank Duffy and pitcher Vern Geishert. Duffy played just 21 games before being packaged with Gaylord Perry in a deal that brought Sam McDowell to San Francisco. Geishert never again appeared in a big league game.

In Cincinnati Foster came along slowly before becoming a full-fledged star.

Immediately after the trade ’71 Foster earned the starting job in centerfield thanks to an injury to Bobby Tolan. He played in 104 games the rest of the way and finished with a respectable 1.7 WAR.

The following season he was back on the bench. Though he played in just 59 games, he left his mark on the ’72 season in the NLCS.

In the Game 5 decider Cincinnati was down 3-2 heading into the bottom of the ninth. Johnny Bench led off the inning with a solo shot to tie the game. Tony Perez followed with a single to center. Skipper Sparky Anderson summoned Foster to pinch run for Perez.

Three batters later Foster was on third with two out. Pirates hurler Bob Moose uncorked a wild pitch and Foster scored the winning run to push the Reds in the World Series.

Cincinnati dropped in the Fall Classic to Charlie Finley’s dynastic Oakland A’s who won the first of their three-straight titles.

Shown here is a Topps baseball card honoring Foster’s first postseason appearance when he scored the deciding run in the Series clincher. Foster’s autograph adorns it.

George Foster had yet to establish himself when the 1975 season began. By season’s end, he was on the brink of stardom. His breakout season in ’75 included a .300 aveage with 23 homers with 78 RBI in 134 games.

Foster’s production helped the Reds win 108 games and return to the postseason for the for the fourth time in the decade. This time they won it all in a 7-game thriller against the Red Sox.

From ’76 through the end of the decade, Foster was an offensive force. His first of five All Star appearances came in the nation’s bicentennial year. That season he hit .306 with a league-leading 121 RBI. He finished second in MVP voting. The Reds won the Series for the second straight year.

In ’77 he was even better. Foster hit .320 and led the league in home runs, runs, RBI, slugging percentage, and total bases. His 52 homers were the most by any hitter in both the 70s and 80s.

He was an All Star again in ’78 and ’79 when he combined to slug 70 homers and drive in 218 runners.

Though his numbers began to decline in 1980, Foster had five more 20-homer seasons. He retired after the ’86 season. The two-time World Series champion’s career statistics include 348 homers, 307 doubles, and 1,239 RBI.

In the collection is this note handwritten and signed by Foster. He writes, “Good luck always especially in pursuing your hobby of collecting autographs. World Champion Cincinnati Reds 1975”.

George Foster’s breakout season in 1975 helped compel the Cincinnati Reds to their third World Series championship. The outfielder established new highs in runs, hits, doubles, homers, RBI, batting average and on-base percentage.

The Reds won a still-standing franchise-record 108 games to finish 20 games ahead of the second-place Dodgers. After sweeping Pittsburgh in the NLCS, Cincinnati beat Boston in a thrilling seven-game tilt.

After their Fall Classic triumph, Cunard Cruise Lines offered an all-expenses-paid voyage to the Reds. GM Bob Howsam, skipper Sparky Anderson, announcer Marty Brennaman and players Johnny Bench, Pete Rose, Tony Perez accepted the proposition.

In return the cruise line used the Cincinnati men for advertising purposes on their sold-out cruise. Above is the baseball itinerary for the cruise line signed by the six participating members of the organization. The itinerary makes for a fun read.

The Declaration of Independence was signed in Philadelphia’s Independence Hall on July 4, 1776. Two hundred years later when the nation celebrated its bicentennial, Philadelphia came alive.

Major League Baseball pitched in by awarding its All Star Game to the City of Brotherly Love. The National League’s George Foster provided the fireworks.

The Cincinnati slugger drove in three runs in the NL’s 7-1 victory. Two came on third-inning homer he hammered over the wall in left-center field off of Hall of Fame hurler Catfish Hunter. His performance helped the Senior Circuit to its 13th Mid Summer Classic victory in 14 years.

Shown here is a ticket to the contest signed by Foster the game’s Most Valuable Player.

The Cincinnati Reds dominated the 1976 regular season with 102 wins. Then they beat the Philadelphia Phillies in the first two in the best-of-five NLCS.

In a pressure-packed Game 3 it looked like the Phillies might climb back in the Series. The roar at Riverfront Stadium built inning by inning, then exploded in a ninth-inning storm no one inside forgot.  Cincinnati trailed 6–4 and stood three outs from defeat, yet the Big Red Machine never blinked.

George Foster opened the inning with ferocity, turning on a pitch and driving it out of the park to cut the deficit. The swing shifted everything. Moments later, Johnny Bench followed with thunder of his own, launching a game-tying blast that sent the crowd into chaos. Back-to-back home runs erased the lead and stunned Philadelphia, flipping momentum in seconds.

Pressure mounted as Cincinnati refused to let up. Dave Concepción ripped a single, bringing the winning run into motion. César Gerónimo worked a walk, and the Reds suddenly had traffic on the bases. A sacrifice by Ed Armbrister pushed both runners into scoring position, tightening the vise on Philadelphia pitching. Pete Rose drew an intentional walk, loading the bases and daring someone to deliver.

Then came Ken Griffey, calm amid the frenzy. Griffey chopped a high bouncer toward first. Phillies first baseman Bobby Tolan made a do-or-die effort but couldn’t come up with it. Instead, the ball skipped past the charging fielder, and Concepción raced home with the pennant-winning run. Cincinnati stormed the field as the rally completed a stunning three-run uprising.

The Reds captured their second-straight National League crown in unforgettable fashion. Power from Foster and Bench ignited the comeback, while Griffey delivered the walk-off hit in the decisive moment. The Big Red Machine rolled on, unstoppable and relentless when it mattered most.

Shown here is a ticket to that contest at Cincinati’s Riverfront Stadium. Bench and Griffey have both signed this PSA-authenticated piece.

The 1970s marked the most dominant era in Cincinnati Reds history. During that decade, the team reached six Championship Series, claimed four National League pennants, and celebrated two World Series crowns. Moreover, Reds players captured six MVP awards, showcasing the franchise’s incredible talent and consistency.

Johnny Bench set the tone in 1970 with his first MVP season. Widely considered baseball’s greatest-ever catcher, Bench smashed 45 home runs, just four shy of Ted Kluszewski’s team record. However, he did top “Big Klu” in another category by driving in 148 runs, setting a new franchise standard.

The decade’s final Reds MVP, George Foster, delivered fireworks in 1977. On September 20, he crushed his 50th home run, breaking Kluszewski’s 49-homer mark. Foster added three more blasts before season’s end, extending his still-standing club record to 52 home runs.

With two games left, Foster tied Bench’s RBI mark by driving in Ken Griffey on September 30. After a hitless game the next day, Foster entered October 2 needing one more RBI to make the record his own. In the seventh inning, with Rick Auerbach on second after walk and a passed ball, Foster lined a single to center, scoring Auerbach and notching his 149th RBI.

The ticket shown here comes from that historic contest, when Foster became the Reds’ single-season RBI king—a record he still owns today.

When George Foster slugged 52 home runs in 1977 he became the first 50-homer hitter since Giants legend Willie Mays in 1965. In addition to his home run output, Mays hit .317, and drove in 112 runs.  His performance earned him the Most Valuable Player Award.

Foster had even stronger numbers, with a .320 average and 149 RBI.  Like Mays, he concluded the campaign by taking home the MVP.

In the collection is this image of Mays’ magical catch in the 1954 World Series. The centerfielder has added his signature to the photo. Notice the hologram from Mays’ “Say Hey Foundation” in the bottom right of the image. More about the catch and Mays can be found by clicking here.

George Foster was the only slugger with 50+ homers in the 1970s and 80s. After he slammed 52 long balls in 1977, baseball waited another 13 years until another player broke the barrier. That man was Cecil Fielder.

Fielder’s offensive outburst was surprising. A part-time player in four previous MLB seasons with the Blue Jays, Feidler had little big league success. Unable to find an everyday job, Cecil left the US for Japan in 1989 to become the starting first baseman for the Hanshin Tigers. The increased playing time resulted in 38 home runs in just 106 games.

The performance pushed the Tigers to gamble that Fielder’s overseas production would translate to baseball’s highest level. Their wager paid off. The 6’3″ 230-pound hulk slammed 51 home runs. Fielder joined Foster as the only two men in the last quarter century to reach the 50-homer plateau. The previous slugger to reach the half-century mark was Willie Mays in 1965.

Shown here is a signed book photo of Fielder walking on the Tiger Stadium roof with a bat in his hand and a cigar in his mouth.

From 1976 through 1978, George Foster terrorized National League pitching with relentless power. The Cincinnati star dominated the league’s RBI race for three straight seasons. He also captured the home run crown in both 1977 and 1978. Foster turned every at-bat into a threat and every mistake into a souvenir.

Across that remarkable stretch, Foster hit .303 and averaged 40 homers, 130 RBI, and 6.4 WAR per season. His 156 OPS+ confirmed his place among baseball’s elite hitters. Few sluggers matched his blend of power, consistency, and production during that era. Pitchers feared him, fans admired him, and opposing managers searched desperately for answers.

This trio of Topps baseball cards celebrates Foster’s dominance alongside Jim Rice of Boston. The pair ruled their respective leagues in home runs during 1977 and 1978. They also finished atop the RBI leaderboard in 1978. Signed by both men, the cards capture a golden period for two feared sluggers who carried offenses with thunderous bats and unforgettable performances.