Steve Carlton signed this contract to appear on Fleer baseball cards for the 1965 season. The cards were never produced. At the time the contract was executed, the 20-year old Carlton had yet to throw his first Major League pitch. During his career he became the first pitcher to win four Cy Young awards. He finished with 329 wins and 4,136 strikeouts.

The second page of the contract stipulates that Carlton receive $25 for signing his name to the document. Apparently the players were compensated even though the set was never produced. Carlton would not be in the big leagues to stay until 1967.

Carlton signed the bottom of the contract four months after his 19th birthday. The autograph presents a rare example of the signature of the Hall of Fame pitcher before his big league debut. A notoriously difficult signature to obtain during his playing days, Carlton now signs for a fee at private events.

When Steve Carlton fanned his 3,128th batter on September 21, 1981, he surpassed Bob Gibson as the National League’s all time leader in strikeouts. Topps printed a baseball card commemorating the feat. Carlton extended his record to an even 4,000 whiffs. Here he signs the Topps card from the 1982 set.