1951 Topps Blue Back #22 Bob Kuzava
About Bob Kuzava
In 1950 Kuzava split the season between the White Sox and Washington, going 9-10 with a 4.33 ERA. He started 29 of his 32 games, threw nine complete games and struck out 105 in 199.1 innings, the most he pitched in any season. Washington dealt him to the Yankees on June 15, 1951, in a three-player deal. He finished that year 11-7 with a 3.61 ERA and five saves between the two clubs, and pitched one inning in the World Series the Yankees won over the Giants in six games.
Bob Kuzava was a left-handed pitcher who worked for eight major league clubs between 1946 and 1957: Cleveland, the White Sox, Washington, the Yankees, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and St. Louis. He debuted with Cleveland in 1946, going eight innings against Detroit in an 11-inning no-decision, then spent most of 1947 and 1948 in the minors. Chicago kept him in 1949, when he went 10-6 with nine complete games and finished fourth in American League Rookie of the Year voting. A military policeman in India and Burma during World War II, he was called Sarge. Washington traded him to the Yankees on June 15, 1951, for three players, and he earned three championship rings in New York, saving the final games of the 1951 and 1952 World Series. He finished 49-44 with a 4.05 ERA, 446 strikeouts and 13 saves. The National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame inducted him in 2003. He died on May 15, 2017.
Sources: Wikipedia · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 154 | 1 | 28 | 52 | 16 | 17 | 23 | 17 | 0 |
| SGC | 11 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
Graded population — a scarcity guide, not a price. Data as of 2026-10-19. Half grades fold down for both graders (8.5→8); PSA qualified slabs (OC, ST, PD, MC and the like) are not counted.
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Related cards
Team card: Team card Washington Senators
More Washington Senators cards:
- Red Back #44 Sid Hudson
- Blue Back #1 Eddie Yost
- Blue Back #13 Mickey Vernon
- Blue Back #25 Sam Mele
- Blue Back #38 Irv Noren
- Connie Mack's All-Star Walter Johnson
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1951 Topps Blue Back #22 card?
It is Blue Back #22 in the 135-card 1951 Topps Baseball checklist, picturing Bob Kuzava of the Washington Senators.
How many cards are in the 1951 Topps Baseball set?
135 cards across five issues - the Red Backs and Blue Backs (52 each), nine Team cards, and eleven each of Connie Mack's All-Stars and the Major League All-Stars. With the Zernial and Holmes variations and both versions of each Team card the master set is 146. All 135 count toward the full set; Jim Konstanty, Robin Roberts and Eddie Stanky, the three rarest Major League All-Stars, are so rarely seen that collectors often count a complete set as 132 without them.
Sources: PSA, BaseballCardPedia, Trading Card Database, Baseball-Reference, PSA & SGC population reports. Card data compiled and maintained by T206Cards.com. Page last updated 2026-10-26.