1951 Topps Red Back #3 Ferris Fain
About Ferris Fain
The Athletics finished 1950 at 52-102, last in the American League, in the final season of Connie Mack's 50 years as manager. Fain made his first All-Star team regardless, batting .282 with a career-best 10 home runs, 83 RBI and 133 walks, and again led the league in double plays by a first baseman. Days after the season ended, reports sent him to the Tigers or the Yankees.
Ferris Fain was a left-handed first baseman who won the American League batting title in 1951 and 1952 and was named to five All-Star teams. He came to the Philadelphia Athletics in 1947 from the San Francisco Seals, where Lefty O'Doul taught him the plate discipline that produced a .424 career on-base percentage, 13th highest in major league history. He missed 1943 to 1945 in the Army Air Force. In 1949 he set a first-base record with 194 double plays, part of an Athletics team total of 217. After the 1952 season the Athletics traded him to the White Sox for Eddie Robinson, Ed McGhee and Joe DeMaestri. He finished with the White Sox in 1954 and split 1955 between Detroit and Cleveland, retiring when knee trouble that began in his first big-league spring training would not clear. His temper brought fights on and off the field and a suspension in 1947. He hit .290 with 48 home runs and 1,139 hits in nine seasons, and died on October 18, 2001, in Georgetown, California.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 252 | 0 | 33 | 63 | 30 | 35 | 48 | 43 | 0 |
| SGC | 36 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 22 | 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 Philadelphia Athletics
More Philadelphia Athletics cards:
- Red Back #28 Elmer Valo
- Blue Back #15 Eddie Joost
- Connie Mack's All-Star Mickey Cochrane
- Connie Mack's All-Star Connie Mack
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1951 Topps Red Back #3 card?
It is Red Back #3 in the 135-card 1951 Topps Baseball checklist, picturing Ferris Fain of the Philadelphia Athletics.
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.