1951 Topps Blue Back #7 Gerald Staley
About Gerald Staley
Staley split 1950 between the rotation and the bullpen for St. Louis, starting 22 of his 42 games after 17 starts in 1949. He finished 13-13 and worked 169.2 innings with 7 complete games and 3 saves, down from 6 saves the year before. His ERA climbed to 4.99 from 2.73, and he struck out 62 batters. At the plate he collected 8 hits in 55 at-bats.
Gerald Lee Staley, born August 21, 1920 in Brush Prairie, Washington, pitched fifteen major league seasons from 1947 to 1961 as a right-hander for the St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati Redlegs, New York Yankees, Chicago White Sox, Kansas City Athletics, and Detroit Tigers. His main pitch was a sinkerball he changed speeds on, with an occasional knuckleball as a change of pace. He won 19, 17 and 18 games as a Cardinals starter from 1951 through 1953 and made the National League All-Star team in 1952 and 1953. St. Louis traded him to Cincinnati in December 1954; the Yankees bought him in September 1955 and waived him to the White Sox in May 1956, and manager Al Lopez moved him to the bullpen for good in 1957. Staley's sinker produced the game-ending double-play grounder that clinched the 1959 American League pennant, and he led the league that season in games pitched and games finished, though Chicago lost the World Series to the Dodgers. He was an American League All-Star in 1960. He finished 134-111 with 61 saves and a 3.70 ERA in 640 games, and died at his home in Vancouver, Washington, on January 2, 2008, at age 87.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · Baseball Almanac · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 152 | 1 | 18 | 56 | 21 | 10 | 23 | 23 | 0 |
| SGC | 14 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 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 St. Louis Cardinals
More St. Louis Cardinals cards:
- Red Back #7 Howie Pollet
- Red Back #47 Tommy Glaviano
- Blue Back #6 Red Schoendienst
- Blue Back #14 George Munger
- Blue Back #21 Billy Johnson
- Blue Back #28 Harry Brecheen
- Blue Back #30 Enos Slaughter
- Connie Mack's All-Star Grover Cleveland Alexander
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1951 Topps Blue Back #7 card?
It is Blue Back #7 in the 135-card 1951 Topps Baseball checklist, picturing Gerald Staley of the St. Louis Cardinals.
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.