1952 Topps #389 Ben Wade
1952 Topps #389 Ben Wade
About Ben Wade
Benjamin Styron Wade was a right-handed pitcher born November 1922 in Morehead City, North Carolina, who signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers organization as a teenager around 1940. His climb was interrupted by World War II, when he served in the U.S. Army Air Force from 1943 to 1945, and after a long minor-league apprenticeship he reached the majors on April 30, 1948, with the Chicago Cubs. Wade pitched five big-league seasons for the Cubs (1948), Dodgers (1952-54), St. Louis Cardinals (1954) and Pittsburgh Pirates (1955), finishing 19-17 with a 4.34 ERA and 235 strikeouts in 371 1/3 innings. His finest year was 1952 -- the same season depicted on this card -- when he went 11-9 with a 3.60 ERA and career highs of 37 games, 24 starts and 118 strikeouts for a pennant-winning Dodger club; that July he memorably hit two home runs off Hall of Fame lefty Warren Spahn. Wade later became one of the sport's most respected talent men, serving as the Dodgers' director of scouting from 1973 to 1990 and helping draft future stars such as Mike Piazza, Orel Hershiser and Steve Sax before his death in 2002. As card #389, this is Wade's rookie card and part of the scarce high-number series (#311-407), which was printed in far smaller quantities and is highly sought after today.
Sources: Wikipedia · Baseball-Reference
Variations & how to tell them apart
High Number
Series 6 (311-407). Minimally distributed in the fall of 1952 when retailers cut orders — the scarcest and most coveted run in the set, holding Mantle, Robinson, Campanella, the Mathews rookie and more.
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 493 | 0 | 5 | 45 | 48 | 81 | 90 | 223 | 1 |
| SGC | 108 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 6 | 23 | 68 | 4 |
Graded population — a scarcity guide, not a price. Snapshot 2026-06-22. Half-grades fold down (8.5→8); totals are summed across each grader's listed variations.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the 1952 Topps Ben Wade card?
It is card #389 of 407 in the 1952 Topps set - Topps' first flagship issue and the cornerstone of the postwar hobby. It pictures the Brooklyn Dodgers player, and is his rookie card.
Why is this card scarce?
It is in the 1952 Topps high-number series (311-407), which was minimally distributed in the fall of 1952 and is the scarcest, most sought-after run in the set.
Is the 1952 Topps Ben Wade valuable?
Value depends on grade and (where it applies) the back variation. Use the links above to check current T206 Cards inventory and live eBay listings.
Sources: the Trading Card Database, Baseball-Reference, and PSA & SGC population reports. Card data & population compiled and maintained by T206Cards.com. Page last updated 2026-07-01.