1958 Topps #439 Ray Narleski
About Ray Narleski
Narleski was an All-Star for the second time in 1958, with 10 wins at the break, and threw 3.1 innings for the American League in its 4-3 win. Moved into the rotation, he started 24 of his 44 games and finished 13-10 with a 4.07 ERA in 183.1 innings. Topps #439, a series five card, shows him with the Cleveland Indians.
Ray Narleski was a right-handed pitcher from Camden, New Jersey, whose father Bill played for the Boston Red Sox. Signed by Cleveland in 1948, he sat out 1949 in a pay dispute, then climbed the farm system until Birdie Tebbetts turned him into a reliever at Triple-A Indianapolis. He reached the majors in 1954 and paired with left-hander Don Mossi in the Indians' bullpen, a tandem that Vic Wertz likened to finding gold dust. Narleski went 3-3 with a 2.22 ERA for the 111-win 1954 pennant winner and pitched in the World Series. In 1955 he went 9-1 and tied for the major league lead with 60 games, and in 1956 he posted a 1.52 ERA. He moved into the rotation in 1957 and 1958 and was an All-Star in 1956 and 1958. Traded to Detroit after 1958, he struggled with shoulder trouble and finished in 1959 with 43 wins, 58 saves and a 3.60 ERA. He died in 2012.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 286 | 1 | 9 | 92 | 113 | 40 | 18 | 13 | 0 |
| SGC | 25 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
Graded population — a scarcity guide, not a price. Snapshot 2026-07-09. Half-grades fold down (8.5→8). PSA counts are straight-graded (the +/Q qualifier rows are excluded).
Find this card
Search T206 Cards Live auctions Buy It Now Sold prices
As an eBay Partner Network affiliate, T206Cards.com may earn from qualifying purchases.
Related cards
More Cleveland Indians cards:
- #2 Bob Lemon
- #2B Bob Lemon (Yellow Team)
- #22 Hal Naragon
- #35 Don Mossi
- #35B Don Mossi (Yellow Team)
- #47 Roger Maris
- #55 Chico Carrasquel
- #79 Dick Williams
- #79B Dick Williams (Yellow Team)
- #102 George Strickland
- #123 Dick Tomanek
- #133 Russ Nixon
- #158 Cleveland Indians Team
- #170 Vic Wertz
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1958 Topps Ray Narleski card?
It is card #439 of the 1958 Topps Baseball set - Topps' sixth flagship issue: 494 cards numbered 1-495 (#145 was never issued), with die-cut player photos on solid-color backgrounds and the first team logos on Topps fronts. It pictures Ray Narleski, Cleveland Indians.
How many graded copies of the 1958 Topps Ray Narleski #439 are there?
PSA has graded 286 copies and SGC 25 as of the 2026-07-09 snapshot. Population is a scarcity guide, not a price - high-grade 1958s are notoriously tough because of the set's chronic centering and print-quality issues.
How many cards are in the 1958 Topps set?
494 issued cards, numbered 1-495 - #145 (Ed Bouchee) was pulled before release and never issued, leaving a permanent gap. The PSA master census counts 534 items: the 494 base cards plus 33 yellow-letter variations, 4 numerical checklist-back team cards, the 'Herrer' #433 error, and 2 unnumbered ad cards.
Sources: PSA CardFacts, Beckett, BaseballCardPedia, Baseball-Reference, PSA & SGC population reports, and hobby press-sheet research (Topps Archives, 2026). Card data compiled and maintained by T206Cards.com. Page last updated 2026-09-30.