1961 Topps #582 Earl Battey
About this card
Cards #566-586 and #589 are the 22 Sporting News All-Stars, printed in the scarce seventh series - the toughest run in the set.
About Earl Battey
Battey's first Topps cards as a Twin report the 1960 season he spent in Washington, where the catcher Chicago had just traded away hit .270 with 15 home runs and 60 RBI, led the American League in games caught and won the first of three straight Gold Gloves. Card #315 is his series-4 base issue, printed with the franchise newly moved and renamed Minnesota. Card #582 puts him in the Sporting News All-Stars subset, a high number from the seventh series. His rookie card was his 1957 Topps issue, #401, from his White Sox backup days.
Earl Battey was born January 5, 1935, in Los Angeles and signed with the Chicago White Sox out of Jordan High School in Watts. He reached the majors in 1955 and spent five years behind Sherm Lollar before an April 1960 trade sent him and Don Mincher to the Washington Senators for Roy Sievers. Battey caught for that franchise, renamed the Minnesota Twins in 1961, through 1967: three straight Gold Gloves from 1960 to 1962, All-Star selections in 1962, 1963, 1965 and 1966, and a major league record for catchers with 15 baserunners picked off in 1962. He started all seven games of the 1965 World Series loss to Los Angeles and retired with 1,141 games, 969 hits, 104 home runs, 449 RBI and a .270 average. He worked a dozen years as a New York recreation specialist, earned an education degree from Bethune-Cookman University, and taught and coached in Ocala, Florida, where he died of cancer in 2003. The Twins elected him to their hall of fame in 2004.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · Baseball Almanac
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 530 | 3 | 40 | 219 | 146 | 63 | 42 | 16 | 1 |
| SGC | 64 | 0 | 2 | 17 | 16 | 17 | 8 | 4 | 0 |
Graded population — a scarcity guide, not a price. Data as of 2026-09-04. PSA counts are straight grades only; PSA half grades (PSA 1.5 among them) and qualified slabs are not included. SGC half grades fold down (8.5→8). Slabs of the two cards printed #463 are joined by description, never by number alone.
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Related cards
More Earl Battey in this set: #315
Team card: #542 Minnesota Twins Team
More Minnesota Twins cards:
- #4 Lenny Green
- #21 Zorro Versalles
- #36 Jack Kralick
- #63 Jim Kaat
- #80 Harmon Killebrew
- #92 Hal Naragon
- #108 Dan Dobbek
- #123 Billy Gardner
- #153 Don Lee
- #186 Elmer Valo
- #201 Pete Whisenant
- #226 Harry Lavagetto
- #235 Camilo Pascual
- #254 Ted Sadowski
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1961 Topps #582 card?
It is card #582 of the 587-card 1961 Topps Baseball set, picturing Earl Battey of the Minnesota Twins. Cards #566-586 and #589 are the 22 Sporting News All-Stars, printed in the scarce seventh series - the toughest run in the set.
Why is #582 harder to find?
It is a high number card (cards 523-589) from the seventh and last print series - the scarce end of the set, including the 22 Sporting News All-Stars.
How many cards are in the 1961 Topps Baseball set?
587 cards, tracked as 596 collectible states. Numbers run from 1 to 589, but #426, #587 and #588 were never issued and two different cards were printed #463 - Jack Fisher and the Milwaukee Braves Team card, catalogued 463b - and eight cards carry catalogued print variations that the master set counts separately.
Sources: Trading Card Database, PSA CardFacts, Cardboard Connection, The Topps Archives, Baseball-Reference, the SABR BioProject and the National Baseball Hall of Fame, PSA & SGC population reports. Card data compiled and maintained by T206Cards.com. Page last updated 2026-10-05.