1961 Topps #527 Gene Leek
About Gene Leek
Card #527 lands in the seventh series of 1961 Topps, the high numbers that collectors chase hardest, and it is Gene Leek's recognized rookie card. The timing is the whole story: the expansion Los Angeles Angels handed third base to Leek out of the gate in 1961, and he started 48 games there before being sent back to the Pacific Coast League after three months. His season line reads 57 games, a .226 average, nine doubles, five home runs and 20 RBI. He would get into only seven more major league games after that, so this scarce high number caught him at the one stretch when he was a big-league regular.
Eugene Harold Leek was a right-handed-hitting third baseman born July 15, 1936, in San Diego, California. He graduated from Herbert Hoover High School, the San Diego school that also produced Ted Williams, and jumped straight from the University of Arizona campus to the Cleveland Indians, who signed him as an amateur free agent. He debuted on April 22, 1959, going two for four in a 10-1 rout of Detroit, one hit a two-run homer off George Susce Jr. that was his first as a pro. He cooled off quickly, went down to the minors in May, and spent part of the year with his hometown San Diego Padres of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League. Cleveland recalled him that September for four more starts at third, then he spent all of 1960 in the minors. The expansion Los Angeles Angels took him with the 33rd pick of the December 14, 1960 expansion draft. He held third base for the Angels through the first three months of 1961 before going back to the Pacific Coast League, and an injury held him to seven late-season games in 1962. He finished with 77 major league games, 55 hits, six home runs, 25 RBI and a .221 average, and kept playing in the minors until he retired in 1968.
Sources: Wikipedia · Baseball-Reference · Baseball Almanac · Retrosheet · Stats Crew
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 400 | 3 | 33 | 167 | 118 | 51 | 20 | 8 | 0 |
| SGC | 27 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 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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Frequently asked questions
What is the 1961 Topps #527 card?
It is card #527 of the 587-card 1961 Topps Baseball set, picturing Gene Leek of the Los Angeles Angels.
Is 1961 Topps #527 a rookie card?
Yes - #527 is the 1961 Topps rookie card of Gene Leek.
Why is #527 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.