1961 Topps #479 Jim Konstanty
About this card
Cards #471-486 are the Most Valuable Players subset - sixteen tributes to past MVP winners, American League #471-478 and National League #479-486, each printed with the franchise of the MVP season.
About Jim Konstanty
Card #479 sits in the 1961 Topps MVP subset, reaching back eleven years to salute Konstanty's 1950 National League award rather than any recent form. It comes from the set's sixth print series. By 1951 Bowman had already put him on cardboard. The card carries him as a Phillie, the uniform he wore for the honor, though he had been out of the majors since a 1956 stint with the Cardinals and out of professional ball since 1957. In 1961 he was running his Oneonta sporting goods store, a year away from returning to the game as a minor league pitching coach.
Casimir James Konstanty was a right-handed relief pitcher who spent eleven big league seasons with the Reds, Braves, Phillies, Yankees, and Cardinals. Born in 1917 in Strykersville, New York, he lettered in four sports at Syracuse, reached the majors as a 27-year-old starter with Cincinnati in 1944, and pitched for Boston in 1946. Philadelphia bought his contract in 1948, and Eddie Sawyer turned him into a bullpen specialist surviving on a slider and a change-up rather than a fastball. In 1950 he carried the pennant-winning Whiz Kids, setting a major league record with 74 appearances, going 16-7 with a 2.66 ERA, and leading the National League with 22 saves, then an unofficial statistic. He was the first relief pitcher in either league voted Most Valuable Player. Sawyer started him in Game 1 of the World Series, where he scattered four hits over eight innings but lost 1-0 as the Yankees swept. Waivers sent him to New York in August 1954; he finished with the Cardinals in 1956, ran the sporting goods store he had opened while still pitching, and later coached in the Yankees and Cardinals farm systems. He died in 1976 and was elected to the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame in 2008.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · Baseball Almanac
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 316 | 0 | 13 | 117 | 94 | 48 | 17 | 27 | 0 |
| SGC | 33 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 11 | 8 | 9 | 1 | 1 |
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 #479 card?
It is card #479 of the 587-card 1961 Topps Baseball set, picturing Jim Konstanty of the Philadelphia Phillies. Cards #471-486 are the Most Valuable Players subset - sixteen tributes to past MVP winners, American League #471-478 and National League #479-486, each printed with the franchise of the MVP season.
Why is #479 harder to find?
It is from the sixth print series (cards 447-522) - noticeably tougher than the first five, easier than the true highs.
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.