1961 Topps #116 Joe DeMaestri
About Joe DeMaestri
By 1961 DeMaestri was a utility man in his last big-league season, backing up Tony Kubek at shortstop and filling in at second and third base for the Yankees. He got into 30 games and hit .146 while Maris and Mantle chased Babe Ruth's home run record; New York won the pennant and then beat Cincinnati in five games for the title, though DeMaestri never got off the bench in that Series. His card, number 116, is a second-series printing that lists him with the Yankees; he had been in the majors since 1951. He retired that winter at 33 to help run the family beer distributorship back home in Marin County.
Joseph Paul DeMaestri (December 9, 1928 - August 26, 2016) was a San Francisco-born shortstop who spent 11 seasons in the major leagues. The only child of parents who had emigrated from Italy, he played at Tamalpais High School in Mill Valley and signed with the Boston Red Sox organization, which later left him unprotected in the Rule 5 draft; the Chicago White Sox claimed him in November 1950. After a rookie season in Chicago and a year with the St. Louis Browns, he settled in as the regular shortstop for the Philadelphia and Kansas City Athletics, leading American League shortstops with a .980 fielding percentage in both 1957 and 1958 and representing the A's on the 1957 All-Star team, though he never got into that game. In December 1959 he went to the New York Yankees in the seven-player deal that brought Roger Maris to New York. His signature game came on July 8, 1955, when he went 6-for-6, all singles, in an 11-inning loss at Detroit. He played four games in the 1960 World Series, was a member of the 1961 championship club without appearing in that Series, and finished with a .236 average and a .967 fielding percentage.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · Baseball Almanac
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 461 | 0 | 33 | 194 | 153 | 47 | 23 | 11 | 0 |
| SGC | 27 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 9 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 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.
Find this card
Search T206 Cards Shop 1961 Topps cards Live auctions Buy It Now on eBay Sold prices
As an eBay Partner Network affiliate, T206Cards.com may earn from qualifying purchases.
Related cards
Team card: #228 New York Yankees Team
More New York Yankees cards:
- #2 Roger Maris
- #19 Cletis Boyer
- #28 Hector Lopez
- #40 Bob Turley
- #68 Deron Johnson
- #104 John Blanchard
- #133 Ralph Houk
- #142 Luis Arroyo
- #160 Whitey Ford
- #180 Bobby Richardson
- #213 Bill Stafford
- #252 Bill Short
- #265 Tony Kubek
- #300 Mickey Mantle
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1961 Topps #116 card?
It is card #116 of the 587-card 1961 Topps Baseball set, picturing Joe DeMaestri of the New York Yankees.
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.