1961 Topps #35 Ron Santo
Topps printed its All-Star Rookie trophy on this card.
About Ron Santo
His first Topps card, #35 in the opening series, is the Ron Santo rookie card, and it carries the small All-Star Rookie trophy in the corner. Santo earned it by making both the Topps and the Sporting News rookie teams. The back covers a half season: called up in June 1960, he singled off Bob Friend in his first at-bat and drove in three runs that afternoon, then hit .251 with 9 home runs and 44 RBI in 95 games.
Ron Santo played third base for the Chicago Cubs from 1960 through 1973 and finished with the crosstown White Sox in 1974. Born in Seattle in 1940, he signed with the Cubs as a free agent in 1959 for a $20,000 bonus and reached the majors a year and three months later. He became the National League's best third baseman of the decade: nine All-Star selections, five straight Gold Gloves from 1964 through 1968, and a bat that produced a .300 average and 30 home runs four times each. From 1963 through 1970 he drove in at least 90 runs eight years running, still the only third baseman in major league history to do it. He led the league in walks four times and set National League career records for assists, total chances and double plays at the position. Santo played the whole time with type 1 diabetes, diagnosed at 18 and kept quiet until a day held in his honor at Wrigley Field in August 1971; the disease later cost him both legs. He called Cubs games on WGN radio from 1990 until his death in 2010 and helped raise tens of millions of dollars for diabetes research. The Golden Era Committee elected him to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in December 2011; he was inducted in 2012.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · Baseball Almanac · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 4,045 | 15 | 123 | 637 | 785 | 847 | 629 | 1,008 | 1 |
| SGC | 1,115 | 0 | 7 | 65 | 162 | 237 | 274 | 363 | 7 |
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
Team card: #122 Chicago Cubs Team
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- #88 Richie Ashburn
- #107 Seth Morehead
- #141 Billy Williams
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- #196 Ed Bouchee
- #214 Danny Murphy
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- #253 Sammy Taylor
- #264 Glen Hobbie
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Frequently asked questions
What is the 1961 Topps #35 card?
It is card #35 of the 587-card 1961 Topps Baseball set, picturing Ron Santo of the Chicago Cubs.
Is 1961 Topps #35 a rookie card?
Yes - #35 is the 1961 Topps rookie card of Ron Santo.
What are the key cards in the 1961 Topps set?
The #300 Mickey Mantle is the grail of the set. The other major keys are #2 Roger Maris, #150 Willie Mays, #415 Hank Aaron, #344 Sandy Koufax, #388 Bob Clemente (printed "Bob" on the front), #287 Carl Yastrzemski (his second-year card), the #35 Ron Santo, #141 Billy Williams and #417 Juan Marichal rookie cards - all three Hall of Famers - and three more Mantle and Mays cards: #475 Mickey Mantle and #482 Willie Mays from the MVP subset and #578 Mickey Mantle from the Sporting News All-Stars. The 22 Sporting News All-Stars (#566-586 and #589) belong to the scarce seventh and last series (#523-589).
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.