1963 Topps #204 Don Nottebart
About Don Nottebart
His first Houston start, and his first anywhere in more than 20 months, came against the Dodgers and ended with him outpitching Sandy Koufax. Five starts later he stood 4-1 with a 3.30 ERA, and on May 17 at Colt Stadium he no-hit the Phillies 4-1 for the first no-hitter in franchise history. Philadelphia's run was unearned, set up by a J.C. Hartman error, and Al Spangler ran down Wes Covington's fly to left for the final out. On August 21 he blanked Cincinnati on four hits for his first career shutout. He finished 11-8, 3.17, with nine complete games and 118 strikeouts - his only double-digit win season. Topps placed him at #204 in the third series with the Colt .45s.
Don Nottebart was a right-handed pitcher from West Newton, Massachusetts, who worked 296 major league games over nine seasons between 1960 and 1969 for the Milwaukee Braves, Houston Colt .45s and Astros, Cincinnati Reds, New York Yankees and Chicago Cubs. He grew up idolizing Warren Spahn and signed with the Braves out of Lexington High School in 1954 for that reason, then spent seven years in a farm system too deep to make room for him, winning 18 games in four of five seasons on the way up. A multi-player swap in November 1962 sent him to Houston, where on May 17, 1963 he threw the first no-hitter in franchise history, beating the Philadelphia Phillies 4-1 at Colt Stadium despite an unearned run. That season, 11-8 with a 3.17 ERA, was his best. Cincinnati took him in the 1965 Rule 5 draft and turned him into a full-time reliever, and after a lost 1968 in the minors he finished up in 1969 with the Yankees and Cubs. His career line reads 36-51, 3.65, with 21 saves and 525 strikeouts. He died in 2007 in Cypress, Texas.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 278 | 0 | 21 | 160 | 72 | 11 | 6 | 6 | 2 |
| SGC | 10 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Graded population — a scarcity guide, not a price. Snapshot 2026-09-24. Half-grades fold down (8.5→8), and PSA's qualified grades are counted separately from the straight-grade rows shown here.
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Related cards
Team card: #312 Houston Colt .45's
More Houston Colt .45's cards:
- #9 1962 National League Strikeout Leaders
- #24 Bob Bruce
- #45 Bob Aspromonte
- #77 Al Spangler
- #99 Jim Umbricht
- #119 Bob Lillis
- #141 Manny Mota
- #153 Hal Smith
- #158 1963 Rookie Stars
- #189 Dave Giusti
- #208 1963 Rookie Stars
- #230 Pete Runnels
- #262 Ellis Burton
- #277 Dick Farrell
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1963 Topps #204 card?
It is card #204 of the 576-card 1963 Topps Baseball set, picturing Don Nottebart of the Houston Colt .45's.
How many cards are in the 1963 Topps Baseball set?
576 cards, tracked as 583 collectible states. The numbers run from 1 to 576 with no gaps and no number used twice, and seven cards carry a catalogued print variation - three checklists, the two Rookie Stars cards also printed with a "1962" heading, and the #341 Jack Baldschun and #454 Art Fowler print states - that the master set counts separately.
Sources: Trading Card Database, PSA CardFacts, Cardboard Connection, BaseballCardPedia, 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 2026-10-03.