1963 Topps #51 George Alusik
About George Alusik
Card #51 opens Topps' first series and is the earliest Alusik card to show Kansas City Athletics colors, which put it in the first packs of the year. It followed the only season in which he really hit. The regular at-bats that came with the move to Kansas City produced 92 games, a .270 average, 11 home runs and 35 runs batted in, with a .488 slugging mark across the 90 of those games he played in an Athletics uniform. The 1962 issue holds that, but it is the one that pairs with his best year at the plate.
George Joseph Alusik was a 6-foot-3 right-handed outfielder and first baseman from Ashley, Pennsylvania. The Detroit Tigers signed him as an amateur free agent in 1953, and he waited nine years for steady work: a debut on September 11, 1958 worth two at-bats, then 14 at-bats in 1961. Detroit sold him to the Kansas City Athletics on May 7, 1962, and only in Kansas City did he play regularly. Across five big-league seasons (1958, 1961-1964) he batted .256 with 23 home runs and 93 runs batted in over 298 games. His signature run came from August 7 through August 11, 1962, when he homered in five straight games; he was one of three Athletics to share that franchise mark until Frank Thomas broke it. On August 26, 1962, his ninth-inning walk spoiled Jack Kralick's perfect game, though Kralick finished the no-hitter and Minnesota won 1-0. In January 1965 the Athletics traded him to the San Francisco Giants for Tim Talton; he never reached the majors again, closing out at .206 in 53 games for Tacoma. He died April 20, 2018, in Woodbridge, New Jersey, at 83.
Sources: Wikipedia · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 266 | 0 | 10 | 119 | 100 | 28 | 4 | 5 | 0 |
| SGC | 12 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 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: #397 Kansas City Athletics
More Kansas City Athletics cards:
- #2 1962 American League Batting Leaders
- #23 Ed Lopat
- #67 Ed Charles
- #82 Ed Rakow
- #104 Lew Krausse
- #124 Dick Howser
- #157 Diego Segui
- #195 Manny Jimenez
- #214 Orlando Pena
- #236 Bill Bryan
- #253 1963 Rookie Stars
- #256 Jerry Lumpe
- #282 Bob Del Greco
- #301 Bill Fischer
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1963 Topps #51 card?
It is card #51 of the 576-card 1963 Topps Baseball set, picturing George Alusik of the Kansas City Athletics.
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.