1963 Topps #178 Johnny Edwards
About Johnny Edwards
The second-series #178 is the first of his Topps cards to read Johnny rather than John, a switch the company kept making and unmaking through the decade. It sums up his first full season, 1962, when the Cincinnati chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America named him Sophomore of the Year. He led the National League in games caught with 130, in assists with 92 and in attempted basestealers thrown out with 31, batting .254 with 8 home runs, 50 RBIs and a career-high 28 doubles.
John Alban Edwards, a 6-foot-4 catcher out of Ohio State University, signed with the Cincinnati Reds in 1959 on a $50,000 contract his twin brother negotiated, and reached the majors in June 1961 after the Reds traded catcher Ed Bailey to San Francisco. Over a 14-year career with the Reds (1961-1967), St. Louis Cardinals (1968) and Houston Astros (1969-1974) he made three straight All-Star teams (1963-1965) and won National League Gold Gloves at catcher in 1963 and 1964, the first two any Cincinnati backstop had won. Prized for his glove and throwing arm, he caught Jim Maloney's 10-inning no-hitter in August 1965 and Ray Washburn's in September 1968, and led National League catchers in fielding percentage three straight years with Houston. His 1,135 putouts in 1969 were the most any catcher had ever made in a season, a record that stood for decades. Edwards finished with 1,106 hits, 81 home runs and a .242 average in 1,470 games, then worked as an engineer and plant manager in Houston's oil-services industry until retiring in 2002.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 271 | 0 | 7 | 113 | 98 | 39 | 9 | 5 | 0 |
| SGC | 24 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 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.
Find this card
Search T206 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: #63 Cincinnati Reds
More Cincinnati Reds cards:
- #1 1962 National League Batting Leaders
- #3 1962 National League Home Run Leaders
- #5 1962 National League E.R.A. Leaders
- #7 1962 National League Pitching Leaders
- #21 Marty Keough
- #29 1963 Rookie Stars
- #37 Jerry Lynch
- #70 Jim O'Toole
- #90 Gordy Coleman
- #116 Jim Brosnan
- #133 Gene Freese
- #158 1963 Rookie Stars
- #194 Joe Nuxhall
- #203 Chico Cardenas
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1963 Topps #178 card?
It is card #178 of the 576-card 1963 Topps Baseball set, picturing Johnny Edwards of the Cincinnati Reds.
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.