1963 Topps #72 Johnny Romano
The back's second line of text misprints the year as 1962; it should read 1960.
Uncorrected error: The 2nd line of the back text says "1962" where it should say "1960".
About Johnny Romano
Topps gives Romano two cards in 1963, both built on a 1962 season in which he set career highs with 25 home runs and 81 RBI while batting .261 in 135 games. It earned him a second straight All-Star selection in the player balloting that filled the rosters then, this time as a reserve behind Earl Battey. Solo card #72 is a series-1 base issue whose back misprints a year, reading 1962 on its second line of text where it should read 1960. Card #392, 'Tribe Thumpers,' is a series-5 combination card pairing him with Indians teammate Tito Francona.
John Anthony Romano Jr., a catcher nicknamed 'Honey' by an uncle, signed with the Chicago White Sox organization in 1954 out of Hoboken, New Jersey, and set a Class B Three-I League record with 38 home runs for Waterloo in 1955. He reached the majors with Chicago late in 1958, backed up Sherm Lollar on the pennant-winning 1959 White Sox, and became Cleveland's regular catcher in 1960. An All-Star in 1961 and 1962, he hit 91 home runs as a Cleveland catcher, a franchise record for the position until Sandy Alomar Jr. passed it. A broken finger in May 1963 cost him half a season, and he never again matched the .299 average or the 25 homers of his All-Star years. A 1965 trade returned him to Chicago and a 1966 trade sent him to St. Louis, where he closed out a ten-year career with the World Series champion Cardinals, finishing at .255 with 129 home runs and 417 RBI in 905 games.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 274 | 0 | 4 | 124 | 108 | 23 | 10 | 2 | 3 |
| SGC | 13 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 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
More Johnny Romano in this set: #392 Combo
Team card: #451 Cleveland Indians
More Cleveland Indians cards:
- #8 1962 American League Pitching Leaders
- #14 Pedro Ramos
- #36 Jerry Kindall
- #48 Birdie Tebbetts
- #103 Chuck Essegian
- #129 Gary Bell
- #152 Ron Nischwitz
- #170 Joe Adcock
- #187 Willie Kirkland
- #211 Fred Whitfield
- #227 Jim Grant
- #228 1963 Rookie Stars
- #248 Tito Francona
- #266 Bob Allen
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1963 Topps #72 card?
It is card #72 of the 576-card 1963 Topps Baseball set, picturing Johnny Romano of the Cleveland Indians.
Does 1963 Topps #72 have an error?
The 2nd line of the back text says "1962" where it should say "1960". It was never corrected, so there is no variation to chase - every copy of #72 reads the same way.
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.