1963 Topps #240 Rocky Colavito
About Rocky Colavito
The 1963 pair reports a 1962 in which Colavito outhit his more celebrated teammate: 164 hits, 37 home runs and 112 RBI against Al Kaline's 121, 29 and 94. Card #4 is the American League home run leaders card from the ten-card leaders block that opens the set, shared with Harmon Killebrew, Norm Cash, Leon Wagner, Jim Gentile and Roger Maris. Card #240 is his own portrait, out of series three. The portrait proved to be his last in a Detroit uniform, and 1963 was the weakest offensive year of the four he spent with the Tigers.
Rocco Domenico "Rocky" Colavito Jr. grew up in the Bronx idolizing Joe DiMaggio, left high school after his sophomore year for semipro ball, and signed with Cleveland at seventeen for $3,000 after a scout watched him make one throw. He reached the majors in September 1955 and became one of the American League's most feared sluggers, clearing 30 home runs seven times and 40 three times. In 1958 he batted a career-high .303 with 41 homers and led the league in slugging. In 1959 he tied Harmon Killebrew for the AL home run title at 42 and, on June 10 at Baltimore, hit four home runs in a row in one game. Frank Lane's trade of Colavito to Detroit for batting champion Harvey Kuenn on April 17, 1960 outraged Cleveland and later gave Terry Pluto's book The Curse of Rocky Colavito its title. He starred for the Tigers through 1963, spent 1964 in Kansas City, then came home and led the AL with 108 RBI in 1965. He finished in 1968 with the Dodgers and Yankees, even picking up a relief win on the mound for New York, and retired at .266 with 374 home runs and 1,159 RBI. A nine-time All-Star, he joined Cleveland's team Hall of Fame in 2006 and died in 2024 at 91.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 408 | 0 | 16 | 138 | 110 | 55 | 41 | 46 | 2 |
| SGC | 80 | 0 | 1 | 15 | 15 | 20 | 18 | 10 | 1 |
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 Rocky Colavito in this set: #4 League Leaders
Team card: #552 Detroit Tigers
More Detroit Tigers cards:
- #4 1962 American League Home Run Leaders
- #6 1962 American League E.R.A. Leaders
- #8 1962 American League Pitching Leaders
- #10 1962 American League Strikeout Leaders
- #25 Al Kaline
- #44 Terry Fox
- #64 Dick McAuliffe
- #84 Ron Kline
- #134 Bob Scheffing
- #140 Frank Lary
- #164 Bubba Morton
- #169 1963 Rookie Stars
- #177 Bubba Phillips
- #218 Tiger Twirlers
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1963 Topps #240 card?
It is card #240 of the 576-card 1963 Topps Baseball set, picturing Rocky Colavito of the Detroit Tigers.
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.