1964 Topps #461 George Thomas
About George Thomas
Number 461 falls in the sixth series, a step scarcer than the early runs. This is his fourth straight Topps issue. The Tigers pose belongs to his best year. He had come to camp prepared to catch in an emergency behind Bill Freehan, platooned in left, then worked into center field alongside Bill Bruton and Don Demeter. He set personal bests of 88 hits and a .286 average in 105 games, added 12 home runs and 44 runs batted in, and went 6-for-17 as a pinch hitter.
George Edward Thomas Jr., born November 29, 1937 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, is a right-handed utility man who played 13 major league seasons for the Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Angels, Boston Red Sox and Minnesota Twins between 1957 and 1971. Signed out of the University of Minnesota in August 1957 for a $25,000 bonus, he was tied to the Tigers by the bonus rule of the day and struck out as a pinch hitter in his lone appearance that September. Three seasons in the farm system followed before an expansion club finally gave him steady work, and he shuttled between Los Angeles and Detroit through the early 1960s, filling in at third base, first base, all three outfield spots and even four games behind the plate. Boston then kept him around for six seasons as a bench man and pinch hitter, and he reached a World Series in that role. He played every position except pitcher and finished at .255 with 46 home runs and 202 runs batted in over 685 games. He later coached seven years as a University of Minnesota assistant and three as head coach, resigning in 1981.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · Baseball Almanac
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 139 | 0 | 22 | 62 | 32 | 13 | 6 | 3 | 1 |
| SGC | 7 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Graded population — a scarcity guide, not a price. Data as of 2026-09-04. Half grades fold down for both graders (8.5→8); PSA qualified slabs (OC, ST, PD, MC and the like) are not counted.
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Related cards
Team card: #67 Detroit Tigers
More Detroit Tigers cards:
- #6 1963 American League Strikeout Leaders
- #8 1963 American League Batting Leaders
- #12 1963 American League R.B.I. Leaders
- #19 Don Wert
- #39 Hank Aguirre
- #58 Don Demeter
- #98 Bill Bruton
- #128 Mickey Lolich
- #143 Bubba Phillips
- #165 Jerry Lumpe
- #181 Dave Wickersham
- #197 Frank Lary
- #236 Bill Faul
- #250 Al Kaline
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1964 Topps #461 card?
It is card #461 of the 587-card 1964 Topps Baseball set, picturing George Thomas of the Detroit Tigers.
Why is #461 harder to find?
It is a series 5-6 card. Cards from the fifth and sixth print series (#371-522) are a step tougher to find than #1-370; availability in 1964 runs in three tiers, not a cliff.
How many cards are in the 1964 Topps Baseball set?
587 cards, tracked as 589 collectible states. Numbers run from 1 to 587 with no gaps, and no number carries two different cards; two cards - #4, the A.L. Pitching Leaders, and #517, the seventh-series checklist - carry a catalogued back variation that the master set counts separately.
Sources: Trading Card Database, PSA CardFacts, Cardboard Connection, The Topps Archives, Baseball Almanac, 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 2026-10-11.