1965 Topps #121 Gene Alley
About Gene Alley
Alley broke into a regular role in 1965, opening the year at second base for 40 games while Bill Mazeroski recovered from a broken foot, then moving to shortstop upon Mazeroski's return. He hit .252 with five home runs, 47 RBI and 47 runs scored across 153 games, ranking fourth among National League shortstops in fielding percentage. His 1965 Topps #121, issued in the set's second print series, is a solo card.
Leonard Eugene Alley, born July 10, 1940 in Richmond, Virginia, was a shortstop who spent his entire eleven-season major league career (1963-1973) with the Pittsburgh Pirates. After several years bouncing among third base, second base and the outfield in the minors while nursing a throwing-arm problem, he settled in at shortstop and paired with Bill Mazeroski to anchor one of the game's best double-play combinations. Alley won Gold Glove Awards in 1966 and 1967, was named to The Sporting News All-Star team both years, and earned back-to-back National League All-Star selections in 1967 and 1968. His signature season came in 1966, when he hit a career-high .299 and helped the Pirates set a National League record with 215 double plays. Alley was part of Pittsburgh's three straight NL East division titles from 1970-1972 and was the Pirates' regular shortstop during their 1971 World Series championship season, though a knee injury limited him to just a handful of games that postseason. Shoulder and knee problems shortened his career, and he retired after the 1973 season. He earned the nickname Alley Oop after a standout 1960 season in the Northern League. He is not a National Baseball Hall of Fame inductee, though he was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 1998.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 303 | 9 | 51 | 167 | 54 | 11 | 5 | 6 | 0 |
| SGC | 18 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
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. The two checklist variations, #79 and #508, are listed under the wording PSA uses for each state.
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Related cards
Team card: #209 Pittsburgh Pirates
More Pittsburgh Pirates cards:
- #2 National League 1964 Batting Leaders
- #12 National League 1964 Strikeout Leaders
- #25 Al McBean
- #54 Joe Gibbon
- #69 Bill Virdon
- #95 Bill Mazeroski
- #143 Pirates 1965 Rookie Stars
- #160 Bob Clemente
- #195 Bob Veale
- #218 Dick Schofield
- #232 Steve Blass
- #246 Tom Butters
- #265 Jim Pagliaroni
- #291 Jerry Lynch
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1965 Topps #121 card?
It is card #121 of the 598-card 1965 Topps Baseball set, picturing Gene Alley of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
How many cards are in the 1965 Topps Baseball set?
598 cards, tracked as 600 collectible states. Numbers run from 1 to 598 with no gaps and no printed-number collisions, and two checklist cards - #79 and #508 - carry catalogued print variations that the master set counts separately.
Sources: Trading Card Database, PSA CardFacts, Cardboard Connection, BaseballCardPedia, 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.