1965 Topps #118 Hal Lanier
Carries the Topps All-Star Rookie trophy, marking his selection to the 1964 Topps All-Star Rookie team.
About Hal Lanier
Lanier's 1965 Topps card, #118, falls in the set's second series and doubles as a recognized rookie card, carrying the Topps All-Star Rookie trophy that marked his selection to the 1964 All-Star Rookie team after a .274 debut season. On the field in 1965 he played all but a few games at second base for the Giants, hitting .226, and it was this season that Willie Mays named him infield captain, giving him the job of reading pitchers and relaying word to the mound.
Harold Clifton "Hal" Lanier broke in with the San Francisco Giants in June 1964 and spent ten major league seasons, mostly at second base and shortstop, before finishing his playing career with the New York Yankees in 1973. The son of former big league pitcher Max Lanier, he was known as a defense-first infielder who studied opposing pitchers and hitters closely enough that Willie Mays made him an infield captain, responsible for spotting a tiring pitcher and going out to the mound to steady him. Lanier hit .274 in his rookie year and was picked for the 1964 Topps All-Star Rookie team, but his bat cooled in the seasons that followed while his glove work at shortstop, including a league-leading fielding season, kept him in the lineup. He finished with a .228 career average, 8 home runs and 273 RBI over 1,196 games. After retiring he moved into coaching and managing, most notably leading the Houston Astros to the 1986 NL West title and winning NL Manager of the Year in his rookie season at the helm.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 323 | 3 | 53 | 172 | 55 | 18 | 11 | 11 | 0 |
| SGC | 23 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 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. 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: #379 San Francisco Giants
More San Francisco Giants cards:
- #4 National League 1964 Home Run Leaders
- #6 National League 1964 RBI Leaders
- #10 National League 1964 Pitching Leaders
- #32 Herman Franks
- #50 Juan Marichal
- #68 Del Crandall
- #84 Ron Herbel
- #103 Harvey Kuenn
- #159 Jim Duffalo
- #176 Willie McCovey
- #193 Gaylord Perry
- #213 Jim Davenport
- #228 Jack Sanford
- #250 Willie Mays
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1965 Topps #118 card?
It is card #118 of the 598-card 1965 Topps Baseball set, picturing Hal Lanier of the San Francisco Giants.
Is 1965 Topps #118 a rookie card?
Yes - #118 is the 1965 Topps rookie card of Hal Lanier.
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.