1965 Topps #533 Mets Rookie Stars - Dan Napoleon / Ron Swoboda / Jim Bethke / Tug McGraw
On this card: Dan Napoleon, Ron Swoboda, Jim Bethke, Tug McGraw
About this card
This is one of the 55 Rookie Stars cards in the 1965 Topps set, each picturing two to four young players - 126 players in all - under a team banner, except #577 and #581, which carry American League and National League banners over players from three clubs. Joe Morgan (#16), Steve Carlton (#477), Jim (Catfish) Hunter (#526) and Tony Perez (#581) make their Topps debuts on these cards.
The story on this card
Napoleon debuted on April 14, 1965, singling off Hal Woodeshick in the eleventh inning against Houston in his first at-bat, and ten days later drove home his first three runs with a pinch-hit, bases-loaded triple off Bob Shaw. An outfielder by trade, he opened his career with six straight appearances at third base, then worked mainly as a pinch hitter and pinch runner, hitting .144 in 68 games around an August demotion to Buffalo and a September recall. His card here, #533, is his rookie card and a genuine high number: it sits in the seventh series, inside the short-print zone, and it is Tug McGraw's rookie card too, shared with Ron Swoboda and Jim Bethke on a Mets Rookie Stars front. A Mets outfielder who batted .351 with 36 home runs in his first professional season, then spent parts of two big-league years, 1965 and 1966, mostly coming off the bench.
Topps put Swoboda on #533 in the seventh series, a high number inside the short-print zone, sharing a Rookie Stars panel with Dan Napoleon, Jim Bethke and Tug McGraw. It is his rookie card and McGraw's rookie too. He had reached the majors that April after one 1964 minor league season, debuting as a pinch hitter on April 12 and homering twice in his first four at-bats. Fifteen of his 19 homers came before the All-Star break; he finished at .228 with 50 RBI. The Mets outfielder called Rocky for his glove, remembered instead for the backhanded diving catch off Brooks Robinson that kept Game 4 of the 1969 World Series alive for the Miracle Mets.
His lone card in the 1961-69 Topps run is 1965 Topps #533, a four-player Rookie Stars entry from the seventh print series, a high number inside the short-print zone. It is Bethke's rookie card, shared with Dan Napoleon, Ron Swoboda and Tug McGraw, all New York Mets. It reached collectors during the season it records: Bethke debuted that April at 18, pitched all year in relief, and closed at 2-0 with a 4.28 earned run average over 40 innings. A Mets reliever who reached the majors at 18 in 1965, the youngest player in baseball that season, and worked one full year out of the bullpen before his big-league career ended after that single summer.
Handed a roster spot out of Casey Stengel's final spring training, the 20-year-old McGraw debuted in relief against the Giants on April 18 and struck out Orlando Cepeda, then was given a tranquilizer to settle down. He worked both ends of the staff that year, finishing 2-7 with a 3.32 ERA in 37 games, and his August 26 win over Koufax was his last of the season. Topps put him on card #533, a Mets Rookie Stars panel he shares with Ron Swoboda, Jim Bethke and Dan Napoleon. Screwball-throwing left-hander who relieved for the Mets and Phillies, rode "Ya Gotta Believe" through the 1973 pennant race, and struck out Willie Wilson to end the 1980 World Series for Philadelphia's first title.
Sources: Wikipedia (Ron Swoboda) · Wikipedia (Jim Bethke) · Wikipedia (Tug McGraw) · SABR BioProject (Ron Swoboda) · SABR BioProject (Tug Mcgraw)
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 1,174 | 8 | 139 | 426 | 230 | 169 | 86 | 115 | 1 |
| SGC | 217 | 2 | 3 | 38 | 54 | 43 | 42 | 34 | 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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Frequently asked questions
What is the 1965 Topps #533 card?
It is card #533 of the 598-card 1965 Topps Baseball set, picturing Dan Napoleon, Ron Swoboda, Jim Bethke and Tug McGraw. This is one of the 55 Rookie Stars cards in the 1965 Topps set, each picturing two to four young players - 126 players in all - under a team banner, except #577 and #581, which carry American League and National League banners over players from three clubs. Joe Morgan (#16), Steve Carlton (#477), Jim (Catfish) Hunter (#526) and Tony Perez (#581) make their Topps debuts on these cards.
Is 1965 Topps #533 a rookie card?
Yes - #533 is a rookie card for every player pictured on it: Dan Napoleon, Ron Swoboda, Jim Bethke and Tug McGraw.
Is 1965 Topps #533 a scarce card?
It is a high number card from the seventh and last series, #507-598. Unlike most 1960s Topps sets the 1965 highs are not scarce as a run - the premium sits on the short-printed cards inside #523-598. It is also a short-print zone card. Forty-four of the 76 cards in #523-598 were short-printed; #507-522 was not. The zone is stated as a range because the catalogs disagree on exactly which cards, so no single card is marked.
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.