1966 Topps #547 Horace Clarke
About Horace Clarke
Clarke got his first extended big-league look in 1966, taking over at shortstop in July after an injury to Ruben Amaro and holding the job the rest of the season while the Yankees finished last for the first time since 1912. Manager Ralph Houk told him the shortstop job was his and that second base would follow once Bobby Richardson retired. His 1966 Topps card, #547, is a high number from the seventh and final print series, making it scarcer than cards from the earlier series, and it stands as his rookie card.
Horace Clarke was a switch-hitting infielder from Frederiksted, St. Croix, in the U.S. Virgin Islands, one of only a handful of major leaguers to come from the territory. He signed with the Yankees in 1958 and spent seven seasons in the minors, sharpening his game further each winter in the Puerto Rican Winter League. Clarke debuted with New York in May 1965 and by 1967 had taken over as the regular second baseman, a job he held for seven straight years. A durable, contact-oriented leadoff man with a steady glove, he played in more games than any other Virgin Islands native to reach the majors. Clarke came up as the Yankees slid from championship form into a long stretch of losing baseball, and his visibility at the position made him an unfair target for critics during that stretch, even as teammates and beat writers who knew him defended his all-around play. He finished his career with San Diego in 1974.
Sources: SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 666 | 5 | 25 | 147 | 149 | 148 | 83 | 109 | 0 |
| SGC | 104 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 20 | 27 | 22 | 21 | 2 |
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. Where SGC registers no separate row for a variation state, its slabs of that card are listed under the base state.
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Related cards
Team card: #92 New York Yankees
More New York Yankees cards:
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- #50 Mickey Mantle
- #68 Hal Reniff
- #79 Joe Pepitone
- #117 Jake Gibbs
- #138 Roger Repoz
- #160 Whitey Ford
- #177 Hector Lopez
- #186 Ruben Amaro
- #205 Tom Tresh
- #224 American League 1965 Pitching Leaders
- #234 Yankees 1966 Rookie Stars
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Frequently asked questions
What is the 1966 Topps #547 card?
It is card #547 of the 598-card 1966 Topps Baseball set, picturing Horace Clarke of the New York Yankees.
Is 1966 Topps #547 a rookie card?
Yes - #547 is the 1966 Topps rookie card of Horace Clarke.
Why is #547 harder to find?
It is a high number card from the seventh and last print series, #523-598 - the scarce end of the set. Forty-three of its 76 cards are short prints, so scarcity is stated for the series as a whole.
How many cards are in the 1966 Topps Baseball set?
598 cards, tracked as 613 collectible states. Numbers run from 1 to 598 with no gaps and no number used twice, and 14 cards carry catalogued print variations - five checklists, the trade and sold statement backs, the three-state #43 Don Landrum, three team-card dot pairs and the #161 Jerry Lumpe white streak - that the master set counts separately.
Sources: Trading Card Database, PSA CardFacts, Cardboard Connection, 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.