1966 Topps #509 Jake Wood
About Jake Wood
1966 Topps #509 is a sixth-series card. The season behind it was a comeback: 98 games and 264 plate appearances, his most since 1963, and a .252 average with two home runs and 27 RBI for a Tigers club that finished third. It was Wood's last full season in Detroit. He roomed on the road one year with Gates Brown, and Willie Horton, whose father let him skip school to watch Wood play in 1961, became a friend.
Jake Wood was a speedy second baseman who broke in with the Detroit Tigers on Opening Day 1961, hitting leadoff and belting a two-run homer off Jim Perry in the seventh inning of his first game. Born in Elizabeth, New Jersey, and signed by the Tigers in 1957 after one season at Delaware State, he was the first African-American player to work his way up through Detroit's own farm system and hold down a regular big-league job. Wood was the Tigers' primary second baseman from 1961 through 1963, finishing third in the American League in stolen bases in all three of those years and pacing the league in triples and strikeouts as a rookie. A dislocated finger in late July 1963 ended that season and required surgery, and once Detroit traded for veteran Jerry Lumpe he spent his remaining years as a utility infielder. He closed out a seven-year career in 1967 with Detroit and the Cincinnati Reds, batting .250 with 35 home runs and 168 RBI in 608 games. He is a member of the Union County, New Jersey Baseball Hall of Fame.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · Baseball Almanac
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 174 | 1 | 19 | 72 | 49 | 19 | 7 | 7 | 0 |
| SGC | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 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. Where SGC registers no separate row for a variation state, its slabs of that card are listed under the base state.
Find this card
Search T206 Cards Shop 1966 Topps cards Live auctions Buy It Now on eBay Sold prices
As an eBay Partner Network affiliate, T206Cards.com may earn from qualifying purchases.
Related cards
Team card: #583 Detroit Tigers
More Detroit Tigers cards:
- #20 Willie Horton
- #38 Ron Nischwitz
- #58 Dave Wickersham
- #81 Ray Oyler
- #98 Don Demeter
- #113 Hank Aguirre
- #145 Bill Freehan
- #161 Jerry Lumpe
- #187 Chuck Dressen
- #198 Mickey Stanley
- #209 Tigers 1966 Rookie Stars
- #218 American League 1965 Home Run Leaders
- #220 American League 1965 RBI Leaders
- #226 American League 1965 Strikeout Leaders
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1966 Topps #509 card?
It is card #509 of the 598-card 1966 Topps Baseball set, picturing Jake Wood of the Detroit Tigers.
Why is #509 harder to find?
It is from the sixth print series, #447-522 - noticeably tougher than the first five. Nothing in #447-522 is short-printed.
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.