1967 Topps #609 Tommy John
The last card in the 1967 set, from the high-number seventh series.
About Tommy John
Card #609 is the last number in the 1967 set, a seventh-series high number at the very end of the checklist. The season behind it was John's strangest. He led the American League in shutouts a second straight year with six, among them a two-hit blanking of the defending World Series champion Baltimore Orioles on July 4. Then a severe gastrointestinal virus stripped 28 pounds off him and kept him off the mound from July 22 to August 20. He finished 10-13 even though his 2.47 ERA was fourth in the league.
Thomas Edward John was a left-handed pitcher born May 22, 1943, in Terre Haute, Indiana, and signed by the Cleveland Indians at eighteen in 1961 on the strength of a curveball taught to him by a friend of his father. He debuted for Cleveland in September 1963, then made his name with the Chicago White Sox from 1965 through 1971, tying for the American League shutout lead with five in 1966, sharing it again with six in 1967, and posting a 1.98 ERA in 1968 that brought his first All-Star selection. Traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Dick Allen after the 1971 season, he tore his ulnar collateral ligament in 1974; the ligament-replacement operation Dr. Frank Jobe performed that year cost him the 1975 season and has been known as Tommy John surgery ever since. He returned to win 20 games in 1977 and pitched in the 1977 and 1978 World Series, then added 21- and 22-win seasons for the New York Yankees. A four-time All-Star, he lost all three World Series he appeared in, and retired in 1989 after a record-tying 26th season with 288 wins, the second most of any pitcher since 1900 outside the Hall of Fame. He died in 2026.
Sources: Wikipedia · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 989 | 2 | 23 | 181 | 238 | 239 | 152 | 149 | 5 |
| SGC | 237 | 0 | 1 | 15 | 49 | 52 | 54 | 62 | 4 |
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. PSA registers a row for every one of the 624 states; SGC lists no separate row for the #149 white-streak state.
Find this card
Search T206 Cards Shop 1967 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: #573 Chicago White Sox
More Chicago White Sox cards:
- #9 Ron Hansen
- #29 Tom McCraw
- #52 Dennis Higgins
- #67 Ken Berry
- #81 Eddie Stanky
- #107 Joel Horlen
- #143 Sox Sockers
- #159 Bruce Howard
- #178 John Buzhardt
- #208 Jack Lamabe
- #232 Don Buford
- #233 American League 1966 ERA Leaders
- #259 Don Dennis
- #286 Wayne Causey
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1967 Topps #609 card?
It is card #609 of the 609-card 1967 Topps Baseball set, picturing Tommy John of the Chicago White Sox.
Is #609 the last card in the set?
Yes. The 1967 Topps set runs from #1 The Champs to #609 Tommy John without a gap - no number was skipped and none was used twice - which made it the largest Topps set issued to that date.
Why is #609 harder to find?
It is a high number card from the seventh and last print series, #534-609 - the scarce end of the set, holding both Hall of Fame rookies (Carew #569, Seaver #581). Twenty-two of the 76 are accepted double prints, so scarcity varies card by card inside the run.
How many cards are in the 1967 Topps Baseball set?
609 cards, tracked as 624 collectible states. Numbers run from 1 to 609 without a gap - no number was skipped and none was used twice - and 15 cards carry catalogued print variations that the master set counts separately.
Sources: Trading Card Database, PSA CardFacts, Cardboard Connection, Baseball Almanac, BaseballCardPedia, 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 2026-10-12.