1968 Topps #343 Jim Gosger
About Jim Gosger
A fourth-series number, #343 is the only Gosger card issued as an Oakland Athletic, printed for the franchise's first season on the West Coast. It followed the fullest year of his career: 134 games for the 1967 Athletics, work at all three outfield spots with at least 27 starts at each, and a .242 average with five home runs and 36 RBI. The Oakland season went the other way. Reggie Jackson owned right field, Gosger started just 37 games in the field, and he batted .180 across 88 games in the Year of the Pitcher, barely playing at all over the final weeks.
James Charles Gosger was born November 6, 1942, in Port Huron, Michigan, where he lettered in four sports at St. Stephen High School. Red Sox scout Maurice De Loof signed him in January 1962, during his second year at Port Huron Junior College. He broke into pro ball at Winston-Salem, batting .283 with 19 home runs and 83 RBI and making the Carolina League postseason all-star team alongside Rusty Staub, Tony Perez and Rico Petrocelli. Across parts of ten major league seasons (1963-1974) the left-handed-hitting outfielder played for the Red Sox, the Kansas City and Oakland Athletics, the expansion Seattle Pilots, the New York Mets and the Montreal Expos, appearing in 705 games and batting .226 with 30 home runs and 177 RBI; managers praised his hustle and his quick, accurate arm even as his bat cooled. Jim Bouton's diary Ball Four turned him into folklore: hiding in his roommate's closet, Gosger cracked a deadpan "Yeah, surrre," and the line became clubhouse slang. Called up by the Mets in September 1969, he started the September 12 doubleheader at Forbes Field and drew a $100 World Series share although he was ineligible for the postseason roster. He retired after 1974 and spent three decades back home in Port Huron as a high school and junior college football and basketball referee.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · Baseball Almanac
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 372 | 12 | 92 | 209 | 34 | 13 | 9 | 3 | 0 |
| SGC | 14 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 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. Slabs of the yellow team-letter #49 and #66 are 1968 Milton Bradley game cards and are not counted here.
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Related cards
Team card: #554 Oakland Athletics
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- #62 Chuck Dobson
- #79 Ted Kubiak
- #109 Bert Campaneris
- #127 Paul Lindblad
- #146 Sal Bando
- #164 Ramon Webster
- #183 Bob Kennedy
- #199 A's 1968 Rookie Stars
- #224 Jack Aker
- #244 John Donaldson
- #261 Dave Duncan
- #282 Rick Monday
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1968 Topps #343 card?
It is card #343 of the 598-card 1968 Topps Baseball set, picturing Jim Gosger of the Oakland Athletics.
How many cards are in the 1968 Topps Baseball set?
598 cards, tracked as 606 collectible states. The numbers run from 1 to 598 without a gap and no printed number carries two different cards; eight cards - six of the seven checklists, #10 AL Pitching Leaders and #400 Mike McCormick - carry a catalogued print variation that the master set counts separately.
Sources: Trading Card Database, PSA CardFacts, Cardboard Connection, BaseballCardPedia, Baseball Almanac, Beckett, 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.