1968 Topps #144 Joe Morgan
About Joe Morgan
Morgan's 1967 season earns him two cards in the 1968 set: base card #144 in the second print series, and #364 in the fourth, one of the Sporting News All-Star subset cards whose backs join together into picture puzzles. The line behind both is the same: a .275 average, 73 runs and 42 RBI in 133 games, a full and healthy year at second base after the broken kneecap had cost him a chunk of 1966. Neither card is his rookie card; that came in 1965.
Joe Morgan was a 5-foot-7 second baseman who became one of the most complete players in baseball history. Signed by the Houston Colt .45s out of Oakland City College in 1962, he broke into the majors in September 1963, took over as Houston's regular second baseman in 1965, and finished second in National League Rookie of the Year voting. He spent nine years in Houston, making All-Star teams in 1966 and 1970, before a November 1971 trade sent him to the Cincinnati Reds. In Cincinnati, Morgan became the igniter of the Big Red Machine, teaming with Pete Rose and Johnny Bench to win back-to-back World Series titles in 1975 and 1976 while claiming the National League Most Valuable Player award both years, the first National League second baseman to win it in consecutive seasons. He drove in the winning run in Game 7 of the 1975 World Series, won five straight Gold Gloves from 1973 through 1977, made ten All-Star teams overall, and finished his 22-year career with 2,517 hits, 268 home runs and 689 stolen bases. Nicknamed "Little Joe," he flapped his back elbow at the plate, a habit suggested by Houston teammate Nellie Fox. Morgan was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1990, his first year on the ballot, and later became a network broadcaster.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 1,398 | 10 | 123 | 396 | 278 | 206 | 149 | 236 | 0 |
| SGC | 248 | 0 | 2 | 36 | 62 | 59 | 40 | 41 | 8 |
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
More Joe Morgan in this set: #364 Sporting News All-Stars
More Houston Astros cards:
- #5 National League 1967 Home Run Leaders
- #21 Ron Davis
- #41 Julio Gotay
- #57 Dan Schneider
- #77 Don Wilson
- #95 Bob Aspromonte
- #128 Houston 1968 Rookie Stars
- #161 Norm Miller
- #182 Dave Giusti
- #207 Carroll Sembera
- #232 Denis Menke
- #260 Jim Wynn
- #274 Mike Cuellar
- #300 Rusty Staub
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1968 Topps #144 card?
It is card #144 of the 598-card 1968 Topps Baseball set, picturing Joe Morgan of the Houston Astros.
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.