1968 Topps #489 Wally Bunker
About Wally Bunker
Card #489, a series-6 card, catches Bunker at his low point: a 4.09 ERA in 1967 with just nine starts among 29 appearances. Arm trouble returned in the spring of 1968 and Baltimore optioned him to Rochester, where he promptly won six straight before a June 19 recall. He closed the year 2-0 with a 2.41 ERA in 18 games, the lowest ERA of his career and a rebound this card predates.
Wallace Edward Bunker signed with the Baltimore Orioles for a $75,000 bonus out of Capuchino High School in San Bruno, California, and reached the majors at 18. His 1964 rookie season remains one of the best in Orioles history: 19-5 with a 2.69 ERA and the American League's top winning percentage at .792, good for The Sporting News AL Rookie Pitcher of the Year award and a place on the Topps All-Star Rookie Team. A rotator cuff injury in late September 1964 began years of arm trouble, yet Bunker still threw a six-hit, 1-0 shutout of the Dodgers in Game 3 of Baltimore's 1966 World Series sweep, part of a Series-record 33 1/3 scoreless innings by Orioles pitching. Kansas City took him in the October 1968 expansion draft, and he led the first Royals staff in wins. His last major league season was 1971; he retired in June 1972 at 27, at 60-52 with a 3.51 ERA. San Mateo County's Sports Hall of Fame inducted him in 1995.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · Baseball Almanac (1) · Baseball Almanac (2)
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 555 | 28 | 246 | 234 | 24 | 14 | 6 | 3 | 0 |
| SGC | 28 | 0 | 13 | 12 | 2 | 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.
Find this card
Search T206 Cards Shop 1968 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: #334 Baltimore Orioles
More Baltimore Orioles cards:
- #2 American League 1967 Batting Leaders
- #4 American League 1967 RBI Leaders
- #20 Brooks Robinson
- #42 Larry Haney
- #56 Orioles 1968 Rookie Stars
- #82 Sam Bowens
- #97 Tom Phoebus
- #118 Mark Belanger
- #135 Paul Blair
- #163 Gene Brabender
- #186 Eddie Watt
- #194 Don Buford
- #204 Andy Etchebarren
- #222 Jim Hardin
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1968 Topps #489 card?
It is card #489 of the 598-card 1968 Topps Baseball set, picturing Wally Bunker of the Baltimore Orioles.
Is 1968 Topps #489 a scarce card?
It is from the sixth print series (cards 458-533). Together with series 7 it forms the #458-598 block that hobby sources price at a modest premium; several catalogs call these cards high numbers outright.
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.