1969 Topps #156 Astros Rookie Stars - Hal Gilson / Leon McFadden
On this card: Hal Gilson, Leon McFadden
About this card
This is one of the 52 Rookie Stars cards in the 1969 Topps set, each carrying two or three young players under a club or league title. A Rookie Stars card is a rookie card only for the players pictured who had no earlier Topps flagship card - the rookie-card answer on each card names them.
The story on this card
1969 Topps #156 shares the Astros' Rookie Stars card, part of the set's second print series, with Leon McFadden, whose rookie card it is; Gilson's came on 1968 Topps #162. It reflects Gilson's mid-1968 trade from the Cardinals to Houston, where he pitched just two games, posting a 7.36 ERA, and made his final major league appearance on July 27 against the Giants before being released the following spring. A side-arming Berkeley, California southpaw nicknamed "Lefty," Hal Gilson worked seven minor league seasons before reaching the majors in 1968, opening scoreless in his first six outings for the World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals.
McFadden's 1969 card, #156 in Topps' series 2 print run, is his lone Topps issue - a Houston Astros Rookie Stars card that pairs him with fellow rookie Hal Gilson as his recognized rookie card. The card followed his 1968 debut season, when he played 16 games at shortstop and hit .277 in 47 at-bats. In 1969 itself he moved to a bench role, splitting time between the outfield and shortstop across 44 games and batting .176 in 74 at-bats. A Fremont High School product from Los Angeles, Leon McFadden played shortstop and outfield for the Houston Astros from 1968 to 1970 before spending a season with Japan's Hanshin Tigers.
Sources: Wikipedia (Hal Gilson) · Wikipedia (Leon McFadden) · SABR BioProject
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 397 | 20 | 100 | 199 | 41 | 16 | 9 | 12 | 0 |
| SGC | 13 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 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.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the 1969 Topps #156 card?
It is card #156 of the 664-card 1969 Topps Baseball set, picturing Hal Gilson and Leon McFadden. This is one of the 52 Rookie Stars cards in the 1969 Topps set, each carrying two or three young players under a club or league title. A Rookie Stars card is a rookie card only for the players pictured who had no earlier Topps flagship card - the rookie-card answer on each card names them.
Is 1969 Topps #156 a rookie card?
Yes - #156 is the rookie card of Leon McFadden. Hal Gilson had already appeared on an earlier Topps card, so it is not his rookie card.
How many cards are in the 1969 Topps Baseball set?
664 cards, tracked as 696 collectible states. Numbers run from 1 to 664 with none skipped and no printed number shared by two cards; 32 cards carry catalogued print variations that the master set counts separately, 23 of them the yellow- and white-letter name pairs of #440-511.
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 2026-10-12.