1969 Topps #129 Bill McCool
About Bill McCool
Selected by the expansion San Diego Padres in the 1968 draft, McCool worked exclusively out of the bullpen in the Padres' inaugural 1969 season, appearing in 54 games with seven saves and a 4.30 ERA. Card 129, from the second series, pictures him in his new San Diego uniform.
Billy McCool broke into the majors as a hard-throwing 19-year-old lefty reliever for the Cincinnati Reds in 1964, striking out veteran hitters with a fastball teammates called sneaky-fast. That rookie season he was named The Sporting News National League Rookie Pitcher of the Year, going 6-5 with seven saves. He anchored the Reds bullpen for the next several seasons, finishing second in the league in saves in both 1965 and 1966 and earning an All-Star selection in 1966. A knee injury suffered late in 1966, followed by elbow and shoulder trouble, derailed his push to become a starter and shortened what had looked like a rising career. He pitched a final season each with the San Diego Padres in 1969 and the St. Louis Cardinals in 1970 before retiring at 25. Over seven seasons he went 32-42 with 58 saves and a 3.59 ERA. After baseball he worked as a Dayton television sports anchor and later wrote a pitching instruction book. He died in 2014.
Sources: SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 226 | 5 | 36 | 127 | 41 | 15 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| SGC | 7 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 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.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the 1969 Topps #129 card?
It is card #129 of the 664-card 1969 Topps Baseball set, picturing Bill McCool of the San Diego Padres.
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.