1969 Topps #253 Jerry Johnson
About Jerry Johnson
Card #253 in Topps' third series is Jerry Johnson's rookie card, picturing him with the Philadelphia Phillies. He split the 1969 season as both starter and reliever for Philadelphia, going 6-13 with a 4.28 ERA across 33 games and 21 starts, throwing four complete games including two shutouts. That October he was dealt to St. Louis in the trade built around Curt Flood, Dick Allen and Cookie Rojas.
Jerry Michael Johnson, a right-handed pitcher born in Miami in 1943, signed with the New York Mets as a third baseman in 1962 but struggled in the field, and the organization had converted him to the mound by 1964. He pitched in the Mets system through 1967, then was taken by the Philadelphia Phillies in that fall's minor league draft. Johnson debuted with Philadelphia on July 17, 1968, and worked as both a starter and reliever over parts of ten major league seasons with the Phillies, Cardinals, Giants, Indians, Astros, Padres and Blue Jays. He was traded from Philadelphia to St. Louis in October 1969 in the deal that sent Curt Flood to the Phillies, a trade Flood refused to report to and later challenged before the Supreme Court as a violation of baseball's reserve clause. Johnson found his best form as a San Francisco reliever, finishing sixth in Cy Young voting in 1971 while going 12-9 with eighteen saves, and he later threw the winning relief innings in the Toronto Blue Jays' first-ever game in 1977. He retired after that season.
Sources: Wikipedia · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 240 | 4 | 49 | 145 | 30 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| SGC | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
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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Related cards
More Philadelphia Phillies cards:
- #6 National League 1968 Home Run Leaders
- #28 Mike Ryan
- #51 Woody Fryman
- #73 Johnny Briggs
- #108 Tony Taylor
- #133 Johnny Callison
- #174 Grant Jackson
- #188 Rick Wise
- #206 Phillies 1969 Rookie Stars
- #229 Don Lock
- #276 Gary Wagner
- #297 Deron Johnson
- #329 Rick Joseph
- #350 Richie Allen
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1969 Topps #253 card?
It is card #253 of the 664-card 1969 Topps Baseball set, picturing Jerry Johnson of the Philadelphia Phillies.
Is 1969 Topps #253 a rookie card?
Yes - #253 is the 1969 Topps rookie card of Jerry Johnson.
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.