1969 Topps #257 Jim Ray
About Jim Ray
Coming off his rookie campaign, Ray became a workhorse for Houston in 1969, appearing in 40 games with 13 starts and striking out 115 batters in exactly 115 innings, the stretch that earned him the nickname Sting Ray. His 1969 Topps #257 card, from the set's third print series, is a solo Astros issue, reflecting that emerging relief-and-spot-start role.
James Francis Ray was a right-handed pitcher from Rock Hill, South Carolina, who threw a stellar fastball across parts of nine big league seasons, almost all of them with the Houston Astros. Signed by the Baltimore Orioles organization in 1963, he broke into the majors with Houston in September 1965 and became a fixture of the bullpen from 1968 through 1973, working almost exclusively in relief. His signature year came in 1969, when he struck out 115 batters in 115 innings and picked up the nickname Sting Ray for the ratio. He turned in his best single season in 1971, winning ten of fourteen decisions with a 2.12 ERA over 47 games, all but one out of the bullpen. In December 1973 Houston traded him, along with Gary Sutherland, to the Detroit Tigers for Fred Scherman, and he closed out his career there in 1974. Over 308 games he went 43-30 with a 3.60 ERA, 407 strikeouts and 25 saves. He died in 2005 in Margate, Florida.
Sources: Wikipedia · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 210 | 4 | 39 | 128 | 30 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| SGC | 8 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 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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Related cards
More Houston Astros cards:
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- #58 Fred Gladding
- #76 Norm Miller
- #96 Denver Lemaster
- #119 Doug Rader
- #156 Astros 1969 Rookie Stars
- #186 John Edwards
- #202 Don Wilson
- #208 Donn Clendenon
- #278 Gary Geiger
- #308 Wade Blasingame
- #337 Marty Martinez
- #360 Jim Wynn
- #389 Dan Coombs
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1969 Topps #257 card?
It is card #257 of the 664-card 1969 Topps Baseball set, picturing Jim Ray of the Houston Astros.
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.