1969 Topps #509 Manny Sanguillen
About Manny Sanguillen
Back with the Pirates for 1969 after a year in the minors, Sanguillen beat out incumbent Jerry May for the starting catcher job and batted .303 in 129 games, catching 113 of them; that September he was behind the plate for Bob Moose's no-hitter against the Mets. This Pittsburgh Pirates card, printed in the set's fifth series, came a year after his 1968 rookie card.
Manuel de Jesus Sanguillen Magan grew up in Colon, Panama, one of thirteen children of a fisherman father. He did not take up baseball seriously until his late teens, signing with the Pirates after a scout saw his throwing arm and speed. Sanguillen reached Pittsburgh as a catcher in 1967 and became the club's regular backstop in 1969, holding the job through most of the 1970s. A free-swinging bad-ball hitter who rarely walked, he batted .296 for his career, made three All-Star teams, and helped the Pirates win division titles and the 1971 and 1979 World Series. He was popular with teammates and known for a strong throwing arm and enthusiasm on the field. After his playing days he settled in Pittsburgh, where he has long operated a barbecue concession stand near PNC Park and remains a fixture with fans. He is not a National Baseball Hall of Fame inductee, though he has been honored by the Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum and the Pittsburgh Pirates' own team hall of fame.
Sources: SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 309 | 2 | 30 | 133 | 82 | 28 | 18 | 16 | 0 |
| SGC | 17 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 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 Pittsburgh Pirates cards:
- #2 National League 1968 Batting Leaders
- #8 National League 1968 ERA Leaders
- #36 Luke Walker
- #50 Bob Clemente
- #82 Pirates 1969 Rookie Stars
- #104 Steve Blass
- #131 Chris Cannizzaro
- #152 Tommie Sisk
- #175 Jim Bunning
- #192 Jose Pagan
- #219 Freddie Patek
- #243 Ron Kline
- #263 Jerry May
- #286 Dock Ellis
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1969 Topps #509 card?
It is card #509 of the 664-card 1969 Topps Baseball set, picturing Manny Sanguillen of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
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.