1969 Topps #60 Nelson Briles
About Nelson Briles
Card #60, a series-1 base issue, reports Briles' 1968 career year: 19 wins against 11 losses, a 2.81 ERA, 141 strikeouts and 13 complete games across a career-high 243 2/3 innings as St. He started Game 2 of that fall's World Series against Detroit, working 5 1/3 innings in a loss that also saw Mickey Lolich hit his first professional home run off him.
Nelson Briles pitched 14 major league seasons (1965-1978) as a right-hander, breaking in with the St. Louis Cardinals after Santa Clara University and scout Bill Sayers signed him for a reported bonus near $40,000-50,000. Used mostly in relief as a Cardinals rookie in 1965, he moved into the rotation in July 1967 when ace Bob Gibson broke his leg, won nine straight decisions and finished 14-5 with a 2.43 ERA, the National League's best winning percentage that year. He started and won Game 3 of the 1967 World Series over Boston, then set career highs of 19 wins, 141 strikeouts and 13 complete games in 1968 as St. Louis repeated as National League champions. Traded to Pittsburgh in 1971, he capped that season with a two-hit complete game over Baltimore in World Series Game 5, putting Pittsburgh ahead 3-2 in a World Series it went on to win. He also pitched for Kansas City, Texas and Baltimore before retiring in 1979 with a 129-112 record, 3.44 ERA and 1,163 strikeouts across 452 games. Briles later worked in Pirates broadcasting and as the club's Director of Corporate Sales; he died of a heart attack in 2005 while playing in the Pirates' annual alumni golf outing.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · Baseball Almanac (1) · Baseball Almanac (2) · Baseball Almanac (3)
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 237 | 0 | 16 | 94 | 81 | 27 | 8 | 10 | 1 |
| SGC | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 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 St. Louis Cardinals cards:
- #8 National League 1968 ERA Leaders
- #10 National League 1968 Pitching Leaders
- #12 National League 1968 Strikeout Leaders
- #18 Dick Schofield
- #39 Dick Hughes
- #85 Lou Brock
- #110 Mike Shannon
- #136 Cardinals 1969 Rookie Stars
- #160 Vada Pinson
- #162 World Series Game #1 - Gibson Fans 17; Sets New Record!
- #164 World Series Game #3 - McCarver's Homer Puts St. Louis Ahead
- #165 World Series Game #4 - Brock's Lead-Off HR Starts Cards' Romp
- #181 Mel Nelson
- #200 Bob Gibson
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1969 Topps #60 card?
It is card #60 of the 664-card 1969 Topps Baseball set, picturing Nelson Briles of the St. Louis Cardinals.
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.