1970 Topps #474 Dick Kelley
About Dick Kelley
Padres manager Preston Gomez said in the offseason that Dick Kelley, on a given day when he was right, could beat anyone, and called his arm one of the best in the majors. Kelley's teammates had averaged just over three runs in his 1969 starts. After shoulder pain at 1970 spring training, he went on the disabled list, was reinstated on May 20 and was optioned to the Salt Lake City Bees, where he threw four innings. Card #474, from the fifth series, shows him with San Diego.
Dick Kelley was a left-handed pitcher from Brighton, Massachusetts, who spent parts of seven big-league seasons with the Milwaukee and Atlanta Braves and the San Diego Padres between 1964 and 1971. Signed by the Braves for a modest bonus after being spotted on the sandlots, he battled control problems and a circulatory issue in his pitching hand early on before reworking his offspeed pitches and screwball in the minors to stick as a big-league arm. His best season was probably 1966, when he went 7-5 with a 3.22 ERA after being recalled from Richmond. In 1967 he tied a National League record by striking out six consecutive Phillies as a reliever. Selected by San Diego in the 1968 expansion draft, he became a full-time starter before shoulder tendinitis shortened his career. He finished 18-30 with a 3.39 ERA over 188 games, then ran a pitching school in Newport Beach, California, after retiring.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 161 | 1 | 23 | 101 | 19 | 8 | 6 | 3 | 0 |
| SGC | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Graded population — a scarcity guide, not a price. Data as of 2026-10-19. 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
Team card: #657 San Diego Padres
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Frequently asked questions
What is the 1970 Topps #474 card?
It is card #474 of the 720-card 1970 Topps Baseball set, picturing Dick Kelley of the San Diego Padres.
How many cards are in the 1970 Topps Baseball set?
720 cards, tracked as 726 collectible states. Numbers run from 1 to 720 with none skipped, issued in seven series - #1-132, #133-263, #264-372, #373-459, #460-546, #547-633 and the high numbers, #634-720; 6 cards, all of them checklists, carry catalogued print variations that the master set counts separately.
Sources: Trading Card Database, PSA CardFacts, BaseballCardPedia, 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 2026-10-25.