1970 Topps #396 Steve Blass
About Steve Blass
Blass went 10-12 with a 3.52 ERA over 196 2/3 innings in 1970. Pittsburgh won the Eastern Division behind a rotation of Luke Walker, Dock Ellis, Bob Veale, Bob Moose and Blass, then lost three straight games to the Reds for the pennant. His card #396 comes from the fourth series and shows him with the Pirates.
Steve Blass, a right-hander who signed with Pittsburgh out of a Connecticut high school in 1960, pitched his entire ten-season career for the Pirates, breaking in during 1964 and settling in as a rotation regular from 1966 on. He peaked between 1968 and 1972, including an 18-6 season with a 2.12 ERA in 1968. His signature moment came in the 1971 World Series against the Baltimore Orioles, where he threw two complete-game victories, including the clincher in Game Seven, finishing runner-up for Series MVP behind Roberto Clemente. After 1972 he lost his control almost overnight, a decline so sudden and unexplained that it became known as Steve Blass disease. He retired in 1975, then spent decades as a Pirates broadcaster and was later inducted into the Pittsburgh Pirates and Charleston, West Virginia baseball halls of fame. He finished with a 103-76 record and a 3.63 ERA over 1,597 1/3 innings.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 215 | 3 | 25 | 142 | 22 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 0 |
| SGC | 11 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 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: #608 Pittsburgh Pirates
More Pittsburgh Pirates cards:
- #8 Jose Martinez
- #30 Matty Alou
- #52 Bruce Dal Canton
- #61 1969 National League Batting Leaders
- #94 Fred Patek
- #110 Bob Moose
- #141 Pirates 1970 Rookie Stars
- #166 Al Oliver
- #188 Manny Sanguillen
- #216 Chuck Hartenstein
- #236 Bob Veale
- #264 Rich Hebner
- #322 Luke Walker
- #350 Roberto Clemente
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1970 Topps #396 card?
It is card #396 of the 720-card 1970 Topps Baseball set, picturing Steve Blass of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
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.