1971 Topps #404 Astros Rookie Stars - Buddy Harris / Roger Metzger
On this card: Buddy Harris, Roger Metzger
About this card
This is one of the 44 Rookie Stars cards in the 1971 Topps set, each carrying two or three players under a club, league or position title. All 44 count as rookie cards.
The story on this card
Harris made 20 appearances for Houston in 1971, one in April and 19 from June through September. Those outings were sandwiched around 14 games at Triple-A Oklahoma City, and he allowed 33 hits and 16 walks in the majors. His Topps card is #404, a Rookie Stars card shared with Roger Metzger, with both men printed under the Astros. It is a fourth-series card and the rookie card of both men. Buddy Harris, a 6 ft 7 in Philadelphia right-hander, pitched 22 games in relief for the Astros in 1970-71, debuting against the Giants with a home run allowed to Willie Mays and later traded to the Mets for Tommie Agee.
Metzger's big-league record before this card was one game with the Cubs in 1970, in which he had two at-bats. #404 is a Rookie Stars card from the fourth series, shared with fellow Houston rookie Buddy Harris, and it is the rookie card for both men. In 1971 Metzger played 148 games at shortstop for Houston, hit .235 and led the National League with 11 triples. Shortstop for the Houston Astros for most of the 1970s, then the San Francisco Giants. He won the 1973 Gold Glove at shortstop, the first by an Astro at the position, and was a Cubs first-round pick in 1969.
Sources: Wikipedia (Buddy Harris) · Wikipedia (Roger Metzger) · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 345 | 2 | 8 | 145 | 149 | 26 | 7 | 5 | 3 |
| SGC | 14 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 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: #722 Houston Astros
More Houston Astros cards:
- #18 Norm Miller
- #44 Johnny Edwards
- #79 Wade Blasingame
- #102 Astros 1971 Rookie Stars
- #130 Denis Menke
- #148 John Mayberry
- #162 Jack Billingham
- #222 Bob Watson
- #237 Cesar Cedeno
- #242 Jim Ray
- #264 Joe Morgan
- #291 George Culver
- #312 Harry Walker
- #337 Jesus Alou
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1971 Topps #404 card?
It is card #404 of the 752-card 1971 Topps Baseball set, picturing Buddy Harris and Roger Metzger. This is one of the 44 Rookie Stars cards in the 1971 Topps set, each carrying two or three players under a club, league or position title. All 44 count as rookie cards.
Is 1971 Topps #404 a rookie card?
Yes - #404 is a rookie card for every player pictured on it: Buddy Harris and Roger Metzger.
How many cards are in the 1971 Topps Baseball set?
752 cards, tracked as 761 collectible states. Numbers run from 1 to 752 with none skipped, issued in six print series (132/131/130/130/120/109 cards), the sixth (#644-752) the high numbers; seven cards carry catalogued print variations that the master set counts separately - the #42, #265 and #306 photo pairs and the #123, #206, #369 and #619 checklists, #369 and #619 in three printings each.
Sources: Trading Card Database, PSA (its price guide, master set registry and set article), 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.