1971 Topps #253 Bill Sudakis
About Bill Sudakis
With Steve Garvey and Billy Grabarkewitz crowding the Dodgers infield in 1970, Bill Sudakis caught 38 games, throwing out 2 of 32 would-be base stealers. He hit .264 with 14 home runs and 44 RBI in 94 games. Card #253, from the second series, lists him with Los Angeles. Bad knees held him to 41 games and a .193 average in 1971.
William Paul Sudakis signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers out of Joliet Township High School in Illinois in 1964. A switch-hitting infielder, he worked his way through the Dodgers system, hitting 23 home runs for Santa Barbara in 1966 and sharing Texas League MVP honors after a big 1968 season at Albuquerque. He debuted with Los Angeles as a September call-up in 1968 and took over as the starting third baseman. Primarily a third baseman, he also caught and played first base over an eight-season career with the Dodgers, Mets, Rangers, Yankees, Angels and Indians. He was part of a group of young Dodgers nicknamed "The Mod Squad" and appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated with them in May 1969. He finished his major league career in 1975 and later played in the Kansas City Royals system before retiring. Sudakis died on September 15, 2021.
Sources: Wikipedia · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 259 | 0 | 3 | 90 | 119 | 35 | 7 | 5 | 0 |
| SGC | 13 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 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: #402 Los Angeles Dodgers
More Los Angeles Dodgers cards:
- #10 Claude Osteen
- #34 Sandy Vance
- #57 Von Joshua
- #85 Billy Grabarkewitz
- #112 Manny Mota
- #145 Bill Singer
- #188 Dodgers 1971 Rookie Stars
- #207 Alan Foster
- #226 Bill Russell
- #288 Joe Moeller
- #314 Jeff Torborg
- #341 Steve Garvey
- #361 Don Sutton
- #385 Maury Wills
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1971 Topps #253 card?
It is card #253 of the 752-card 1971 Topps Baseball set, picturing Bill Sudakis of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
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.