1971 Topps #542 Bob Miller
About Bob Miller
Card #542, a fifth-series issue, lists Miller with the Cubs, but he pitched in two games for Chicago in 1971 before his release on May 10. San Diego signed him the next day, and he went 7-3 with a 1.41 ERA in 38 relief appearances. Pittsburgh got him on August 10 for Johnny Jeter and Ed Acosta. He finished 8-5 with 10 saves and a 1.64 ERA, then took the loss in Game 6 of the World Series on a Brooks Robinson sacrifice fly.
Robert Lane Miller, born February 18, 1939 in St. Louis, Missouri, was a right-handed pitcher who worked seventeen big league seasons between 1957 and 1974 and passed through ten different franchises, tying what was then the modern-era record. Originally Robert Lane Gemeinweiser, he signed with his hometown Cardinals as a bonus baby out of Beaumont High School in June 1957 and debuted less than a week later at eighteen. After St. Louis came the Mets, Dodgers, Twins, Indians, White Sox, Cubs, Padres, Pirates, Tigers and a return to New York. He pitched for three World Series winners, the 1963 and 1965 Dodgers and the 1971 Pirates, and never allowed a run in a Series game for Los Angeles. Used first as a swingman and then almost entirely in relief, he finished 69-81 with a 3.37 ERA in 694 games. He saved 51 games and struck out 895 batters. He later managed Amarillo to a Texas League title, served as pitching coach for the expansion Blue Jays and held the same job with the Giants. He was an advance scout for San Francisco when he died on August 6, 1993, of injuries from a car crash in Rancho Bernardo, California.
Sources: Wikipedia · Baseball-Reference · Baseball Almanac
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 283 | 1 | 8 | 119 | 124 | 26 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| SGC | 8 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 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: #502 Chicago Cubs
More Chicago Cubs cards:
- #12 Johnny Callison
- #38 Jim Colborn
- #64 1970 National League RBI Leaders
- #66 1970 National League Home Run Leaders
- #70 1970 National League Pitching Leaders
- #72 1970 National League Strikeout Leaders
- #90 Joe Pepitone
- #98 Joe Decker
- #121 Cubs 1971 Rookie Stars
- #151 Tommy Davis
- #175 Jim Hickman
- #203 Larry Gura
- #220 Ron Santo
- #248 Hoyt Wilhelm
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1971 Topps #542 card?
It is card #542 of the 752-card 1971 Topps Baseball set, picturing Bob Miller of the Chicago Cubs.
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.