1971 Topps #420 Jim Merritt
About Jim Merritt
Jim Merritt stood 14-7 with a 3.46 ERA at the 1970 All-Star break and struck out Frank Robinson in two innings of the game. He finished 20-12 with a 4.08 ERA in 35 starts and won game two of the NLCS sweep of Pittsburgh. In the deciding World Series game he took the loss, allowing three earned runs in 1 2/3 innings. His #420 card, from the fourth series, lists him with Cincinnati.
Jim Merritt was a tall, lanky left-handed pitcher who spent eleven big-league seasons, mainly with the Minnesota Twins and Cincinnati Reds. The Los Angeles Dodgers signed him out of high school, but the Twins took him in the first-year player draft before his career in the Dodgers' farm system got under way. He worked his way up through Minnesota's minor-league system and debuted in the majors in August 1965, in time to pitch in that fall's World Series. Teammates nicknamed him Bones for his rail-thin 6-foot-3 frame. In 1967 he became one of the better control pitchers in the American League, then peaked with Cincinnati in 1970, making the All-Star team and winning twenty games as the Reds reached the World Series. He spent 1971 and 1972 with the Reds before finishing his career with the Texas Rangers. He finished with an 81-86 record and 932 strikeouts.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 395 | 0 | 22 | 230 | 117 | 19 | 4 | 3 | 0 |
| SGC | 21 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 5 | 3 | 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: #357 Cincinnati Reds
More Cincinnati Reds cards:
- #14 Dave Concepcion
- #40 Lee May
- #64 1970 National League RBI Leaders
- #66 1970 National League Home Run Leaders
- #68 1970 National League ERA Leaders
- #75 Gary Nolan
- #100 Pete Rose
- #124 Don Gullett
- #164 Reds 1971 Rookie Stars
- #177 Hal McRae
- #190 Bob Tolan
- #199 1970 N.L. Playoffs Game 1: Cline Pinch-Triple Decides It!
- #200 1970 N.L. Playoffs Game 2: Tolan Scores For Third Time!
- #201 1970 N.L. Playoffs Game 3: Cline Scores Winning Run!
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1971 Topps #420 card?
It is card #420 of the 752-card 1971 Topps Baseball set, picturing Jim Merritt of the Cincinnati Reds.
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.