1971 Topps #597 Ken Suarez
About Ken Suarez
Suarez spent all of 1970 in the minors with Wichita, hitting .301 in 84 games and making the American Association all-star team. That earned a return to Cleveland, where he backed up Ray Fosse in 1971, catching 48 of his 50 games and batting .203. Card #597 is a fifth-series issue printed with the Indians.
Ken Suarez was a right-handed-hitting catcher from Tampa, Florida, who starred at Florida State, batting .404 as a junior and earning first-team All-America honors before representing the United States at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. He signed with the Kansas City Athletics and reached the majors in 1966. Suarez split his seven big league seasons among the Athletics, Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers and was known for his defense behind the plate. He was part of the Rangers' inaugural 1972 roster under manager Ted Williams. A pay dispute led him to become the first Ranger to file for arbitration, and Texas traded him back to Cleveland for Leo Cardenas on February 12, 1974. He chose to retire rather than report. He later worked in Texas as a Rangers scout and in the aviation industry.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 309 | 0 | 12 | 128 | 134 | 27 | 6 | 2 | 0 |
| SGC | 10 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 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.
Find this card
Search T206 Cards Shop 1971 Topps cards Live auctions Buy It Now on eBay Sold prices
As an eBay Partner Network affiliate, T206Cards.com may earn from qualifying purchases.
Related cards
Team card: #584 Cleveland Indians
More Cleveland Indians cards:
- #24 Rich Hand
- #41 Rick Austin
- #71 1970 American League Strikeout Leaders
- #87 Jack Heidemann
- #107 Roy Foster
- #125 Ray Fosse
- #150 Sam McDowell
- #172 Duke Sims
- #211 Phil Hennigan
- #231 Indians 1971 Rookie Stars
- #252 Eddie Leon
- #275 Vada Pinson
- #294 Steve Dunning
- #324 Graig Nettles
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1971 Topps #597 card?
It is card #597 of the 752-card 1971 Topps Baseball set, picturing Ken Suarez of the Cleveland Indians.
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.