1971 Topps #487 Paul Schaal
About Paul Schaal
Schaal opened 1970 as a reserve after manager Charlie Metro moved Bob Oliver to third base, and he made 24 starts before Bob Lemon replaced Metro in June. Installed at third for the rest of the year, he had his first four-hit game on August 13 and a 4-RBI game 11 days later, finishing at .268 in 380 at-bats. His Royals card is #487, a fourth-series number.
Paul Schaal was a third baseman who spent 11 major league seasons with the Los Angeles/California Angels and the Kansas City Royals. Signed by the Angels out of high school in Compton, California, he climbed through their farm system and broke in as a slick-fielding rookie regular in 1965. Injuries and platoon duty followed, including a beaning above the left ear at Fenway Park in June 1968 that fractured his skull and caused permanent hearing loss. Left unprotected, he was drafted by the expansion Royals that fall and became their everyday third baseman, peaking with a .288 average in 1973 and a career-high 11 home runs in 1971. He finished his career back with the Angels in 1974 after Kansas City handed third base to a young George Brett. Schaal later ran a pizza restaurant in Kansas City before earning a chiropractic degree and practicing in the area. He died in 2017.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 442 | 0 | 30 | 251 | 131 | 22 | 6 | 2 | 0 |
| SGC | 15 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 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: #742 Kansas City Royals
More Kansas City Royals cards:
- #17 Billy Sorrell
- #35 Lou Piniella
- #71 1970 American League Strikeout Leaders
- #91 Bob Lemon
- #103 Rich Severson
- #118 Cookie Rojas
- #129 Aurelio Monteagudo
- #144 Jackie Hernandez
- #163 Buck Martinez
- #187 Ted Abernathy
- #221 Dave Morehead
- #247 Royals 1971 Rookie Stars
- #269 Gail Hopkins
- #299 Ed Kirkpatrick
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1971 Topps #487 card?
It is card #487 of the 752-card 1971 Topps Baseball set, picturing Paul Schaal of the Kansas City Royals.
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.