1971 Topps #406 Ray Sadecki
About Ray Sadecki
Sadecki began 1971 as a Mets reliever under Gil Hodges, then moved into the rotation in July when Jerry Koosman was hurt. His first two starts that month were complete games without an earned run, including a 5-2 win over St. Louis in which he drove in a run. He ended 7-7 with a 2.92 ERA in 34 games, 20 of them starts. Card #406 comes from the fourth series.
Ray Sadecki, a left-handed pitcher born December 26, 1940, in Kansas City, Kansas, signed with the St. Louis Cardinals as a bonus baby out of Bishop Ward High School in 1958, still only seventeen, and reached the majors at nineteen in 1960. Over an 18-year career he pitched for the Cardinals, the San Francisco Giants and the New York Mets, with later stops for the Braves, Royals and Brewers, going 135-131 with a 3.78 ERA, 20 shutouts and 1,614 strikeouts in 563 games, 328 of them starts. Known for his palmball, he was the left-handed complement to Bob Gibson in St. Louis; his signature season came in 1964, when he won 20 games and beat Whitey Ford in Game One of the World Series as the Cardinals took the pennant and the title. He was traded to San Francisco in May 1966 in the deal that sent Orlando Cepeda to St. Louis, and posted his best full-season ERA, 2.78, for the Giants in 1967. Sadecki was inducted into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame in 2007 and the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame in 2010. He died November 17, 2014, in Mesa, Arizona.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · Baseball Almanac
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 316 | 1 | 16 | 141 | 116 | 30 | 9 | 3 | 0 |
| SGC | 14 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 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: #641 New York Mets
More New York Mets cards:
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- #36 Dean Chance
- #68 1970 National League ERA Leaders
- #72 1970 National League Strikeout Leaders
- #83 Mets 1971 Rookie Stars
- #104 Dan Frisella
- #115 Donn Clendenon
- #136 Duffy Dyer
- #160 Tom Seaver
- #183 Gil Hodges
- #228 Wayne Garrett
- #259 Dave Marshall
- #278 Jerry Grote
- #310 Tommie Agee
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1971 Topps #406 card?
It is card #406 of the 752-card 1971 Topps Baseball set, picturing Ray Sadecki of the New York Mets.
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.