1971 Topps #318 Rudy May
About Rudy May
May won three of his first four decisions in 1971, then tripped at home, suffered a hairline fracture of his wrist and spent nearly four weeks on the disabled list with a 3-4 record. He finished 11-12 with a 3.02 ERA in 208 1/3 innings. Twice he struck out 13 batters in a game, and he threw 12 shutout innings in a no-decision at Oakland. His third-series card was #318, with the California Angels.
Rudy May pitched left-handed for the Angels, Yankees, Orioles and Expos across 16 major league seasons. He finished 152-156 with a 3.46 ERA. His 1,760 strikeouts came in 2,622 innings. A football injury broke both wrists at Oakland's Castlemont High School, leaving him unable to bend his pitching wrist fully; he threw his curveball using both wrist and elbow. He was attending the University of San Francisco on a sports scholarship when Minnesota signed him on November 5, 1962. After stops in the White Sox and Phillies organizations, Philadelphia sent him and Costen Shockley to the Angels for Bo Belinsky. Nicknamed "the Dude" for his sharp dressing, May led the American League with a 2.46 ERA for the 1980 Yankees. He pitched 6 1/3 innings in the 1981 World Series against Los Angeles.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 307 | 1 | 16 | 116 | 133 | 32 | 5 | 4 | 0 |
| SGC | 11 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 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: #442 California Angels
More California Angels cards:
- #15 Andy Messersmith
- #43 Steve Kealey
- #61 1970 American League Batting Leaders
- #67 1970 American League ERA Leaders
- #78 Jim Spencer
- #105 Tony Conigliaro
- #152 Angels 1971 Rookie Stars
- #174 Dave LaRoche
- #205 Gerry Moses
- #240 Clyde Wright
- #256 Tony Gonzalez
- #279 Lefty Phillips
- #360 Jim Fregosi
- #401 Tom Murphy
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1971 Topps #318 card?
It is card #318 of the 752-card 1971 Topps Baseball set, picturing Rudy May of the California Angels.
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.