1971 Topps #520 Tommy John
About Tommy John
John carried a heavy load for the White Sox in 1970: 269 1/3 innings, 138 strikeouts, 10 complete games and 3 shutouts. Fourth-series #520 lists him with Chicago, and Topps also made him #56 in its coin insert. He started on Opening Day again in 1971, but new pitching coach Johnny Sain pushed him to throw more sliders, and his ERA stood at 6.08 through 11 games before a 2.97 mark over his last 27.
Thomas Edward John was a left-handed pitcher born May 22, 1943, in Terre Haute, Indiana, and signed by the Cleveland Indians at eighteen in 1961 on the strength of a curveball taught to him by a friend of his father. He debuted for Cleveland in September 1963, then made his name with the Chicago White Sox from 1965 through 1971. He tied for the American League shutout lead with five in 1966, shared it again with six in 1967, and posted a 1.98 ERA in 1968, the year of his first All-Star selection. Traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Dick Allen after the 1971 season, he tore his ulnar collateral ligament in 1974; the ligament-replacement operation Dr. Frank Jobe performed that year cost him the 1975 season and has been known as Tommy John surgery ever since. He returned to win 20 games in 1977 and pitched in the 1977 and 1978 World Series, then added 21- and 22-win seasons for the New York Yankees. A four-time All-Star, he lost all three World Series he appeared in, and retired in 1989 after a record-tying 26th season with 288 wins, the second most of any pitcher since 1900 outside the Hall of Fame. He died in 2026.
Sources: Wikipedia · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 525 | 3 | 27 | 190 | 185 | 66 | 24 | 29 | 1 |
| SGC | 83 | 0 | 2 | 28 | 23 | 12 | 5 | 7 | 6 |
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: #289 Chicago White Sox
More Chicago White Sox cards:
- #13 White Sox 1971 Rookie Stars
- #37 Rich McKinney
- #56 Duane Josephson
- #80 Bill Melton
- #113 Jerry Crider
- #156 Bart Johnson
- #169 Ed Herrmann
- #186 Bob Spence
- #227 Floyd Weaver
- #243 Carlos May
- #267 Rich Morales
- #292 Jay Johnstone
- #311 Lee Stange
- #345 Joe Horlen
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1971 Topps #520 card?
It is card #520 of the 752-card 1971 Topps Baseball set, picturing Tommy John of the Chicago White Sox.
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.