1972 Topps #545 Wayne Granger
About Wayne Granger
Granger hit the only home run of his career on July 9, 1971, off the Mets' Ray Sadecki. In 1972 he saved five games in his first seven appearances for Minnesota and had a 0.85 ERA at the end of June. A slide followed: nine earned runs in the first half of July, more than double his total through the first two and a half months, as a lower sidearm delivery lifted his sinker. Card #545, a fifth-series issue, lists him with the Twins.
Wayne Granger was a sidearm sinkerballer who built a nine-season career in the bullpen and never once started a big-league game. Signed by the Cardinals, he debuted in 1968 and was traded to Cincinnati that October. He set a National League record with 90 appearances in 1969 and won The Sporting News Fireman of the Year award that year and again in 1970, in the early years of the Big Red Machine. Granger threw mostly one pitch, a low sinker that produced a lot of ground balls, and his light frame let him pitch on little rest. He also worked for the Twins, Cardinals again, Yankees, White Sox, Astros and Expos before arm trouble ended his career in 1976. He later returned often to Cincinnati for Reds Hall of Fame and reunion events.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 221 | 5 | 81 | 106 | 20 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 0 |
| SGC | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 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: #156 Minnesota Twins
More Minnesota Twins cards:
- #28 Twins 1972 Rookie Stars
- #51 Harmon Killebrew
- #52 Harmon Killebrew In Action
- #66 Ray Corbin
- #86 1971 A.L. Batting Leaders
- #88 1971 A.L. R.B.I. Leaders
- #131 Jim Nettles
- #201 Phil Roof
- #220 Jim Perry
- #244 Steve Braun
- #275 Cesar Tovar
- #301 George Mitterwald
- #302 George Mitterwald In Action
- #352 Dave LaRoche
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1972 Topps #545 card?
It is card #545 of the 787-card 1972 Topps Baseball set, picturing Wayne Granger of the Minnesota Twins.
How many cards are in the 1972 Topps Baseball set?
787 cards, tracked as 794 collectible states. Numbers run from 1 to 787 with none skipped, in six print series (#1-132, #133-263, #264-394, #395-525, #526-656 and #657-787, the high numbers); 7 cards carry catalogued print variations that the master set counts separately - four Chicago Cubs cards with yellow or green under the "C" and "S" of the team name, the #251 and #478 checklists with smaller or larger print on the front, and the #604 checklist with its copyright line aligned right or left.
Sources: Trading Card Database, PSA CardFacts, 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.