1972 Topps #554 Wilbur Wood In Action
About this card
This is one of the 72 In Action cards, each numbered right after the same man's card, in six blocks of twelve even numbers, one per series: #32-54, #164-186, #292-314, #426-448, #552-574 and #692-714 (#34 Billy Martin follows his #33 manager card). The backs of the 24 In Action cards in the fifth and sixth series piece together into pictures of Joe Torre and Carl Yastrzemski (fifth series) and Tony Oliva and Tom Seaver (sixth).
About Wilbur Wood In Action
Wood threw 376 2/3 innings in 1972, breaking the live-ball record of 376 that Mickey Lolich had set a year earlier. He made 49 starts and went 24-17 with a 2.51 ERA and 8 shutouts. Johnny Sain's idea of starting a knuckleballer on two days' rest made that workload possible. Wood led the American League in wins and was an All-Star. Topps gave him League Leaders cards #92 and #94, Boyhood Photos #342, regular card #553 and In Action card #554.
Wilbur Wood grew up in Belmont, Massachusetts, starring as a pitcher, quarterback and hockey defenseman before signing with his hometown Boston Red Sox in 1960. Relying on a fastball and curveball, he pitched sparingly over parts of four seasons with Boston and two with the Pittsburgh Pirates. After he was named the International League's most outstanding pitcher in 1966, the Chicago White Sox acquired him, and knuckleball specialist Hoyt Wilhelm taught him to throw the pitch full time. Wood set a major league record with 88 appearances in 1968, including 2 starts. He moved into the rotation in 1971 and won 20 or more games four straight years, leading the American League in wins twice and in starts for four consecutive seasons. He pitched 17 seasons in the majors, three times an All-Star, before retiring after the 1978 season and settling back in the Boston area.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 345 | 14 | 114 | 167 | 35 | 7 | 7 | 1 | 0 |
| SGC | 8 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 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
More Wilbur Wood in this set: #92 League Leaders, #94 League Leaders, #342 Boyhood Photos, #553 Wilbur Wood
Team card: #381 Chicago White Sox
More Chicago White Sox cards:
- #15 Walt Williams
- #73 Steve Huntz
- #90 1971 A.L. Home Run Leaders
- #92 1971 A.L. E.R.A. Leaders
- #94 1971 A.L. Pitching Leaders
- #98 Chuck Tanner
- #126 Bart Johnson
- #146 Steve Kealey
- #183 Bill Melton
- #184 Bill Melton In Action
- #207 Tom Egan
- #233 Jay Johnstone
- #240 Rich Allen
- #248 Tom Bradley
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1972 Topps #554 card?
It is card #554 of the 787-card 1972 Topps Baseball set, picturing Wilbur Wood of the Chicago White Sox. This is one of the 72 In Action cards, each numbered right after the same man's card, in six blocks of twelve even numbers, one per series: #32-54, #164-186, #292-314, #426-448, #552-574 and #692-714 (#34 Billy Martin follows his #33 manager card). The backs of the 24 In Action cards in the fifth and sixth series piece together into pictures of Joe Torre and Carl Yastrzemski (fifth series) and Tony Oliva and Tom Seaver (sixth).
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.