1972 Topps #343 Willie Stargell
About this card
This is one of the sixteen Boyhood Photos cards, in two runs of eight (#341-348 and #491-498); every Boyhood Photos player also has a regular card in the set.
About Willie Stargell
Stargell's June 25, 1971, home run was the longest in Veterans Stadium history, a second-inning shot that chased Jim Bunning. Five 1972 cards carry him: NL RBI Leaders #87 with Joe Torre and Hank Aaron, NL Home Run Leaders #89 with Aaron and Lee May, Boyhood Photos #343, and #447 with its In Action partner #448. In 1972 he played 101 games at first base. He hit .293 with 33 home runs and 112 RBI and finished third in the MVP vote behind Johnny Bench and Billy Williams.
Wilver Dornel "Willie" Stargell was a left fielder and first baseman who spent his entire 21-season career (1962-1982) with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Pirates scout Bob Zuk signed him out of Alameda, California, for $1,500 in August 1958, and after a minor league climb marked by the indignities of segregated travel he reached Pittsburgh in September 1962. He made the first of seven All-Star teams in 1964 and hit more home runs in the 1970s, 296, than any other player. Windmilling his bat at the pitcher as he waited for the windup, he drove seven of the 18 balls ever hit over the right-field stands at Forbes Field. Stargell helped Pittsburgh win the World Series in 1971 and again in 1979, both times over Baltimore. At 39 he took the 1979 National League Most Valuable Player Award, shared with Keith Hernandez, along with the NLCS and World Series MVP awards, the only player to win all three in one season. He finished with a .282 average and 2,232 hits. He hit 475 home runs and drove in 1,540. The Pirates retired his number 8 in 1982, and the National Baseball Hall of Fame elected him in 1988, his first year of eligibility.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 554 | 24 | 137 | 264 | 52 | 30 | 13 | 34 | 0 |
| SGC | 40 | 1 | 4 | 9 | 9 | 2 | 8 | 7 | 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 Willie Stargell in this set: #87 League Leaders, #89 League Leaders, #447, #448 In Action
Team card: #1 World Champions (Pittsburgh Pirates)
More Pittsburgh Pirates cards:
- #27 Bob Johnson
- #60 Manny Sanguillen
- #72 Bruce Kison
- #87 1971 N.L. R.B.I. Leaders
- #89 1971 N.L. Home Run Leaders
- #125 Dave Cash
- #152 Gene Clines
- #179 Dock Ellis
- #180 Dock Ellis In Action
- #190 Dave Giusti
- #219 Rennie Stennett
- #221 1971 N.L. Playoffs: Bucs Champs!
- #225 1971 World Series Game No. 3
- #226 1971 World Series Game No. 4
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1972 Topps #343 card?
It is card #343 of the 787-card 1972 Topps Baseball set, picturing Willie Stargell of the Pittsburgh Pirates. This is one of the sixteen Boyhood Photos cards, in two runs of eight (#341-348 and #491-498); every Boyhood Photos player also has a regular card in the set.
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.