1973 Topps #228 Bobby Darwin
About Bobby Darwin
Bobby Darwin was 29 when 1972 began, nearly a decade after his one pitching start for the Angels. That year he hit .267 with 22 home runs and 80 RBIs for Minnesota, finishing in the American League top ten in both categories. The winter after, he hit a league-record 19 homers in 50 games for Magallanes in Venezuela. His Twins card is #228, second series.
Bobby Darwin broke in with the Los Angeles Angels in 1962 as a 19-year-old right-hander, then spent most of the next decade grinding through the minors as a pitcher whose control problems and a chronically sore arm stalled his progress. A tow-truck-driver encounter with Dodgers executive Al Campanis led to a Rule 5 pickup, and a Spokane manager, Tom Lasorda, talked him into giving up pitching for the outfield. The switch paid off: Darwin became a regular slugger with the Minnesota Twins from 1972 to 1974, hitting 65 home runs and driving in 264 runs over that stretch while also leading the American League in strikeouts each of those three seasons. He closed his playing career in brief stints with the Brewers, Red Sox and Cubs, then spent decades as a Dodgers scout.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 153 | 5 | 66 | 71 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| SGC | 5 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 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.
Find this card
Search T206 Cards Shop 1973 Topps cards Live auctions Buy It Now on eBay Sold prices
As an eBay Partner Network affiliate, T206Cards.com may earn from qualifying purchases.
Related cards
Team card: #654 Minnesota Twins
More Minnesota Twins cards:
- #16 Steve Braun
- #49 Twins Field Leaders
- #61 1972 Batting Leaders
- #80 Tony Oliva
- #98 Dick Woodson
- #122 Jim Strickland
- #148 Dave Goltz
- #170 Harmon Killebrew
- #199 Bert Blyleven
- #259 Jim Holt
- #284 Glenn Borgmann
- #311 Joe Decker
- #330 Rod Carew
- #353 Steve Brye
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1973 Topps #228 card?
It is card #228 of the 660-card 1973 Topps Baseball set, picturing Bobby Darwin of the Minnesota Twins.
How many cards are in the 1973 Topps Baseball set?
660 cards, tracked as 679 collectible states. Numbers run from 1 to 660 with none skipped, in five series of 132 - #1-132, #133-264, #265-396, #397-528 and the high numbers, #529-660, printed in lower quantities; 19 cards carry catalogued print variations that the master set counts separately - fifteen Field Leaders cards, the #20 Stan Bahnsen, #31 Buddy Bell and #504 Earl Williams border-gap pairs and the two #280 Al Kaline printings.
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.