1973 Topps #540 Cleon Jones
About Cleon Jones
Jones opened 1973 with the first two-home-run game of his career, against Philadelphia, and had his second on September 19 against Pittsburgh, opening a series at Shea Stadium with first place at stake. The next day, in the 13th inning, Dave Augustine's drive hit the top of the wall and came straight back to Jones, whose throw to Wayne Garrett and the relay to Ron Hodges cut down Richie Zisk at the plate. His #540 is a fifth-series high number.
Cleon Joseph Jones, born in 1942 in Plateau, a section of Mobile, Alabama, signed with the New York Mets as an amateur free agent in July 1962 after playing at Alabama A&M and for the Grambling State Tigers. A left-handed-throwing right-handed hitter with a reputation for one of the strongest arms in the National League, he spent thirteen major league seasons, twelve of them with the Mets, before finishing his career with the Chicago White Sox in 1976. Jones played left field for the Mets through the franchise's rise from losing club to 1969 World Series champion, earning an All-Star selection that season while hitting .340, a club record until 1998. He finished with a .281 batting average, 93 home runs and 524 RBIs. His 64 career outfield assists included ten in both 1966 and 1970. After retiring as a player, Jones returned to the Mets organization as a minor-league hitting instructor, helping develop future major leaguers. He was inducted into the New York Mets Hall of Fame in 1991 and later into the New York State Baseball Hall of Fame.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 173 | 5 | 48 | 92 | 20 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| SGC | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 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.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the 1973 Topps #540 card?
It is card #540 of the 660-card 1973 Topps Baseball set, picturing Cleon Jones of the New York Mets.
Why is #540 harder to find?
It is a high number card from the fifth and last print series, #529-660 - the scarce end of the set.
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.