1973 Topps #95 Steve Blass
About Steve Blass
Blass was selected to pitch in the 1972 All-Star Game and gave up one run in his only inning. He finished sixth in the National League in ERA, and on October 1 the Mets chased him in the first inning, denying him a 20th win. In the spring of 1973 he pitched well at Pirates camp in Bradenton, Florida, then gave up five runs in five innings on Opening Day against the Cardinals. His 1973 Topps card is #95, a first-series issue with the Pirates.
Steve Blass, a right-hander who signed with Pittsburgh out of a Connecticut high school in 1960, pitched his entire ten-season career for the Pirates, breaking in during 1964 and settling in as a rotation regular from 1966 on. He peaked between 1968 and 1972, including an 18-6 season with a 2.12 ERA in 1968. His signature moment came in the 1971 World Series against the Baltimore Orioles, where he threw two complete-game victories, including the clincher in Game Seven, finishing runner-up for Series MVP behind Roberto Clemente. After 1972 he lost his control almost overnight, a decline so sudden and unexplained that it became known as Steve Blass disease. He retired in 1975, then spent decades as a Pirates broadcaster and was later inducted into the Pittsburgh Pirates and Charleston, West Virginia baseball halls of fame. He finished with a 103-76 record and a 3.63 ERA over 1,597 1/3 innings.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 422 | 16 | 201 | 170 | 26 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| SGC | 7 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 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 #95 card?
It is card #95 of the 660-card 1973 Topps Baseball set, picturing Steve Blass of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
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.