1973 Topps #305 Willie Mays
About Willie Mays
Mays reached the 1973 set as a Met, after the May 11, 1972 trade that returned him to New York. That year, split between San Francisco and the Mets, he hit .250 with 8 home runs in 88 games. Card #1, in the first series, is the All-Time Home Run Leaders card he shares with Babe Ruth and Hank Aaron, with Mays printed as a Met. Card #305, in the third series, shows him with the Mets.
Willie Howard Mays Jr. (1931-2024), the Say Hey Kid, played 23 major league seasons (1948 in the Negro American League, then 1951-1952 and 1954-1973), almost all of them in center field for the New York and San Francisco Giants. New York writers hung the nickname on him during his rookie year for the greeting he used in place of hello, though which writer coined it has been argued over ever since. Mays reached the Giants in 1951 out of the Negro American League's Birmingham Black Barons and won Rookie of the Year, then lost most of two seasons to the Army. He returned in 1954 to take the batting title at .345, the National League Most Valuable Player award and a World Series title. In Game One of that Series he made his over-the-shoulder catch of Vic Wertz's drive. He moved west with the club in 1958 and won a second MVP in 1965. Across his career he led the National League in home runs four times, won twelve consecutive Gold Gloves from 1957 through 1968 and was an All-Star in 20 seasons. He finished with 660 home runs, third in history when he retired, and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1979 on the first ballot with 94.7 percent of the vote.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · Baseball Almanac · BaseballCardPedia · CBS Sports
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 5,396 | 3 | 162 | 949 | 989 | 996 | 800 | 1,486 | 11 |
| SGC | 1,908 | 1 | 8 | 110 | 295 | 395 | 402 | 650 | 47 |
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 Mays in this set: #1 All-Time Leaders
Team card: #389 New York Mets
More New York Mets cards:
- #1 All-Time Home Run Leaders
- #4 John Milner
- #30 Tug McGraw
- #55 Jon Matlack
- #87 Ken Boswell
- #107 Phil Hennigan
- #113 Jerry Grote
- #137 Jim Beauchamp
- #161 Ted Martinez
- #184 Jerry Koosman
- #223 Bud Harrelson
- #257 Mets Field Leaders
- #283 Ray Sadecki
- #329 Ed Kranepool
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1973 Topps #305 card?
It is card #305 of the 660-card 1973 Topps Baseball set, picturing Willie Mays of the New York Mets.
Is #305 Willie Mays's last card as an active player?
Yes. The 1973 set holds the last Topps cards of Roberto Clemente (#50) and Willie Mays (#305) as active players.
What are the key cards in the 1973 Topps set?
#615 1973 Rookie Third Basemen, which carries Mike Schmidt's rookie card beside Ron Cey and John Hilton, is the headline card of the set. The other key cards are #50 Roberto Clemente and #305 Willie Mays, the last Topps cards of both as active players, #174 Rich Gossage, his rookie card, and #220 Nolan Ryan. The high numbers, #529-660, are 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.