1974 Topps #506 Ed Farmer
About Ed Farmer
A three-team deal on March 19, 1974 sent Farmer from Detroit to the Yankees, the same trade that moved Jim Perry from Detroit to Cleveland. New York wanted him in the minors, Farmer said he would return to his premed studies, and the Yankees sold him to the Phillies two days later. He pitched 14 games for Philadelphia with an 8.42 ERA, and on December 3 the Phillies traded him to the Brewers. His #506 still lists him with the Tigers.
Ed Farmer was a 6-foot-5 right-handed reliever who grew up on Chicago's South Side and pitched for eight teams between 1971 and 1983. A fifth-round Cleveland pick out of St. Rita High School in 1967, he spent his first seasons bouncing between Cleveland, Detroit, Philadelphia and the minors. Milwaukee released him in April 1976, and surgery to remove a bone spur from his right shoulder kept him out of professional baseball that year. A car struck him on his bike while he trained for a 1977 Orioles tryout, yet he pitched one game for Baltimore that season. The White Sox acquired him from Texas on June 15, 1979, and he saved 54 games for them through 1981, including 30 in 1980, then a White Sox record and the year he made the All-Star team. He faced Pete Rose in that game and got a double play. His 1979 plunking of Al Cowens led to a June 1980 brawl at Comiskey Park, when Cowens charged the mound. He finished with 75 career saves. Farmer received a kidney transplant from his brother Tom in 1991, then spent 29 seasons as a White Sox broadcaster, known to fans as Farmio. He was inducted into the Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame and the Chicago Catholic League 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 | 181 | 5 | 53 | 100 | 13 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 0 |
| SGC | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 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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Related cards
Team card: #94 Detroit Tigers
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- #115 Willie Horton
- #138 Ed Brinkman
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- #186 Fred Scherman
- #208 1973 Leading Firemen
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- #240 Joe Coleman
- #266 Jim Northrup
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- #316 Jim Perry
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1974 Topps #506 card?
It is card #506 of the 660-card 1974 Topps Baseball set, picturing Ed Farmer of the Detroit Tigers.
How many cards are in the 1974 Topps Baseball set?
660 cards, tracked as 678 collectible states. Numbers run from 1 to 660 with none skipped, issued all at once as a single series and printed in equal quantities; 17 cards carry catalogued print variations that the master set counts separately - fourteen San Diego / "Washington Nat'l Lea." pairs (thirteen Padres player cards and the #226 team card), the three-state #599 Rookie Pitchers, the #608 Apodaco misspelling and the #654 Jesus Alou front without a position.
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.