1974 Topps #500 Lee May
About Lee May
A 21-game hitting streak in 1973 set a Houston club record, and May collected his 1,000th major league hit during that stretch. He finished the season batting .270 with 28 home runs. His Astros card, #500, appeared in 1974 Topps. On April 29, 1974, he hit 2 home runs in one inning.
Lee May was a right-handed first baseman and designated hitter for the Reds, Astros, Orioles and Royals. He hit 354 home runs and drove in 1,244 runs across 18 major-league seasons, batting .267. From 1968 through 1978, he reached both 20 homers and 80 RBI every year. Teammate Tommy Helms gave him the nickname "the Big Bopper from Birmingham," later shortened to "the Big Bopper." May signed with Cincinnati for $12,000 after playing three sports at Parker High School. Tampa manager Johnny Vander Meer converted him from the outfield to first base. After retiring as a player, May became Kansas City's hitting coach and was on the staff of its 1985 World Series championship team.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · SABR Games Project · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 214 | 3 | 81 | 115 | 5 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 0 |
| SGC | 1 | 0 | 0 | 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: #154 Houston Astros
More Houston Astros cards:
- #21 Bob Gallagher
- #31 Astros Field Leaders
- #43 Jim Wynn
- #67 Tommy Helms
- #91 Ken Forsch
- #177 Dave Roberts
- #200 Cesar Cedeno
- #224 Roger Metzger
- #256 Tom Griffin
- #279 Jim Crawford
- #293 Milt May
- #304 Don Wilson
- #328 Skip Jutze
- #337 All-Star Center Fielders
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1974 Topps #500 card?
It is card #500 of the 660-card 1974 Topps Baseball set, picturing Lee May of the Houston Astros.
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.