1976 Topps #590 Rookie Outfielders - Henry Cruz / Chet Lemon / Ellis Valentine / Terry Whitfield
On this card: Henry Cruz, Chet Lemon, Ellis Valentine, Terry Whitfield
About this card
Cards #589-599 are the eleven four-player Rookie Prospects cards. A Rookie Prospects card is a rookie card for the players on it who had no earlier Topps flagship card - on #590, #593, #597 and #598 one of the four had already appeared on one, and the rookie-card answer on each card names the players it counts for.
The story on this card
Cruz made the Dodgers' Opening Day roster in 1976 and hit his first major league home run on April 25, a three-run shot off Ken Crosby at Dodger Stadium. On May 5 at Wrigley Field he hit two homers in a game where the Dodgers' seven home runs set a club record. He finished at .182 with 4 homers in 88 at-bats and went back to Albuquerque in August. His Rookie Prospects card, #590, is shared with Chet Lemon (White Sox), Ellis Valentine (Expos) and Terry Whitfield (Yankees). Henry Cruz was a left-handed outfielder from Puerto Rico who played 171 games for the Dodgers and White Sox from 1975 to 1978. He hit .353 at Albuquerque in 1977 and later hit over .300 in four Mexican League seasons.
Lemon led off for the 1976 White Sox, who finished sixth in the American League West at 64-97 while wearing Bill Veeck's retro collared uniforms. Six weeks into the season he hit his first major-league home run, an upper-deck shot off Frank Tanana, and he ended the year at .246 with 4 home runs. #590 is the Rookie Prospects card he shares with Henry Cruz of the Dodgers, Ellis Valentine of the Expos and Terry Whitfield of the Yankees, a key rookie card of the set. Outfielder for the White Sox (1975-81) and Tigers (1982-90), a three-time All-Star who set an American League record with 512 outfield putouts in 1977 and started in center field for Detroit's 1984 World Series champions.
Right field was Valentine's to take in 1976, with Gary Carter moved back behind the plate to make room. He was hitting .238 when Montreal sent him to the Denver Bears on May 16. He rejoined the Expos in mid-July and finished at .279 with 7 home runs and 39 RBIs. His rookie card is #590, a four-player Rookie Prospects card with Henry Cruz of the Dodgers, Chet Lemon of the White Sox and Terry Whitfield of the Yankees. Right fielder Ellis Valentine played for Montreal, New York, California and Texas from 1975 through 1985. He hit .278 with 123 home runs in 894 games, then became an addiction counselor after his playing career.
Whitfield hit .272 in 28 games for the 1975 Yankees, driving in 7 runs. In 1976 he appeared once in their outfield. Topps included him on the four-player Rookie Prospects card #590 alongside Henry Cruz of the Dodgers, Chet Lemon of the White Sox and Ellis Valentine of the Expos. Left-handed-hitting outfielder, a first-round pick of the Yankees in 1971, who played for the Yankees, Giants and Dodgers, won two Best Nine Awards with Japan's Seibu Lions, and later invented the Terry-Toss soft-toss machine.
Sources: Wikipedia (Henry Cruz) · Wikipedia (Chet Lemon) · Wikipedia (Ellis Valentine) · Wikipedia (Terry Whitfield) · SABR BioProject (Henry Cruz) · SABR BioProject (Chet Lemon) · SABR BioProject (Ellis Valentine) · National Baseball Hall of Fame · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 391 | 27 | 134 | 183 | 22 | 12 | 2 | 11 | 0 |
| SGC | 18 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 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 cards: #46 Los Angeles Dodgers Team, #656 Chicago White Sox Team, #216 Montreal Expos Team, #17 New York Yankees Team
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Frequently asked questions
What is the 1976 Topps #590 card?
It is card #590 of the 660-card 1976 Topps Baseball set, picturing Henry Cruz, Chet Lemon, Ellis Valentine and Terry Whitfield. Cards #589-599 are the eleven four-player Rookie Prospects cards. A Rookie Prospects card is a rookie card for the players on it who had no earlier Topps flagship card - on #590, #593, #597 and #598 one of the four had already appeared on one, and the rookie-card answer on each card names the players it counts for.
Is 1976 Topps #590 a rookie card?
Yes - #590 is the rookie card of Henry Cruz, Chet Lemon and Ellis Valentine. Terry Whitfield had already appeared on an earlier Topps card, so it is not his rookie card.
How many cards are in the 1976 Topps Baseball set?
660 cards, numbered 1 through 660 with none skipped and printed in equal quantities as a single series. No card carries a catalogued print variation, so the base set and the master set are the same 660 cards.
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.