1976 Topps #488 Claude Osteen
About Claude Osteen
Osteen's final big-league season was 1975 with the Chicago White Sox, who signed him in April after the Cardinals released him. He went 7-16 with a 4.36 ERA in 37 starts and pitched his last game on September 27. Card #488 in the 1976 Topps set shows him as a White Sox pitcher; Chicago released him on April 5, 1976, in its last spring-training cuts.
Claude Wilson Osteen was born August 9, 1939, in Caney Springs, Tennessee, the son of a country-store owner who pitched for an amateur team. He starred at Reading High School outside Cincinnati, going 23-1 in his prep career with a 16-0 senior season for the 1957 state champions. He signed with the Cincinnati Redlegs straight out of school and reached the majors at seventeen without a day in the minors first. The seasoning came afterward, at Wenatchee, Seattle and Indianapolis, since the Reds never gave him a season-long chance to start. In September 1961 the Reds traded him to the Washington Senators for pitcher Dave Sisler, and Washington gave him the rotation spot he wanted, though on a consistently sub-.500 club. In December 1964 the Senators traded him to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the deal that brought Frank Howard, Ken McMullen and Pete Richert to Washington. Over nine Dodgers seasons alongside Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale he became a three-time All-Star, a 20-game winner twice, and the man who turned the 1965 World Series. He finished with Houston, St. Louis and the Chicago White Sox at 196-195 with a 3.30 ERA over 18 seasons, then coached big-league pitchers for decades. He is a member of the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · National Baseball Hall of Fame · Baseball Almanac · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 113 | 15 | 52 | 41 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| SGC | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 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.
Find this card
Search T206 Cards Shop 1976 Topps cards Live auctions Buy It Now on eBay Sold prices
As an eBay Partner Network affiliate, T206Cards.com may earn from qualifying purchases.
Related cards
Team card: #656 Chicago White Sox Team
More Chicago White Sox cards:
- #23 Brian Downing
- #47 Jesse Jefferson
- #80 Jim Kaat
- #110 Carlos May
- #131 Bill Stein
- #154 Bucky Dent
- #180 Rich Gossage
- #205 1975 Major League Leading Fireman
- #212 Pat Kelly
- #237 Dave Hamilton
- #258 Nyls Nyman
- #282 Dan Osborn
- #309 Bill Melton
- #333 Bob Coluccio
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1976 Topps #488 card?
It is card #488 of the 660-card 1976 Topps Baseball set, picturing Claude Osteen of the Chicago White Sox.
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.