1976 Topps #494 Craig Swan
About Craig Swan
Swan arrived at 1976 spring training at 206 pounds after working with the Arizona State trainer, and he made the Mets rotation as the fifth starter behind Seaver, Koosman, Matlack and Mickey Lolich. His third start was a five-hit complete-game shutout of Atlanta with 11 strikeouts. Five straight losses in May and early June gave way to a six-start run with a 1.84 ERA, and he finished 6-9 with a 3.54 ERA in 22 starts. His 1976 Topps card is #494.
Craig Swan was a right-handed starter who spent twelve seasons with the New York Mets, 1973 to 1984, finishing with two outings for the California Angels. He threw a 90-95 mph fastball with good movement and an occasional slider, and he pitched through some of the worst Mets teams on record. At 14 he threw out the first pitch before Game 5 of the 1965 World Series at Dodger Stadium. At Arizona State he allowed one run in 18 innings of the 1972 College World Series, a 0.50 ERA that tied the tournament record, and the Mets took him in the third round that June. He led the National League in ERA in 1978. After signing a five-year, $3.125 million contract, he was the highest-paid pitcher in club history at the time, then tore his rotator cuff and became the first player to come back successfully from that injury. He finished with a 59-72 record and a 3.74 ERA, then trained at the Rolf Institute and opened a practice in Connecticut.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 143 | 31 | 66 | 41 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SGC | 4 | 2 | 2 | 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.
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Related cards
Team card: #531 New York Mets Team
More New York Mets cards:
- #5 Tom Seaver
- #16 Bob Apodaca
- #40 Dave Kingman
- #64 Jerry Koosman
- #93 Mike Phillips
- #120 Rusty Staub
- #143 Jerry Grote
- #166 Skip Lockwood
- #190 Jon Matlack
- #193 1975 NL Home Run Leaders
- #199 1975 NL Victory Leaders
- #201 1975 NL ERA Leaders
- #203 1975 NL Strikeout Leaders
- #222 Wayne Garrett
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1976 Topps #494 card?
It is card #494 of the 660-card 1976 Topps Baseball set, picturing Craig Swan of the New York Mets.
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.