1976 Topps #83 Jim Spencer
About Jim Spencer
Card #83 still lists Spencer with the Texas Rangers. The 1975 Winter Meetings had moved him twice in two days: to the Angels for Bill Singer, then to the White Sox for Bill Melton and Steve Dunning. In Chicago he was hitting .341 on April 30, and pitchers worked around him, giving him a league-high 19 intentional walks. He set career highs with 131 hits, 70 RBIs and six stolen bases. His two errors produced a .998 fielding percentage, but George Scott of Milwaukee won the Gold Glove.
Jim Spencer was a left-handed first baseman who played 15 major-league seasons, 1968 to 1982, with the Angels, Rangers, White Sox, Yankees and Athletics. As a boy he asked Brooks Robinson for fielding tips and was told to keep his glove down near the dirt, and he retired with the highest lifetime fielding percentage of any first baseman. His grandfather, Ben Spencer, had a brief stint in the outfield for the 1913 Washington Senators. Out of Andover High School in suburban Baltimore, he was the Angels' first pick, 11th overall, in the first amateur draft in June 1965. In 1968 he led the Texas League in runs, home runs, RBIs and total bases for El Paso, shared MVP honors and earned a September call-up. He finished with a .250 average, 146 home runs and 599 RBIs. In 1980 he signed a four-year Yankees contract carrying a stipulation that became known as the Spencer Clause. A spring 1981 trade to Pittsburgh for Jason Thompson was voided by Commissioner Bowie Kuhn, and on May 20 the Yankees sent him to Oakland with Tom Underwood. The A's released him early in 1982. He died of a heart attack in Fort Lauderdale on February 10, 2002, at 54, the night after playing first base in a charity game.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 164 | 27 | 91 | 33 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 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: #172 Texas Rangers Team
More Texas Rangers cards:
- #7 Jim Umbarger
- #31 Len Randle
- #55 Gaylord Perry
- #70 Father & Son - Big Leaguers
- #106 Tom Grieve
- #148 Stan Thomas
- #204 1975 AL Strikeout Leaders
- #226 Jim Sundberg
- #250 Fergie Jenkins
- #279 Roy Howell
- #303 Steve Foucault
- #327 Dave Moates
- #360 Jeff Burroughs
- #388 Stan Perzanowski
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1976 Topps #83 card?
It is card #83 of the 660-card 1976 Topps Baseball set, picturing Jim Spencer of the Texas Rangers.
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.