1976 Topps #121 Tony Solaita
About Tony Solaita
Solaita hit 16 home runs in 231 at-bats in 1975, the best ratio in the American League and second in the majors to Dave Kingman. On September 7, 1975, he hit three homers in one game at Anaheim Stadium, the first player to do so there. Topps #121 lists him with Kansas City. He was sold to the California Angels, who staged a"Samoan Salute to Tony Solaita" with Polynesian dancers and musicians near the end of 1976.
Tony Solaita was a left-handed first baseman and designated hitter, the only major leaguer born in American Samoa. Born in Nuuuli, he grew up in Hawaii and California and signed with the Yankees out of Jefferson High School in Daly City. In 1968 he hit 51 home runs, two of them in the playoffs, for High Point-Thomasville, more than anyone in organized baseball, and was named Topps Minor League Player of the Year; the Yankees gave him one game that September. After years in the minors he was taken by Kansas City in the December 1973 Rule 5 draft and became a part-time power bat for the Royals, Angels, Expos and Blue Jays through 1979, finishing with 50 home runs in 525 games. He then played four seasons in Japan for the Nippon-Ham Fighters, where he hit 45 home runs in 1980, still the club's single-season record. Solaita was killed in Tafuna, American Samoa, on February 10, 1990, in a dispute over land.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 141 | 13 | 67 | 50 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 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.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the 1976 Topps #121 card?
It is card #121 of the 660-card 1976 Topps Baseball set, picturing Tony Solaita of the Kansas City Royals.
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.