1977 Topps #218 John Wathan
About John Wathan
A hand injury to Buck Martinez brought Wathan up from Omaha in May 1976. He hit .286 in 27 games for Kansas City that season. His rookie card was 1977 Topps #218. That first winter after reaching the majors, he worked at his father's flying service and refereed high school basketball in Iowa.
John Wathan spent ten major league seasons with Kansas City, playing catcher, first base and the outfield. He hit .262 in 860 games and stole 105 bases. In 1982 he stole 36 bases while appearing in 120 games behind the plate. The Royals selected him fourth overall in the January 1971 draft from the University of San Diego. His impressions of John Wayne earned him the nickname "Duke." After playing on Kansas City's 1985 World Series champions, he coached for the club in 1986 and managed Triple-A Omaha in 1987. He managed the Royals from August 1987 into 1991, winning 92 games in 1989. As California's acting manager in 1992, he filled in while Buck Rodgers recovered from injuries suffered in a bus accident.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 85 | 4 | 45 | 27 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| SGC | 8 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 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: #371 Kansas City Royals Team
More Kansas City Royals cards:
- #1 1976 Batting Leaders
- #46 Buck Martinez
- #75 Dennis Leonard
- #93 Tom Poquette
- #117 Frank White
- #141 Mark Littell
- #171 Ken Sanders
- #193 Larry Gura
- #231 George Brett
- #244 John Mayberry
- #262 Al Cowens
- #290 Amos Otis
- #314 Steve Mingori
- #340 Hal McRae
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1977 Topps #218 card?
It is card #218 of the 660-card 1977 Topps Baseball set, picturing John Wathan of the Kansas City Royals.
Is 1977 Topps #218 a rookie card?
Yes - #218 is the 1977 Topps rookie card of John Wathan.
How many cards are in the 1977 Topps Baseball set?
660 cards, numbered 1 through 660 with none skipped and distributed 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.