1977 Topps #171 Ken Sanders
About Ken Sanders
Most of Sanders's 34 games in 1976 came with the Mets, who sold his contract to the Royals late in the season. He made three appearances for Kansas City, which made him one of four players to wear both the Athletics and Royals uniforms in that city. For the year he went 1-2 with a 2.70 ERA over 50 innings. Card #171 in the 1977 Topps set shows him with the Royals. He started 1977 in the Brewers' farm system.
Ken Sanders was a right-handed relief pitcher who spent parts of ten major league seasons, from 1964 to 1976. He pitched for eight clubs: the Athletics in Kansas City and Oakland, the Red Sox, Brewers, Twins, Indians, Angels, Mets and Royals. A St. Louis native, he signed with Kansas City in 1960 after a month at St. Louis University, and he started and relieved in the minors until he became a full-time reliever in 1964. With the Milwaukee Brewers he led all of Major League Baseball in 1971 with 83 appearances, 77 games finished and 31 saves, earning The Sporting News American League Fireman of the Year award. Brewers manager Dave Bristol nicknamed him "Bulldog" for his mound demeanor. Sanders finished his career with a 29-45 record, a 2.97 ERA and 86 saves, and later worked in real estate.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 118 | 14 | 76 | 25 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| SGC | 14 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
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
- #193 Larry Gura
- #218 John Wathan
- #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 #171 card?
It is card #171 of the 660-card 1977 Topps Baseball set, picturing Ken Sanders of the Kansas City Royals.
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.