1978 Topps #46 Al Cowens
About Al Cowens
Cowens played 132 games in 1978, batting .274 with five home runs and 63 RBI as Kansas City again reached the ALCS. He went 2-for-15 as the Yankees won it three games to one. Topps #46 lists him with the Royals.
Al Cowens was a right fielder who played 13 major league seasons, 1974 through 1986, for the Kansas City Royals, California Angels, Detroit Tigers and Seattle Mariners. A Los Angeles native, he came up through the Royals system after they drafted him in 1969, and he played in Kansas City through 1979. His best year was 1977, when he hit .312 with 23 home runs and 112 RBI, won a Gold Glove, and finished second to Rod Carew in the American League MVP vote. He played in the ALCS in 1976, 1977 and 1978, each time against the Yankees, and lost all three. The Royals traded him to the Angels with Todd Cruz in December 1979 for Willie Aikens and Rance Mulliniks, and the Angels sent him to Detroit in May 1980 for Jason Thompson. He went to Seattle in 1982 and was released there in June 1986. He finished with 1,584 games, a .270 average, 108 home runs and 717 RBI. He died of a heart attack in 2002 at age 50, by then a scout for the Royals.
Sources: Wikipedia · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 158 | 11 | 113 | 23 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| SGC | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 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: #724 Kansas City Royals Team
More Kansas City Royals cards:
- #19 Darrell Porter
- #73 Andy Hassler
- #100 George Brett
- #129 Jim Colborn
- #157 Pete LaCock
- #183 Doug Bird
- #204 1977 Stolen Base Leaders
- #205 1977 Victory Leaders
- #218 Marty Pattin
- #248 Frank White
- #274 Freddie Patek
- #299 Whitey Herzog
- #331 Mark Littell
- #336 Steve Busby
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1978 Topps #46 card?
It is card #46 of the 726-card 1978 Topps Baseball set, picturing Al Cowens of the Kansas City Royals.
How many cards are in the 1978 Topps Baseball set?
726 cards, numbered 1 through 726 with none skipped and issued as a single series, and 728 collectible states: #23 Bump Wills comes with or without a black circle, and #374 Jose Morales with or without black stitching over the red laces, so the master set counts both states of each.
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.