1978 Topps #163 Bill North
About Bill North
After a slow start in 1978, North was traded by the Athletics to the Dodgers for Glenn Burke. He finished with 30 steals and a .230 average across both clubs. Los Angeles won the National League pennant, and he went 1-for-8 with 2 RBI in the World Series loss to the Yankees. Card #163 still lists him with Oakland.
Bill North was a switch-hitting center fielder who played 11 seasons in the majors, 1971 to 1981, for the Cubs, Athletics, Dodgers and Giants. He stole 395 bases, won two American League stolen-base titles, and from 1973 through 1976 recorded more putouts than any other major-league outfielder. A 12th-round Cubs pick in 1969 out of Central Washington State College, he led the Texas League with 47 steals and 91 runs for San Antonio in 1971. That fall he went to the Arizona Instructional League to learn switch-hitting, because Cubs manager Leo Durocher wanted to use his speed. Batting first or second for most of his career, he finished with a .365 on-base percentage, 43 points above the league average. He earned World Series rings with the 1973 and 1974 Athletics. Local sportswriters twice voted him his team's outstanding player, and a combative streak produced several fights on the field and in the clubhouse.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 126 | 17 | 79 | 22 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| SGC | 5 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 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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Related cards
Team card: #577 Oakland Athletics Team
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- #55 Mitchell Page
- #78 Pablo Torrealba
- #102 Matt Alexander
- #139 Wayne Gross
- #191 Rodney Scott
- #224 Jerry Tabb
- #261 Tim Hosley
- #298 Tony Armas
- #327 Rick Langford
- #353 Doug Bair
- #378 Bobby Winkles
- #406 Mike Jorgensen
- #434 Mike Norris
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1978 Topps #163 card?
It is card #163 of the 726-card 1978 Topps Baseball set, picturing Bill North of the Oakland Athletics.
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.