1978 Topps #622 Champ Summers
About Champ Summers
The Reds optioned Summers to Triple-A Indianapolis just before opening day 1978, and he hit .368 with 34 home runs and 124 RBIs, earning American Association MVP and The Sporting News Minor League Player of the Year honors. Called up in September, he hit .257 in 13 games for Cincinnati with one home run into the upper red seats at Riverfront Stadium, then hit .370 with five homers on the Reds' tour of Japan. His #622 card shows the Reds.
Champ Summers was a left-handed-hitting outfielder and first baseman who played 11 seasons, 1974 to 1984, for the Athletics, Cubs, Reds, Tigers, Giants and Padres, hitting 54 home runs. He served in Vietnam as a paratrooper, earned a Purple Heart, and played college basketball at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, where he first played organized baseball as a senior. Oakland signed him in 1971 for $500 a month, and he reached the majors on May 4, 1974 at age 27, replacing Reggie Jackson in the ninth inning. His father gave him the nickname: he said the newborn looked like he had gone ten rounds with Joe Louis. Used mostly as a pinch-hitter until Detroit acquired him in 1979, he hit 38 of his career home runs over 1979 and 1980. His first and last major league homers were both pinch-hit grand slams. He was a Padres bench bat on the 1984 National League champions, and later coached for the Yankees and managed the Gateway Grizzlies in 2001. He is in the SIUE Athletics Hall of Fame.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 150 | 25 | 99 | 20 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| SGC | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 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: #526 Cincinnati Reds Team
More Cincinnati Reds cards:
- #5 Pete Rose
- #20 Pete Rose
- #47 Jack Billingham
- #80 Ken Griffey
- #106 Bill Plummer
- #126 Paul Moskau
- #149 Dale Murray
- #180 Dave Concepcion
- #202 1977 Home Run Leaders
- #203 1977 RBI Leaders
- #220 Pedro Borbon
- #246 Dan Driessen
- #273 Fred Norman
- #276 Bill Bonham
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1978 Topps #622 card?
It is card #622 of the 726-card 1978 Topps Baseball set, picturing Champ Summers of the Cincinnati Reds.
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.