1978 Topps #258 John Hiller
About John Hiller
Steve Foucault, acquired from Texas for Willie Horton in April 1977, edged Hiller out as the Tigers' stopper. Hiller split 45 games between relief and eight starts, going 8-14 with a 3.56 ERA and seven saves. In late September doctors found an enlarged liver. He reclaimed the closer role in 1978, going 9-4 with 15 saves and a 2.34 ERA in 51 relief appearances. Hiller's #258 is his 1978 Topps card, with Detroit.
John Hiller, a Toronto native who grew up playing hockey before turning to baseball, pitched 15 seasons for the Detroit Tigers (1965-1980), working mostly out of the bullpen with occasional spot starts. He broke in as a September call-up in 1965. A member of the 1968 World Series champion Tigers, he struck out the first six Cleveland batters of a game that August, a major league record at the time. In January 1971 he suffered a heart attack and underwent intestinal surgery, missing the entire 1971 season; he returned to the mound in July 1972 and helped Detroit win the AL East. His comeback peaked in 1973, when he set a then-major-league record with 38 saves and posted a 1.44 ERA, earning The Sporting News' Comeback Player of the Year and Fireman of the Year honors along with the Hutch Award. He made his only All-Star team in 1974, setting an American League record with 17 relief wins. Hiller retired in 1980 with an 87-76 record, a 2.83 ERA and 1,036 strikeouts, and still holds the Tigers' club record for career games pitched.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 101 | 16 | 57 | 23 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| SGC | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 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: #404 Detroit Tigers Team
More Detroit Tigers cards:
- #21 Steve Kemp
- #45 Mark Fidrych
- #68 Steve Foucault
- #94 Chuck Scrivener
- #124 Dave Rozema
- #151 Milt Wilcox
- #176 Milt May
- #232 Mickey Stanley
- #286 Ben Oglivie
- #342 Aurelio Rodriguez
- #370 Rusty Staub
- #385 Tito Fuentes
- #456 Vern Ruhle
- #480 Ron LeFlore
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1978 Topps #258 card?
It is card #258 of the 726-card 1978 Topps Baseball set, picturing John Hiller of the Detroit Tigers.
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.