1978 Topps #84 Kent Tekulve
About Kent Tekulve
With Gossage gone, the Pirates stayed in-house and made Tekulve the closer. He pitched in 91 games and saved 31 with a 2.33 ERA. He was named NL Pitcher of the Month for August and finished second to Rollie Fingers for the Rolaids Fireman of the Year award. On September 29 he won both ends of a doubleheader against the Phillies, and on October 1 he saved the finale, but Pittsburgh ended a game and a half back. His 1978 Topps card is #84, with the Pirates.
Kent Tekulve was a right-handed submarine reliever who pitched 16 seasons in the majors, 1974 into 1985 for the Pittsburgh Pirates, then for the Phillies and, in his final year, the Reds. Undrafted after Marietta College in 1969, he went to a Forbes Field tryout that July, sat in the stands while others worked out, and was signed on the spot by scout Dick Coury when he finally got to throw. The Pirates moved him to relief in 1970, and he developed the low delivery after watching Ted Abernathy of the Reds. He debuted on May 20, 1974, with one inning against Montreal, and made 1,050 appearances without a single start. He led the National League in games four times, appeared in 90 or more games three times, and was an All-Star in 1980. The Pirates traded him to Philadelphia on April 20, 1985 for Al Holland, and in 1987, at 40, he pitched in 90 games. He finished 94-90 with a 2.85 ERA and 184 saves, and he holds the National League record for career innings in relief. He worked Phillies telecasts from 1991 to 1997, later served as a Pirates analyst, and had a heart transplant on September 5, 2014.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 240 | 61 | 146 | 30 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| SGC | 5 | 1 | 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: #606 Pittsburgh Pirates Team
More Pittsburgh Pirates cards:
- #28 Ed Ott
- #53 Phil Garner
- #138 Larry Demery
- #165 Rennie Stennett
- #190 John Candelaria
- #201 1977 Batting Leaders
- #204 1977 Stolen Base Leaders
- #207 1977 ERA Leaders
- #223 Bruce Kison
- #255 Jerry Reuss
- #283 Omar Moreno
- #308 Jim Rooker
- #323 Jim Fregosi
- #383 Mario Mendoza
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1978 Topps #84 card?
It is card #84 of the 726-card 1978 Topps Baseball set, picturing Kent Tekulve of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
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.