1978 Topps #640 Lee May
About Lee May
May hit 27 home runs and drove in 99 runs for the 1977 Orioles, batting .253 over 150 games, 110 of them at first base. His 1978 Topps card, #640, lists him with the Orioles. Eddie Murray, whose rookie card is #36 in the same set, later shared first base and designated hitter duty with him.
Lee May was a right-handed first baseman and designated hitter for the Reds, Astros, Orioles and Royals. He hit 354 home runs and drove in 1,244 runs across 18 major-league seasons, batting .267. From 1968 through 1978, he reached both 20 homers and 80 RBI every year. Teammate Tommy Helms gave him the nickname "the Big Bopper from Birmingham," later shortened to "the Big Bopper." May signed with Cincinnati for $12,000 after playing three sports at Parker High School. Tampa manager Johnny Vander Meer converted him from the outfield to first base. After retiring as a player, May became Kansas City's hitting coach and was on the staff of its 1985 World Series championship team.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · BaseballCardPedia
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 160 | 19 | 85 | 40 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| SGC | 7 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 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: #96 Baltimore Orioles Team
More Baltimore Orioles cards:
- #4 Brooks Robinson
- #9 Doug DeCinces
- #36 Eddie Murray
- #65 Ken Singleton
- #119 Denny Martinez
- #160 Jim Palmer
- #188 Al Bumbry
- #205 1977 Victory Leaders
- #211 Earl Weaver
- #237 Rich Dauer
- #262 Rudy May
- #287 Kiko Garcia
- #315 Mark Belanger
- #341 Mike Flanagan
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1978 Topps #640 card?
It is card #640 of the 726-card 1978 Topps Baseball set, picturing Lee May of the Baltimore Orioles.
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.