1978 Topps #680 Vida Blue
About Vida Blue
The Athletics sent Blue to San Francisco in March 1978 for seven players and $300,000, and he went 18-10 with a 2.79 ERA and was named Pitcher of the Year by The Sporting News. Topps #680 still lists him with the Athletics.
Vida Blue was a left-handed power pitcher who worked for the Oakland Athletics, San Francisco Giants and Kansas City Royals between 1969 and 1986. His fastball sat near 94 miles per hour and could reach 100. In 1971 he went 24-8 with a 1.82 ERA and 301 strikeouts and won both the American League Cy Young Award and the MVP Award. He was part of the Oakland club that took five straight AL West titles from 1971 to 1975 and three consecutive World Series, 1972 through 1974. Blue made six All-Star teams and was the first of five pitchers to start the All-Star Game for both leagues, the AL in 1971 and the NL in 1978. He finished 209-161 with a 3.27 ERA and 2,175 strikeouts. Born in Mansfield, Louisiana, he was a quarterback recruited by Notre Dame, Purdue and Houston before he signed with the Athletics in 1967. After pleading guilty to attempting to buy cocaine, he was suspended for the 1984 season, then returned to the Giants for 1985 and 1986. He died in 2023.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 235 | 30 | 110 | 58 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 5 | 0 |
| SGC | 16 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 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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Team card: #577 Oakland Athletics Team
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Frequently asked questions
What is the 1978 Topps #680 card?
It is card #680 of the 726-card 1978 Topps Baseball set, picturing Vida Blue 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.