1979 Topps #601 Dave LaRoche
About Dave LaRoche
LaRoche's 1979 card, #601, shows him with California. That season he went 7-11 with a 5.57 ERA and saved 10 games. He struck out 59 in 85 2/3 innings across 53 appearances, one of them a start. He also pitched 1 1/3 innings with a strikeout in the ALCS as Baltimore beat the Angels three games to one.
Dave LaRoche was a left-handed reliever who pitched 14 seasons, 1970 through 1983, for the Angels, Twins, Cubs, Indians and Yankees. He finished 65-58 with a 3.53 ERA and 126 saves. He struck out 819 batters in 1,049 1/3 innings and made the American League All-Star team in 1976 and 1977. He threw his own variant of the eephus pitch, which he called the "La Lob." Born David Garcia in Colorado Springs, he took his stepfather's surname at age seven, reportedly because classmates teased him over a bumbling Sergeant Garcia on the Zorro television series. The Angels drafted him in the fifth round in 1967 out of West High School in Torrance, California. With the Yankees he pitched one inning with two strikeouts in the 1981 World Series, which the Dodgers won four games to two. His sons Adam and Andy both reached the majors, and he later coached in the minors, including as pitching coach of the Brooklyn Cyclones and, in 2018, the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp.
Sources: Wikipedia · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 81 | 1 | 26 | 34 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 0 |
| SGC | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 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: #424 California Angels / Jim Fregosi
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- #48 Merv Rettenmund
- #71 Brian Downing
- #115 Nolan Ryan
- #212 Carney Lansford
- #267 Joe Rudi
- #291 Tom Griffin
- #313 Dyar Miller
- #322 Danny Goodwin
- #339 Ron Jackson
- #368 Don Aase
- #402 Paul Hartzell
- #417 All-Time Record Holders: Strikeouts
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1979 Topps #601 card?
It is card #601 of the 726-card 1979 Topps Baseball set, picturing Dave LaRoche of the California Angels.
How many cards are in the 1979 Topps Baseball set?
726 cards, numbered 1 through 726 with none skipped and issued as a single series, tracked as 727 collectible states: #369 Bump Wills comes with a Rangers or a Blue Jays team banner, and the master set counts both.
Sources: Trading Card Database, PSA, 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.