1979 Topps #57 Eric Rasmussen
About Eric Rasmussen
Rasmussen is listed with the Padres on #57 after St. Louis traded him to San Diego in May 1978 for outfielder George Hendrick. That year he put up a 4.09 ERA over 206 2/3 innings and 34 starts. He moved between starting and relief for the Padres afterward, going 6-9 in 1979, and with John D'Acquisto, who taught him guitar, he formed a band called Wild Pitch after that season.
Eric Rasmussen was a right-handed pitcher who worked in the majors from 1975 to 1983 for the St. Louis Cardinals, San Diego Padres and Kansas City Royals. Born Harold Ralph Rasmussen and known as Harry, he legally changed his name to Eric in the 1976-77 offseason. A fourth-round Red Sox pick in 1971 who chose the University of New Orleans instead, he was taken by the Cardinals in the 32nd round in 1973. He finished 50-77 with a 3.85 ERA, and his 14 wins in 1978 split between St. Louis and San Diego were his career high. After the Padres released him he pitched in the Mexican League for Yucatan and returned to the Cardinals in 1982. In 1983 he threw a shutout in his first start for Kansas City, making him the only pitcher to shut out a team in both his National League and American League debuts. He then coached for decades, with Cleveland's minor league system from 1988 and the Minnesota Twins organization from 1991, becoming minor league pitching coordinator after 2008.
Sources: Wikipedia · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 62 | 1 | 18 | 17 | 12 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| SGC | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 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: #479 San Diego Padres / Roger Craig
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- #30 Dave Winfield
- #116 Ozzie Smith
- #138 Mark Lee
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- #194 Randy Jones
- #247 Tucker Ashford
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- #292 Don Reynolds
- #321 Gaylord Perry
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Frequently asked questions
What is the 1979 Topps #57 card?
It is card #57 of the 726-card 1979 Topps Baseball set, picturing Eric Rasmussen of the San Diego Padres.
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.