1979 Topps #165 Frank Taveras
About Frank Taveras
Taveras made three errors in the Pirates' first 11 games of 1979, and on April 19 Pittsburgh sent him to the Mets for Tim Foli and minor-league pitcher Greg Field. Foli played for the Pirates' 1979 World Series champions, and Howie Haak, the scout who had signed Taveras, said he had opposed the trade. Taveras played 164 games for the two clubs that year with 178 hits and 44 steals. Card #165 carries the Pirates, the club he left in April.
Frank Taveras was a speedy shortstop from Las Matas de Santa Cruz in the Dominican Republic who played from 1971 to 1982 for the Pirates, Mets and Expos. Scout Howie Haak signed him in January 1968 for a $3,500 bonus while he was playing for the Dominican National Police team, and he later called Roberto Clemente his guide, mentor and counselor. He made the Pirates for good in 1974 and held the shortstop job through 1978, led the majors in stolen bases in 1977, and finished with 300 steals, 1,029 hits and two home runs. His glove was erratic, averaging 32 errors a year from 1975 to 1978, and Pittsburgh fans often booed him. He appeared in the 1974 and 1975 NLCS, his only postseason, and was traded to the Mets in 1979. In the Dominican League he spent ten seasons with Aguilas Cibaenas. He was nicknamed the Pittsburgh Stealer.
Sources: SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 92 | 10 | 52 | 25 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SGC | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 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: #244 Pittsburgh Pirates / Chuck Tanner
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- #4 1978 Stolen Base Leaders
- #28 Steve Brye
- #55 Willie Stargell
- #70 John Candelaria
- #92 Jim Bibby
- #117 Grant Jackson
- #147 Dave Hamilton
- #189 Eddie Whitson
- #208 Clarence Gaston
- #223 Kent Tekulve
- #264 Don Robinson
- #286 Duffy Dyer
- #308 Bert Blyleven
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1979 Topps #165 card?
It is card #165 of the 726-card 1979 Topps Baseball set, picturing Frank Taveras of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
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.