1979 Topps #723 Pirates Prospects - Dale Berra / Eugenio Cotes / Ben Wiltbank
On this card: Dale Berra, Eugenio Cotes, Ben Wiltbank
About this card
Cards #701-726 are the 26 three-player Prospects cards, one per club - AL clubs first, each league in alphabetical order by city - with black-and-white player photos on the front. A Prospects card is a rookie card for the players on it who had no earlier Topps flagship card. On #703, #705, #712, #718 and #723, one or two of the players never reached the major leagues.
The story on this card
Berra opened 1979 in Pittsburgh but was hitting .196 when the June 28 trade for Bill Madlock sent him to Portland, where he hit .324 in 56 games. Recalled in September, he homered in his first game back and played shortstop in 10 of the last 30 games as the Pirates won the division. Ineligible for the postseason, he still received a full World Series share and a ring. Card #723 is the Pirates Prospects card, his rookie card, shared with Eugenio Cotes and Ben Wiltbank. Yogi Berra's son was the Pirates' starting shortstop in 1982 and 1983 and hit 49 home runs in an 11-year career that ran from 1977 to 1987.
Cotes batted .280 with 13 home runs and 67 RBIs for Double-A Shreveport in 1978. He also stole 35 bases there and played 6 games for Triple-A Columbus. His 1979 Topps rookie card, Pirates Prospects #723, listed him with Dale Berra and Ben Wiltbank, all with Pittsburgh. Eugenio Cotes batted .341 for the Salem Pirates in 1977, combining 16 home runs with 40 stolen bases. The outfielder drove in 102 runs in 113 Carolina League games.
Wiltbank made 25 starts for Salem in 1978, going 11-10 with a 2.92 ERA, and also appeared once for Triple-A Columbus. His 1979 Topps rookie card was Pirates Prospects #723, shared with Dale Berra and Eugenio Cotes; all three were listed with Pittsburgh. At Niagara Falls in 1977, Ben Wiltbank struck out 82 batters in 76 innings. He started all 12 of his appearances and finished 6-5 with a 3.08 ERA.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · The Baseball Cube (1) · The Baseball Cube (2) · BaseballCardPedia · Trading Card Database
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 104 | 16 | 56 | 16 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 0 |
| SGC | 7 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 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
More Pittsburgh Pirates cards:
- #1 1978 Batting Leaders
- #4 1978 Stolen Base Leaders
- #28 Steve Brye
- #55 Willie Stargell
- #70 John Candelaria
- #92 Jim Bibby
- #117 Grant Jackson
- #147 Dave Hamilton
- #165 Frank Taveras
- #189 Eddie Whitson
- #208 Clarence Gaston
- #223 Kent Tekulve
- #264 Don Robinson
- #286 Duffy Dyer
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1979 Topps #723 card?
It is card #723 of the 726-card 1979 Topps Baseball set, picturing Dale Berra, Eugenio Cotes and Ben Wiltbank. Cards #701-726 are the 26 three-player Prospects cards, one per club - AL clubs first, each league in alphabetical order by city - with black-and-white player photos on the front. A Prospects card is a rookie card for the players on it who had no earlier Topps flagship card. On #703, #705, #712, #718 and #723, one or two of the players never reached the major leagues.
Is 1979 Topps #723 a rookie card?
Yes - #723 is a rookie card for every player pictured on it: Dale Berra, Eugenio Cotes and Ben Wiltbank.
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.