1973 Topps Baseball Cards

By Patrick Mondout

If collector's were disappointed with the dearth of sets in 1972, they had to be nearing downright depression as the Topps managed only an uninspired team checklist insert set and a set of candy lids (see below) in addition to their smallest standard set (660 cards) of the decade. The card designs were hardly inspiring, though the previous two years would have been hard to top in any case.  

1973 Cards at a Glance Kellogg's forth annual set was their first since 1948 to not feature 3D graphics. Read more about these cards and view a checklist here.  Our coverage of the 1973 O-Pee-Chee baseball cards is here. TCMA produced another minor league set for Cedar Rapids, now known as the Astros while Caruso made their first minor league set with the Tacoma Twins. Another tradition was rekindled with the corporate sponsored JP Kelly Bank Wichita Aeros set. The Sherbrooke Pirates and Syracuse Chiefs made their own sets. Our coverage of Topps 1973 baseball set of 660 cards is here and a complete checklist is here. These 1 7/8'' (in diameter) lids were included with Topps Baseball Stars Bubble Gum. Fifty-five different players were featured and they are very scarce. The most stars sell in the $20 range, Nolan Ryan alone can bring in over $250.  Topps produced a series of 24 team checklist cards that were inserted in high-number wax packs in '73. It was also possible to mail in for an uncut sheet of these. Either way these are hard to find. They are not considered by collectors to be part of the '73 Topps set, but they make a nice companion.

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