1952 Topps
Total Cards: 407
Size: 2 5/8" x 3 3/4"
Rating: 8.7 (143 ratings)
Rate this set...
Top Sets: #5
Cards
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1a | Andy Pafko VAR |
Brooklyn Dodgers |
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1b | Andy Pafko VAR |
Brooklyn Dodgers |
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2a | Pete Runnels RC, VAR |
Washington Senators |
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2b | Pete Runnels RC, VAR |
Washington Senators |
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3a | Hank Thompson VAR |
New York Giants |
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3b | Hank Thompson VAR |
New York Giants |
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4a | Don Lenhardt VAR |
Boston Red Sox |
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4b | Don Lenhardt VAR |
Boston Red Sox |
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5a | Larry Jansen VAR |
New York Giants |
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5b | Larry Jansen VAR |
New York Giants |
Trivia |
- At 407 cards, this was the largest set of its day.
- Cards measure 2 5/8" by 3 3/4"
- This set was issued in 6 separate series: Series 1 (1 to 80), Series 2 (81-130), Series 3 (131-190), Series 4 (191-250), Series 5 (251-310), and Series 6 (311-407).
- By the time Topps released the last series (cards 311-407), football season had started and kids were no longer buying baseball cards. In the late '50s, Sy Berger hired a garbage boat to take the surplus 300 to 500 cases stored in the Topps Brooklyn headquarters, to dump off the New Jersey shore into the Atlantic Ocean.
- 2nd major baseball card release for Topps.
- This was the first set to use color team logos as part of it's design, as well as including stats for both the previous season and overall career.
- #1 Andy Pafko - It is rare to find card #1 of Andy Pafko in excellent condition, because being #1 in the set meant that kids put the card on top of their stack before wrapping them with rubber bands or putting them in their pockets or school bags.
- #1 Andy Pafko - The Andy Pafko card figures prominently in the plot of the 2010 movie Cop Out.
- #7 Wayne Terwilliger - UER: birth year should be 1925
- #7 Wayne Terwilliger - UER: birth year should be 1925
- #9 Bobby Hogue - UER: birth year should be 1921
- #9 Bobby Hogue - UER: birth year should be 1921
- #10 Al Rosen - UER: Born "Mar. 1, 1925", should be "Feb. 29, 1924"
- #10 Al Rosen - UER: Born "Mar. 1, 1925", should be "Feb. 29, 1924"
- #27 Sam Jethroe - UER: Missing double bar separating batting and fielding statistics
- #27 Sam Jethroe - UER: Missing double bar separating batting and fielding statistics
- #34 Elmer Valo - UER: Missing double bar separating batting and fielding records
- #34 Elmer Valo - UER: Missing double bar separating batting and fielding records
- #37 Duke Snider - UER: Missing double bar separating batting and fielding records
- #37 Duke Snider - UER: Missing double bar separating batting and fielding records
- #79 Jerry Staley - UER: Birth year should be 1920
- #79 Jerry Staley - UER: Birth year should be 1920
- #110 Dutch Leonard - UER: Birth year should be 1909
- #114 Willard Ramsdell - UER: Birth year should be 1916
- #173 Roy Smalley - UER: 7th line should read "... played 3 seasons in the minors."
- #195 Orestes Minoso - UER: birth year should be 1925
- #225 Frank Baumholtz - UER: birth year should be 1918
- #257 Bobby Avila - UER: Height mislabeled as "Born"
- #314 Roy Campanella - UER: 3rd line, misspelled "Leaguge"
- #316 Davey Williams - UER: birth year should be 1927
- #351 Al Dark - UER: birth year should be 1922
- #360 George Crowe - UER: Birth year should be 1921
- #392 Hoyt Wilhelm - UER: birth year should be 1922; 2nd sentence should read, "...first 2 pro seasons after the war,"
- #402 Earl Harrist - UER: DOB should be April 20, 1919
User Comments |
The look of the cards is iconic. In the last 7 years I have put together 1-311 aiming for the red and black backs w/o paper loss. Only missing about a dozen cards to finish. I have quite a few extras to trade if anyone is interested. Perhaps I could find a wrapper from this set without paying 100's of bucks for it. This is no doubt the #1 set in my collection. Followed by 1986-87 Fleer basketball set & 1948 Bowman
Rating: 10 | ||
Bought my first pack of cards in July, 1952. Nickel pack of Topps, in it were Walt Dropo (just traded to my Tigers) and Bobby Shantz (leading A.L. pitcher, eventually winning 24). Had a few 1951 Bowmans from a friend's older brother. | ||
Are we rating these sets on their look and style.. or based on the players within... or the value of these cards? Mixture of all three? It's hard to quantify such a iconic set of baseball cards. I personally try rate these based on their visual appeal. As that was their intent before vaule was even considered. Rating: 10 | ||
Forum |
| Subject | Replies | Last Post |
| 1952 Topps Hoyt Wilhelm RC | 0 | Jul 2, 2025 5:37 PM by sandyrusty |
| Addtional Variations | 1 | Nov 28, 2022 3:18 AM by sandyrusty |
| Del Ennis No Autograph | 12 | Jan 30, 2021 10:23 AM by Stevie Jay |
| interesting 52 topps original pic source | 0 | Feb 14, 2020 7:20 PM by mzentko |
| '52 Topps Baseball....needing a facelift? | 6 | Jan 9, 2019 2:06 PM by cnangle |
External Links |
- 10 Things You May Not Know About The 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle Card
- BaseballCardPedia: 1952 Topps (R-414-6)
- Cardboard Connection: Analysis of 1952 Topps Baseball
- eBay Guides: 1952 Topps Baseball Card Set
- Information on "Grey Back" Variation
- Just Collect Article: 1952 Topps Baseball Card Set
- PSA Article: 1952 Topps, Much More than Meets the Eye
- PSA Price Guide: 1952 Topps
- Sports Card Radio: 1952 Topps Baseball Card Set - Vintage Review
- Sports Card Radio: 1952 Topps Baseball Checklist Complete 407 Card Set
- Sports Collectors Daily: 1952 Topps Baseball Card Set Launched an American Icon
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