#145 Luis Tiant - Cleveland Indians

Luis Clemente Tiant
Cleveland Indians
Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  180
Born:  November 23, 1940, Marianao, Cuba
Acquired:  Purchased by the Cleveland Indians from the Mexico City Tigers before 1962 season
Major League Teams:  Cleveland Indians 1964-1969; Minnesota Twins 1970; Boston Red Sox 1971-1978; New York Yankees 1979-1980; Pittsburgh Pirates 1981; California Angels 1982

Cuban pitcher Luis Tiant, affectionately nicknamed El Tiante, pitched in 19 big league seasons primarily with the Indians and Red Sox.  He was a three-time All-Star and won his league's ERA title twice, in 1968 with a 1.60 mark and in 1972 with a 1.91 mark.  1968 was perhaps his finest season, as he went 21-9 for the Indians, pitching 19 complete games and leading the league with nine shutouts.  He'd fall back to Earth and suffer a 20-loss season in 1969.  After a few rough seasons, Tiant had a career resurgence with the Red Sox in the 1970s, winning at least 20 games for the club in three different seasons.  He started three games for Boston in the 1975 World Series against the Reds, going 2-0 with two complete games and a shutout, but the Reds ultimately won the Series in seven games.  Tiant wrapped up his Major League career with the Angels in 1982, but he'd go on to pitch a few more seasons in Mexico and then again in the Senior Professional Baseball Association in 1989.

Tiant's career record was 229-172 over 573 games with a 3.30 ERA, 187 complete games, 49 shutouts and 2,416 strikeouts.  His strikeout total is currently 48th on the all-time leaders list, while his shutouts rank 21st all-time.  Tiant was inducted into the Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame in 1997, the Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum in 2002 and the Venezuelan Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in 2009.

May 31, 2021 - Walking the local trail

Building the Set
May 27, 2021 from Seekonk, MA - Card #288
This was the elusive final card needed to complete our set's second series, and for some reason one of the more difficult cards I've tracked down to date.  The card arrived on the Thursday before Memorial Day from eBay seller bowye-thoma from Seekonk, Massachusetts.

We had a relatively busy month of May, as we slowly re-integrated back into post-vaccination life, with Phillies games, Doug's baseball games, Ben's tennis and virtual piano lessons filling our calendars.  In early May, I started returning to my office in Philadelphia once a week after working 15 months from home in my basement.  Center City is quieter and emptier, with most of my usual lunch destinations now closed, but I enjoyed the weekly commute and the change of scenery.  We had a quiet Memorial Day weekend at home, with Jenna and I taking advantage of the mild weather to take daily walks and occasionally spot wildlife on the way.

I also took advantage of a 15% Memorial Day Weekend sale hosted by one of my favorite dealers, The Battersbox, from Tomball, Texas.  With the second series now complete, I spent an enjoyable hour or so over the weekend picking 20 commons from the third series to add to our set and I'll feature those cards in the next 20 posts.

1972 Topps #624

The Card / Indians Team Set
Given his 19 games pitched in 1964, I'm surprised Topps didn't squeeze Tiant onto a late series Rookie Stars card in the 1964 Topps set.  They didn't, and as a result, this is Tiant's rookie card.  The back of the card highlights Tiant's Topps Minor League Player of the Year honors.  This was a relatively new award bestowed by Topps beginning in 1960, and Wikipedia has a semi-complete list of the honorees between 1960 and 2013, when the company apparently stopped giving out the award.  A card within the 1972 Topps set features the award and its recipients between 1960 and 1971.

The back of this card also mentions Tiant's first big league start and his MLB debut on July 19, 1964 against the Yankees.  Tiant threw a complete game shutout, allowing only four hits and striking out 11.  Tony Kubek (#65) and Clete Boyer (#475) both struck out three times a piece with Roger Maris (#155) and Joe Pepitone (#245) both striking out twice.  Mickey Mantle (#350) wasn't in the line-up.

Tiant signed a reprinted version of this card for inclusion in the 2001 Topps Team Topps Legends Autographs set, and the card was also reprinted for the 2001 Topps Archives sets.  A few years later, another reprinted version appeared in the 2003 Topps Shoebox Collection set.  Tiant is in the harder to find 1965 Topps Transfers insert set, but he's not in the 1965 Topps Embossed insert set.

1965 Season
In his first full season in the majors, Tiant appeared in 41 games for the Indians, making 30 starts and going 11-11 with a 3.53 ERA.  He threw 196 1/3 innings, which was second on the team behind Sam McDowell (#76) and his 273 innings pitched.  Tiant's SABR biography notes he suffered from a sore pitching arm throughout the season, and he reported to spring training in 1966 20 pounds lighter on the advice of his father.  Tiant's father, also Luis Tiant, pitched in the Negro Leagues between 1930 and 1947 and was himself a three-time All-Star.

1968 Topps #532

1975 Topps #430

1976 Topps #130

1981 Topps #627

1983 Topps #178

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1965 Topps #145
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (18):  1965-1971, 1973-1983
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2020 Topps Allen & Ginter A Debut to Remember #DTR-29

361 - Tiant non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/19/21.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #144 Ed Kranepool - New York Mets

Next Card:  #146 Ron Hansen - Chicago White Sox

#163 John Briggs - Philadelphia Phillies

John Edward Briggs
Philadelphia Phillies
Outfield

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Left  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  190
Born:  March 10, 1944, Paterson, NJ
Signed:  Signed as an amateur free agent by the Philadelphia Phillies, September 12, 1962
Major League Teams:  Philadelphia Phillies 1964-1971; Milwaukee Brewers 1971-1975; Minnesota Twins 1975

John Briggs enjoyed a 12-year big league career, playing primarily with the Phillies and Brewers.  Briggs made his debut with the Phillies in 1964 as a 20-year-old rookie and never went back down to the minor leagues.  He spent his first few seasons as a fourth outfielder with the club, and never quite found regular playing time until a trade at the start of the 1971 season sent him to the Brewers.  With Milwaukee, Briggs settled in as the club's regular left fielder between 1972 and 1974, hitting a career high 21 home runs in both 1971 and 1972.  He drove in a career high 73 runs in 1974.  Briggs went 6 for 6 in a game against the Indians on August 4, 1973, and he'd earn MVP votes that season.  

1950-1969 Phillies Photo Cards

After a half-season with the Twins in 1975, Briggs' big league career was over and he left the majors after 1,366 games with a .253 career average and 139 home runs.  Briggs played 47 games in Japan for the Lotte Orions in 1976 before officially retiring.

Building the Set
May 26, 2021 from Los Angeles, CA - Card #287
Two of the final three cards needed for our set's second series came from set break auctions hosted by Greg Morris Cards out of Los Angeles, California.  This Briggs card went for a final bid of $3.58 and it arrived with the Don Mincher (#108) card as both auctions closed on the same night.  After tracking down the surprisingly difficult to find Luis Tiant (#145) rookie card, our set's second series was complete!

The Card / Phillies Team Set
Briggs' rookie card can be found in the 1964 Topps set on a Rookie Stars card shared with Danny Cater (#253).  This is his first solo card, and he'd appear in 11 more Topps flagship offerings through 1976.  The back of the card is heavy on narrative as Briggs only had two years' worth of statistics at this point.

1965 Season
In 93 games, Briggs hit .236 with four home runs and 23 RBIs.  He made 51 starts and was used as a pinch-hitter 38 times.  While he started the season on the bench, he earned the regular center fielder's job by the end of June and batted out of the lead-off spot in 47 games.

Phillies Career
Briggs debuted with the Phillies on April 17, 1964 after playing only a year in the minors.  He played sparingly during that fateful season, appearing in 61 games.  Over the final month of the season, when the Phillies dramatically fell out of first place, Briggs appeared in 16 games and batted .100 (1 for 10).  His role as a bench player continued over the next several seasons until he finally began to see more playing time in 1967.  For four consecutive seasons between 1967 and 1970, Briggs appeared in at least 100 games and his final full year in Philadelphia, 1970, was perhaps his best.  Briggs hit .270 that season with nine home runs and 47 RBIs as the team's primary left fielder.  In 1971, as the Phillies moved into the new Veterans Stadium, Briggs was the team's opening day left fielder in Pittsburgh and the first Phillies left fielder in Veterans Stadium history a few days later.  After only 10 games with the Phillies in 1971, Briggs was dealt to the Brewers on April 22nd for first baseman Pete Koegel and pitcher Ray Peters.  Overall, Briggs appeared in 695 games with the Phillies, batting .251 with 52 home runs and 209 RBIs.

1964 Topps #482

1970 Topps #564

1972 Topps #197

1974 Topps #218

1976 Topps #373

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1964 Topps #482
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (13):  1964-1976
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1981 TCMA The 1960s II #424

50 - Briggs non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/18/21.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Phillies Room
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #162 Russ Nixon - Boston Red Sox

Next Card:  #164 Al Spangler - Houston Astros

#108 Don Mincher - Minnesota Twins

Donald Ray Mincher
Minnesota Twins
First Base

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'3"  Weight:  205
Born:  June 24, 1938, Huntsville, AL
Signed:  Signed by the Chicago White Sox as an amateur free agent before 1956 season
Major League Teams:  Washington Senators 1960; Minnesota Twins 1961-1966; California Angels 1967-1968; Seattle Pilots 1969; Oakland Athletics 1970-1971; Washington Senators 1971; Texas Rangers 1972; Oakland Athletics 1972
Died:  March 4, 2012, Huntsville, AL (age 73)

Don Mincher was a veteran of 13 big league seasons, playing in the final seasons of both 20th Century Washington baseball teams and in the first seasons of their new locations in Minnesota and Texas.  He was an All-Star in 1967 with the Angels, perhaps his best season, and the only Pilots player to appear in the All-Star Game in the team's sole year of existence in 1969.  Mincher hit at least 20 home runs in five different seasons, reaching a career high in 1970 with 27.  He drove in at least 70 runs in three different seasons.  Mincher won a World Series ring with the Athletics in his final season in the big leagues, and he had a key pinch-hit in Game 4 of the 1972 World Series to help his team to victory.  In 1,400 career games, Mincher batted .249 with exactly 200 home runs and 643 RBIs.

Mincher began his second career as a minor league executive in 1985, serving as the president and general manager of his hometown Huntsville Stars until 2001.  While he never played for the club, the Stars, then an affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers, retired his #5 in 2008.  He'd go on to serve as president of the Southern League until 2011.

Building the Set
May 26, 2021 from Los Angeles, CA - Card #286
Two of the final three cards needed for our set's second series came from set break auctions hosted by Greg Morris Cards out of Los Angeles, California.  This Mincher card was a steal for $1.27 and it arrived with the John Briggs (#163) card as both auctions closed on the same night.  After tracking down the surprisingly difficult to find Luis Tiant (#145) rookie card, our set's second series was complete!

The Card / Twins Team Set
Topps used photos from the same session for both Mincher's 1965 and 1966 Topps cards.  The main highlight on the back of the card needs some further explanation, as I don't think it's worded well, and it's not quite accurate.  Over a nine game stretch in 1963, between July 14th and July 24th, Mincher connected for eight home runs.  Topps adds a game to the tally as Mincher hit his first home run in the second game of a double header on July 14th.  He batted .486 over that nine-game stretch with 18 RBIs.

1965 Season
Mincher appeared in 128 games for the A.L. Pennant winning Twins, serving as the team's regular first baseman when Harmon Killebrew (#400) was moved to third base.  Mincher batted .251 with 22 home runs and 65 RBIs, falling one short as the team's home run leader behind left fielder Bob Allison (#180).  In the World Series, Mincher hit a Game 1 home run off Dodgers' starting pitcher Don Drysdale (#260).  But he struggled throughout the rest of the series, ultimately batting .130 (3 for 23) as the Dodgers won in seven games.

1960 Topps #548

1968 Topps #75

1970 Topps #185

1971 Topps #680

1972 Topps #242

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1960 Topps #548
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (13):  1960-1972
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1983 Galasso 1969 Seattle Pilots #10

66 - Mincher non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/18/21.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #107 Phillies Rookie Stars

Next Card:  #109 Walt Bond - Houston Astros

#120 Frank Robinson - Cincinnati Reds

Frank Robinson
Cincinnati Reds
Outfield

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  183
Born:  August 31, 1935, Beaumont, TX
Signed:  Signed by the Cincinnati Reds as an amateur free agent before 1953 season
Major League Teams:  Cincinnati Reds 1956-1965; Baltimore Orioles 1966-1971; Los Angeles Dodgers 1972; California Angels 1973-1974; Cleveland Indians 1974-1976
As a Manager:  Cleveland Indians 1975-1977; San Francisco Giants 1981-1984; Baltimore Orioles 1988-1991; Montreal Expos 2002-2004; Washington Nationals 2005-2006
Died:  February 7, 2019, Los Angeles, CA (age 83)
Hall of Fame Induction:  1982

Frank Robinson was the first player to win the MVP Award in both National and American Leagues, winning the honor in 1961 with the Reds and then in 1966 in his first season with the Orioles.  Robinson won National League Rookie of the Year honors with the Reds in 1956 and was a six-time All-Star with the club before a blockbuster deal sent him to Baltimore.  Robinson won the Triple Crown in 1966 and led the Orioles to their first World Series title that season, winning World Series MVP honors in the process.  He led the Orioles to their second World Championship title in 1970.  In 21 seasons, Robinson was a 14-time All-Star, batting over .300 nine times and hitting at least 30 home runs in 11 seasons.  When he retired, his 586 career home runs ranked fourth on the all-time list.  Robinson collected 2,943 career hits to go along with 1,812 career RBIs.

1982 Donruss #424

In 1975, he was named a player-manager for the Indians, becoming the first black manager in Major League history.  Although he was named Manager of the Year in 1989, he never guided a team to the postseason.  Robinson was the final manager in Expos history and the first manager for the Nationals after the team relocated to Washington, and he retired following the 2006 season with a career 1,065-1,176 record.  He was a first ballot Hall of Famer in 1982, and his #20 has been retired by the Orioles, Reds and Indians.

Building the Set
May 20, 2021 from San Diego, CA - Card #285
Down to needing five cards to complete our set's second series, I got serious.  Unable to find the cards I needed from eBay at reasonable prices, I turned to the reliable Kit Young Cards for this Robinson card and the Dodgers team card (#126) with both arriving from San Diego on May 20th.  The Robinson card was a bit pricey, but Kit Young's price was still lower than most of the ending bids from recent eBay auctions.  A few days later, the final three cards needed for a complete second series would arrive and shortly thereafter I turned my attention to gathering cards from the set's third series.  It felt great to be approaching the 50% completion mark for this iconic set.

The Card / Reds Team Set
This is Robinson's final card as an active player with his original team, and Topps used a hatless photo of Robinson in a Reds jersey for his 1966 card.  The back of the card lets his statistics speak for themselves with his 1961 MVP season highlighted.

Topps reprinted the card in 2011 as part of its 60 Years of Topps insert set.  Topps also created an acetate reprint of the card for Robinson to sign for inclusion in the 2017 Topps Clearly Authentic Reprint Autographs set.  Robinson, at card #22, is one of 72 players featured within the 1965 Topps Embossed insert set and one of three Reds in the set.  He's also in the harder to find 1965 Topps Transfers insert set.

1965 Season
In his final season with the Reds, Robinson was again the team's regular right fielder.  He appeared in 156 games, batting .296 with 33 home runs (to lead the team), 33 doubles and 113 RBIs.  His RBI total was second on the team to Deron Johnson's (#75) 130.  After the season, Reds owner Bill DeWitt incorrectly predicted Robinson was past his prime and that leg injuries would only continue to decrease his productivity.  Robinson was dealt to the Orioles on December 9, 1965 for pitchers Jack Baldschun (#555) and Milt Pappas (#270) and outfielder Dick Simpson (#374).  While Pappas had some success for the Reds, the other two players did not, and the trade is regarded now as one of the worst in the game's history.

1957 Topps #35

1961 Topps #360

1967 Topps #100

1975 Topps #580

2006 Topps #295

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1957 Topps #35
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (33):  1957-1977, 1983-1984, 1986, 1988-1991, 2002-2006
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  2021 Topps 70 Years of Topps Baseball #70YT-32

2,302 - Robinson non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/18/21.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
National Baseball Hall of Fame
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #119 John Kennedy - Los Angeles Dodgers

Next Card:  #121 Gene Alley - Pittsburgh Pirates

#126 Los Angeles Dodgers Team Card

Beginning in 1956 and going all the way through to 1981, with a one year absence in 1969, Topps included team cards in its flagship sets.

Building the Set
May 20, 2021 from San Diego, CA - Card #284
Down to needing five cards to complete our set's second series, I got serious.  Unable to find the cards I needed from eBay at reasonable prices, I turned to the reliable Kit Young Cards for this Dodgers team card and the Frank Robinson card (#120) with both arriving from San Diego on May 20th.  While the Robinson card was a bit pricey, the Dodgers team card was a very reasonable $4.25.  A few days later, the final three cards needed for a complete second series would arrive and shortly thereafter I turned my attention to gathering cards from the set's third series.  It felt great to be approaching the 50% completion mark for this iconic set.

The Card / Dodgers Team Set 

Here we have a team card featuring a team photo that's six years old.  The team photo used depicts the 1959 World Champion Dodgers and the photo I found above from an old Heritage Auction shows all the players, coaches and other personnel featured.  The photo was first used on the Dodgers' team card in the 1960 Topps set.  I'm sure collectors of the day would have caught on and complained (at least amongst their fellow neighborhood collectors) about this?  If I was a huge Dodgers fan and year after year I pulled the team card only to find Topps had once again recycled a photo of the 1959 team, I would have been annoyed.  It would be like a photo of the 2008 Phillies being used on a 2014 Topps team card.  Topps finally updated the photo when it produced a team card in its 1966 set for then new World Champions.

1960 Topps #18

1962 Topps #43

1964 Topps #531

1966 Topps #238

1965 Season

Manager Walter Alston (#217) guided the Dodgers to a first place finish and ultimately a seven-game World Series victory over the Twins.  The team's 97 wins were two better than the second place Giants, giving them their third National League pennant and ultimately their third World Series win, over a seven season period.  The Dodgers got off to a shaky start and lost their top hitter Tommy Davis (#370) on May 1st when he suffered a broken ankle sliding into second base.  They battled five other teams - Giants, Pirates, Reds, Braves and Phillies - throughout the summer.   

2014 Topps Heritage Real
One Autographs #ROA-MW

The Dodgers went on a 13-game winning streak in September, winning 15 of their final 16 games to squeak by the Giants.  Maury Wills paced the offense by hitting .286 with 94 stolen bases.  Not one Dodgers' regular hit above .300, but pitcher Don Drysdale (#260) did while also contributing seven home runs.  Lou Johnson, Davis' replacement, and Jim Lefebvre (#561) led the team with 12 home runs each.  Lefebvre was named the N.L. Rookie of the Year.

Drysdale and Sandy Koufax (#300) were nearly unhittable on the mound.  Koufax was the unanimous choice for the Cy Young Award and he finished second in the league's MVP voting behind Willie Mays (#250).  Koufax was 26-8 with a 2.04 ERA and 382 strikeouts while Drysdale was 23-12 with a 2.77 ERA and 210 strikeouts.

Update Cards

For each team card featured, I'll be building a checklist of cards that could have been included in a 1965 Topps update set.  With the exception of a few glaring holes among the team's regular starters, the Dodgers are already very well represented.  I'm trying to come up with six potential cards for each team, and for the Dodgers I only came up with five, with the fifth being a stretch:

• Jim Lefebvre - The Rookie of the Year, and the club's regular second baseman, shares a Rookie Stars card (#561) with three other prospects and I'd give him his own solo card.
• Maury Wills - Regular shortstop Wills, a notorious Topps hold-out who didn't appear on his own dedicated Topps card until 1967, would get a card in my update set.
• Jim Gilliam - Player-coach Gilliam, the team's regular third baseman, last appeared as a player in a Topps set in 1964.  He played in 111 games for the Dodgers in 1965, and he's more than worthy of an update card.
• Lou Johnson - Left fielder Johnson appears in the 1960, 1963 and 1966 Topps sets, but I'd make sure he had a 1965 card too.
• Don DeJohn - Infielder DeJohn appeared in 34 games for the World Champions and his only Topps flagship set appearance would come in 1966.

Sources
Baseball Reference

Wikipedia

Previous Card:  #125 Juan Pizarro - Chicago White Sox

Next Card:  #127 Frank Lary - Milwaukee Braves

#160 Bob Clemente - Pittsburgh Pirates

Roberto Walker Clemente
Pittsburgh Pirates
Outfield

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  5'11"  Weight:  175
Born:  August 18, 1934, Carolina, Puerto Rico
Signed:  Signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers as an amateur free agent, February 1954
Major League Teams:  Pittsburgh Pirates 1955-1972
Died:  December 31, 1972, San Juan, Puerto Rico (age 38)
Hall of Fame Induction:  1973

One of the most prolific pure hitters of the 1960s, and a true five-tool talent, Roberto Clemente played his entire 18-year career with the Pirates, leading them to World Series titles in 1960 and 1971.  He was a 15-time All-Star, a 12-time Gold Glove winner, the N.L. MVP in 1966 and the World Series MVP in 1971.  A four-time batting champ, Clemente joined the exclusive 3,000 hit club in the second to last game he'd ever play on September 30, 1972.  At the time, he was the 11th player in baseball history to join the club.  A few months later, and less than 10 weeks after the passing of Jackie Robinson, Clemente died in a plane crash off the coast of Puerto Rico while en route to deliver earthquake relief supplies to Nicaragua.

The pride of Puerto Rico, Clemente's legacy lives on through the countless Latino baseball players he's inspired over the past four decades.

Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1956 Topps blog.

Building the Set
May 20, 2021 from Scottsdale, AZ - Card #283
By mid-May, I was down to needing seven cards to complete series two of our 1965 Topps set.  Three of them were commons, two of them I considered semi-star cards, and two of them were star cards.  Determined to finish the second series before the unofficial start of summer and the approaching Memorial Day weekend, I set out to purchase these final seven cards.  This Clemente card came from Scottsdale Baseball Cards in Scottsdale, Arizona for a reasonable price and joining Clemente in the envelope from Arizona was the card of Bill Wakefield (#167).

1998 Topps Roberto
Clemente Reprints #11

This is one of the handful of cards from the 1965 Topps set I've seen for years at baseball card shows, usually under glass, that I thought I'd never actually add to my collection.  It's a wonderfully simple baseball card and I was thrilled to add it to our set.  

I was also grateful for a relatively relaxing May, as we slowly eased into post-vaccination life.  The Phillies were back, and our nights were filled with Little League games, baseball practices, piano lessons and tennis lessons.

The Card / Pirates Team Set
Beginning in 1957 and lasting through his appearance in the 1969 set, Topps decided to shorten Clemente's first name to Bob, ignoring his actual preferred name and his Latino heritage.  Topps thankfully returned to Roberto beginning with his 1970 card.  The back of this card highlights his two batting titles (to date) in 1961 and 1964.  He'd win two more batting titles in 1965 and 1967.  His three triple game came on September 8, 1958 against the Reds.

I'm fairly certain the first version of this card I owned was from a circa 1980s Dover reprint, carefully separated from a book along its perforated edges.  Topps reprinted the card in 1998, included within an insert set reprinting all of Clemente's flagship cards between 1955 and 1973.  Clemente, at card #19, is one of 72 players featured within the 1965 Topps Embossed insert set and one of four Pirates in the set.  He's also in the harder to find 1965 Topps Transfers insert set.

1965 Season
Clemente was right in the middle of his dominating run of league-leading seasons, winning the batting title for a third time with a .329 average.  He was an All-Star Game reserve, with his teammate Willie Stargell (#377) getting the start over him, and he'd win his fifth of 12 Gold Gloves at the end of the season.  During a 12-game Pirates winning streak in late May, Clemente batted .458 which ultimately propelled him to the batting title.  The starting outfield for most of the season for the third place club was Clemente in right, Bill Virdon (#69) in center and Stargell in left.

1955 Topps #164

1961 Topps #388

1966 Topps #300

1971 Topps #630

1973 Topps #50

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1955 Topps #164
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (23):  1955-1973, 1975, 1987, 1998, 2001
Most Recent Mainstream Cards:  2021 Topps Heritage The Great One insert set

2,416 - Clemente non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 7/16/21.

Sources:  
1956 Topps

Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
National Baseball Hall of Fame
SABR
The Trading Card Database

Previous Card:  #159 Jim Duffalo - San Francisco Giants

Next Card:  #161 Frank Baumann - Chicago Cubs