Walter Johnson, Christy Mathewson, and Cy Young were also featured in the set but Cobbs issue is undoubtedly the most desired. By Ryan Cracknell. Its nearly impossible to describe the importance of Jackie Robinson to baseball and American history after breakingbaseballs color barrier in 1947. It's still a very unusual-looking card but is one that many collectors dream of owning. National League manager Bruce Bochy was not looped in on Pujols' condition heading into the All-Star Game selection deadline, leaving the San Francisco Giants skipper little choice but to look elsewhere to round out the depth chart. The Say Hey Kidwas arguably the greatest all-around player to step on the field. So, there you have it: the most expensivebaseball cardsthat youre ever likely to encounter. It's these end-year series that comprise the most valuable Topps baseball cards today. But what most usually don't realize is that many pre-War and even high grade post-War vintagebaseball card valuescan be astronomical. The most valuable baseball cards in the hobby can easily fetch six and seven figure price levels these days. Greatest Topps Baseball Cards of All-Time Most Expensive of All-Time #10. The 1932 U.S. Caramel set is one of the most desirable and challenging prewar sets in the hobby. Cheapest, The Angels recalled him for a home stand against the Baltimore Orioles on August 19, 2011, and he would finish the remainder of the season in the Majors. A record that is pretty safe to say will never be broken. The question is: where do you start on this list? Posey was one of the biggest young names in the game at that point so seeing Topps issue multiple cards for him in this set should be no surprise. And I attempted to estimate their current values when graded in PSA 10 condition so their "raw" or ungraded values may be wildly different. Contact him at [emailprotected]. A mixture of bad timing, poor communication, and an always-controversial roster rule kept Albert Pujols out of the 2011 MLB All-Star Game, ending his streak of consecutive Midsummer Classics at eight. Estimates place the number of front/back combinations around 5,500 which led to this set being nicknamed The Monster.. His 3.60 ERA and not-so-great 1.300 WHIP only told part of the story because when Chapman was locked in, he was virtually unhittable. People are spending as much on old pieces of cardboard as most people spend on a house. Its amazing to think of the stats that Williams could have produced had he not missed nearly five full seasons of his prime to military service. Interestingly, the same image is used on both cards. He also amassed less than 200 hits (184) and posted an OPS+ under 100 (86) for the first time in eleven MLB seasons. As the reigning NL Central champs sputtered to a 79-83 record and failed to make the playoffs, Chapman worked out the kinks in his delivery in 53 relief appearances. All of them are on this list of most valuable baseball cards so that speaks to their importance and desirability. He ended the year with a 2.79 ERA, striking out 79 batters in 71.0 innings pitched. However, Bochy picked Florida Marlins standout Gaby Sanchez as the final first base pick to ensure Florida had a representative in Arizona. #4 Most Valuable Baseball Cards 2000s - Topps Finest For The Record #3B Ken Griffey Jr. Price for PSA 9 featured with Alex Rodriguez: $100 Price for PSA 10 Gem: $1,500 Player's History 13 times All-Star Ken is the son of Ken Griffey Sr, a famous baseball player and coach during his era. When these cards come up for auction, really take note. Both of theDiMaggio cards in this set feature a caricature of the Yankee legend, the only difference between the two versions is that this one features small cartoons and information in the background while the other has a blank background. 1914 Cracker Jack Joe Jackson The 1914 Cracker Jack Joe Jackson has a staggering value of $200,000. , Bo Bichette, Luis Robert, Yordan Alvarez [SSP] #392, Fernando Tatis Jr. [Memorial Day Camo] #168, Fernando Tatis Jr. [Mother's Day Pink] #168, Fernando Tatis Jr. [Independence Day] #168, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. [Independence Day] #182, Fernando Tatis Jr. [Father's Day Blue] #168. This is the second most desirable card in the famed T206 set and the only pose of the HOF pitcher. Gehrig was one of a long line of Yankee legends and no doubt put up some of the greatest hitting statistics of them all. If so, then please fill out the form below and I'll be in touch right away. You could argue the imagery isn't the nicest in the hobby but it makes for an unforgettable card design. He also turned heads with his slick glove work at first, earning the only Gold Glove of his career thus far. In 49 games for Padres that season, Rizzo slashed a less-than-impressive .141/.281/.242 with one home run, nine RBIs, and nine runs scored in 128 at-bats. An SGC 2 Example Sold in August 2022 for $7,250,000. And because it features a close-up of Mantle, print defects on his face can also sometimes turn off collectors. Their glossy obverse surface usually results in creasing and cracking issues making it tough to find these in high grade. It is one of the most difficult cards to find overall, making it one of the most important cards on this list. However, Carpenter was better, tossing a complete-game three-hit shutout to oust the two-time defending NL champs, 1-0. And its extremely rareone of the rarest in the hobby. The card is one of Ruths most desired of all. It should come as no surprise that the rookie card of the greatest player who ever lived would be on this list. So, if you're looking tosell baseball cards then you might want to check this list to see if you're sitting on something special. 2011 was the year that Ichiro finally looked mortal at the plate. Any modern flagship Topps Baseball set has a lot going on. Mathewson won 30 or more games four different times in his storied career, attributing much of his success to a specialty pitch that was comparable to a screwball. The Tigers couldn't capitalize on Cabrera's otherworldly October and lost to the Rangers in the ALCS in six. Theyre undoubtedly very condition sensitive. Who did Freeman finish runner-up to in the leagues RotY race, you ask? However, he still put together a worthy encore to his 2010 breakthrough. By the way check out the best Wander Franco Rookie Cards #2. However, as mentioned earlier, the 1914 Cracker Jack cards were packaged directly inside the boxes so theyre usually more difficult to find in good condition. This card has been and will likely remain the most valuable baseball card for years to come. The famous Pittsburg Pirate shortstop is shown ready at the bat with his name Hans along the bottom border of the card. Centering is also a tough issue for this card. Honus. Mike Trout made his Major League debut on July 8, 2011, when the Los Angeles Angels called him up to replace speedy centerfielder Peter Bourjos who had injured his hamstring the day before. After 60 years in the hobby, Topps helped celebrate their "Diamond Anniversary" by packing so much into their 2011 Topps baseball card set. Anthony Rizzo made his MLB debut for the San Diego Padres on June 9, 2011, against the Washington Nationals, going 1-2 at the plate with a triple and a run scored. As with pretty much any pre-war set that features Cobb, his card is the heart and soul of this legendary set. Poor print quality and focus plague this short print card making high-grade copies nearly unachievable. Overall, Votto hit .309 with a .947 OPS, 29 home runs, and 101 runs scored. Gehrig again appeared on two different cards, #37 and #61, in the 1934 Goudey set. Kershaw was more than up to the task, bringing home the Dodgers' first Cy Young trophy since Eric Gagne in 2003 with a banner year. But in 2011, the 37-year-old superstar hit just .272 with an uncharacteristic .645 OPS. Only 7 of the Ty Cobb cards have ever been submitted to PSA for grading which speaks to the rarity of them. The 1917 Collins-McCarthy candy cards are some of the few card issues that were printed during the mid-teens of the 20th century. Cobb was known as a ferocious competitor who was determined to be the best day in and day out. The eye appeal is top-notch, as with most 1914 Cracker Jack cards. But whats not up for debate is whether its one of his most important. And with those five prime seasons back, he quite possibly couldve added enough home runs to his career 521 total to challenge Ruths record of 714 before Aaron did. Not only did he help the team to a World Series title, but Martinez also became the first and only player in MLB history to win two Silver Sluggers in the same season, one as an outfielder and the other as a DH. In addition to the Satchel Paige and Stan Musial rookie cards, Robinsons rookie is key to the set. But the value between the two isnt affected. For some reason, collectors had to send in for the card a year later in 1934 by contacting Goudey if they wanted to complete this set. Ungraded & graded values for all '06 Topps Baseball Cards. Its arguably the most visually pleasing and desirable of all the Ted Williams baseball cards in the hobby. That milestone was part of a scintillating month for which Freeman captured NL Rookie of the Month honors while batting .362 with a .433 on-base percentage in July and leading all rookies with 38 hits. And its one of the most famous error cards in the entire hobby, too. He received 20 first place votes in the NL Rookie of the Year vote and his 129 vote points outpaced Atlanta's Jason Heyward who 107 vote points for his impressive debut performance. Seldom seen at auction, the 48 card set distributed by the American Caramel Co. of York, Pa. released some of the rarest type cards in existence. If you look closely at each of the double prints of this card, youll notice that one version shows better clarity and focus than the other. Read our methodology. And it can be tough to find in high grade, too. While his 1952 Topps card gets all the limelight, the 1951 Bowman card is Mickey Mantle's true rookie card and a fine one to behold. Identical in imagery to the 1933 Goudey #160 Lou Gehrig that you saw earlier on this list, this card does usually present whiter borders and lighter blue backgrounds than its #92 counterpart. Wagner, Ruth, Cobb, Mantle and Mays are just several of the baseball greats that reside on this list of cardboard rarities. With Mays, the opposite is true: his Bowman rookie card is worth more than his 1952 Topps card. If you asked collectors, most would probably say they prefer the portrait poses with the green portrait more preferred to the red due to its scarcity. As a result, there werent manyJoe Jackson baseball cardsproduced. 1991 Chipper Jones Topps Desert Shield RC #333 Buy on eBay So named because his dad saw him as a "chip off the old block", Chipper Jones has an RC which is the most valuable card from the 1991 Topps set. Big names like Albert Pujols, Ichiro, David Ortiz, Derek Jeter, Miguel Cabrera and Clayton Kershaw help round out a solid checklist. This card is often thought to be Jacksons most attractive and popular baseball card. It was the first time since 1924 that a pitcher accomplished the feat in both leagues during the same season. One of the rarest pre-WWI candy issues ever distributed is the 1912 Plows Boy Candy set that included 69 different baseball players. 1986 Topps Tiffany Rickey Henderson 2. Ruth was at the tail end of his career in 1933 but he still produced well enough to be named a starter in the All-Star game at Comiskey Park that year. Financial problems would cause Dunn to sell Ruths contract to the Boston Red Sox later that year, however. As with most early candy or tobacco issues, this card with the image of the Georgia Peach ready to swing is the most valuable and sought after in the set. It would fetch much more than that today. The potential for caramel stains doesnt bode well for collectors of this card. After the 2010 campaign, manager Bobby Cox called it a career, leaving a hole in the Braves clubhouse that couldn't be filled. So, whoever says that baseball cards are no longer valuable simply doesn't know what he or she is talking about Sure, the massive print runs during the late 80's and early 90's killed the value of most post-1980's cards. We believe the following 10 cards will be tops in short-term return on investment over the next 1 to 2 years. Trout exploded during his official rookie campaign the following season, earning AL Rookie of the Year honors and finishing second in the MVP race. His 1951 Bowman issue is his only recognized rookie card and along with the Mantle rookie is the key to the entire set. His massive upside in the future made his wildness in the present less worrisome. 1952 Topps Willie Mays RC #261 #5. The first Dodgers hurler to secure the NL pitching Triple Crown since Sandy Koufax back in 1966, Kershaw led the National League in wins (21), strikeouts (248), and ERA (2.24), the latter serving as the best mark for a starter in all of baseball. A record that is pretty safe to say will never be broken,Cy Youngtotaled an incredible 511 wins over his career. While the #144 Full Body Ruth was double-printed and isnt as scarce, it is harder to find in high-grade than the #181 Green Ruth. Interest in the Dodgers/Giants rivalry was skyrocketing, and Kershaw's brilliance was a big reason for it. Despite singling to right field off San Francisco's Matt Cain in his first at-bat, Goldschmidt stuck out nearly one in every three at-bats in 48 games that season. The Big Train is a true legend of the game and this card is a great tribute to him. The 48-card 1915 American Caramel E106 shows some nice artistic renderings of players of the National, American and Federal Leagues. Most Expensive 2023 Topps Baseball Cards Most Expensive 2023 Topps card list & price guide. Surprisingly, many dont even consider him the best pitcher ever, though. Most Valuable. For example, one easy way to tell if youve got an M101-4 Ruth rookie is if the Sporting News ad is on the back of the card as no M101-5 Ruths featured that ad. There are two varieties of these cards with one version featuring a tobacco advertisement on the back and the other a checklist. The Yellow Ruth, #53, is considered to be the toughest, closely followed by the #149 Red Ruth that shows the legendary slugger in an identical pose. 5. Another obscure and rarely seen card, the 1915 E106 American Caramel Honus Wagner Throwing variation is just as much of a classic. The 1963 ToppsPete Rose rookie cardshows the all-time hit king along with Pedro Gonzalez, Ken McMullen, and Al Weis as one of 1963s most promising youngsters. In one of the great stories about this card, a collector once purchased an unopened five-card pack of1952 Topps baseball cardsand pulled the only Pafko to ever be graded PSA Gem Mint 10. Whatever the reason, there are only approximately 50-75 or so known copies in circulation today as a result. Altuve went 1-5 that game, but little did he know then he had kicked off a piece of Houston Astros history. Cobb turned in an absolute monster of a season in 1911 as he set career highs in batting (.420), hits (248), doubles (47), triples (24), RBI (127), runs (147) and slugging percentage (.621). The most expensive 2022 Topps Heritage baseball cards feature the likes of Wander Franco, Shohei Ohtani, Julio Rodriguez, and even Nolan Ryan making an appearance. Kimbrel led all NL relievers with 46 saves, pitching to a 2.10 ERA with 127 strikeouts in 77.0 innings. Distracting print lines usually hold this card back from higher grades, though.