Thomas' Bowman rookie card is now worth $50 in PSA 10 condition. Sammy Sosa was once a lanky young man with a combination of power and speed that made him a 30-30 threat for the Texas Rangers. Then he played for the Chicago White Sox. Now he's just another broken-down player who never wins anything.
PSA has identified several other players whose cards are worth more than $10 each. Two other Baseball Hall of Fame candidates, Bert Blyleven and Greg Maddux, have cards that are also worth more than $10.
Blyleven has a PSA 10 copy of his 1986 Topps card that is worth $120. It is one of only three such cards ever produced. Maddux's PSA 10 copy of his 1995 Upper Deck card is worth $45.
Both Blyleven and Maddux were part of the first wave of elite pitchers who switched from playing baseball to becoming full-time starters in their early 20s. They pitched for many years before being elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
But we now know that PEDs had a significant role. Despite the shadow that still lingers over his career, Sosa is still a favorite of many baseball card collectors. It's only worth approximately $10 in mint condition, and it's far from his most valuable rookie card. That title belongs to another Roberto Clemente card.
Sosa's first card was issued by Upper Deck in 1996. It was designed by Mark Maloney and features photos taken by John Raffanello during Sosa's first season with the Chicago White Sox. The card is in near-perfect condition and currently sells for about $200 on eBay.
After making his debut with the White Sox, Sosa was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for Orlando Hernandez. He then had another stellar season with the Pirates, finishing with 39 homers and 117 RBI. His card again was done by Mark Maloney and features photos taken by Jeff Nelson during Sosa's first year with the Pirates. It too is in near-perfect condition and currently sells for about $200 on eBay.
Sosa spent three more seasons with the Pirates before being traded to the San Diego Padres for Greg Vaughn. He ended up playing only one full season with the Padres, batting.292 with 26 homers and 86 RBI. His final season was in 2001 with the New York Yankees, where he played in 103 games and finished with 31 homers and 85 RBI.
The Ultimate Collector's Guide to Frank Thomas Rookie Cards
His Topps rookie card will set you back roughly $15 in PSA 10, but just about a dollar raw, thanks in part to his more than 500 career home runs. Gregg Jefferies, like Sheffield, was one of the hitters we were counting on to ignite a fire under our rookie cards (oh, the agony!). His number was assigned to me.
Jefferies' career batting average is down around.270, but that's because he played in an era when offense was really valued - he led the league three times and finished in the top five a further six times. He had 26 seasons with at least 100 games played and two decades out of the batter's box didn't take a bit off his power stroke! His card is now in the PSA 10 manual collection value range.
As for other players who came before him - here are their current value per PSA 10: Ted Williams ($4.9 million), Joe DiMaggio ($4.8 million), Barry Bonds ($4.7 million), Hank Aaron ($4.5 million) and Alex Rodriguez ($4.1 million). It's also worth mentioning that if you have any cards from these players in your collection that aren't in PSA 10 condition, they're still worth money!
In conclusion, Jefferies' card is now worth between $6,750 and $37,500.
Estimated value of PSA 9 Mint: $9,000 This is Carl Yastrzemski's lone official rookie card, the guy charged with replacing the late, great Ted Williams for the Boston Red Sox. Yaz fared rather well for himself, earning the Triple Crown and the American League MVP title.
1960 Topps #148 Rookie card of Carl Yastrzemski This is Carl Yastrzemski's lone official rookie card, the guy charged with replacing the late, great Ted Williams for the Boston Red Sox.
He is affectionately referred to as "Yaz." Carl Yastrzemski, now 80, was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame as a first-ballot inductee in 1989. He had a dream career, playing with the Boston Red Sox for 23 years (1961-1983).
1986-87 Fleer introduced Charles Barkley's rookie card to collectors, and it is by far his most popular. Although ungraded and low-grade copies may be obtained for $25-50 on a regular basis, high grades can still see substantial prices. In December of 2014, a PSA 10 sold for $1,375. A month later, a PSA 9 sold for $4,750.
Barkley's rookie card has become one of the most popular in sports card history. The 1986-87 Fleer set was the first time that a new player was featured on both the standard issue black-bordered card as well as the insert. These cards are extremely rare, with only 563 being released into circulation. They carry an official grade of PSA 7/8 and sell for $40-$100.
Barkley's second season as a Phoenix Sun was also very successful on the court. He led the team to its first ever Western Conference title, and was named Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the 1987 NBA All-Star Game. Two years after entering the league, he was already a top sales performer, with millions of copies of his signature laid out before him.
In January 1988, the Charles Barkley Sports Collectibles Set was introduced by Upper Deck Company. This set included all the main characters from his first two seasons, plus other famous athletes such as Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, and Scottie Pippen.
Topps rookie card of Hank Aaron from 1954 Baseball Card Value of Hank Aaron His most valued card is a 1954 Hank Aaron Topps rookie card, which will sell for $350,000 or more in a PSA 10 grade.
The most valuable regular-issue card is the 1952 Topps card of Babe Ruth. It sold for $4.6 million in November 2004.
A Topps card is considered rare if it does not contain any printings or variations of the card. The most expensive regular-issue card is the 1952 Topps card of Babe Ruth.
Seeing that old Indians outfit is also a throwback! The 1992 Donruss Thome rookie card in PSA 10 may bring $20 or more. See above for a discussion of why the basic Ryan issue should not be surprising to be on this list of the most expensive 1992 Donruss cards.
With that in mind, here are the most valued 1992 Donruss baseball cards, as determined by recent eBay purchases of PSA 10 copies. Highlights from Nolan Ryan (#154) You can expect that any list like this for cards from the 1960s through the mid-1990s will include at least one Nolan Ryan card.
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