Baseball cards were created around 1860 and have since been a huge part of the game, making the sport more memorable and exciting. Nothing beats opening up a new pack of baseball cards and finding one of your favorite players in the pack.
Collecting baseball cards started to become popular in the 1950s. A pack of Topps cards with a stick of gum would typically cost 10 cents. Topps, founded in 1938, is the biggest baseball card company in history. In 2022, it was acquired by Fanatics in a $500 million deal.
As the popularity of baseball cards continued to grow through the 1960s and 1970s many fans, most kids and teenagers would buy cards more so for fun and trading purposes rather than collecting. When buying a pack of cards, kids would excitedly sift through the pack to see who they got. If it was a card they already had or maybe a player they did not like, they would try to trade with their friends to see if they could get a better card.
Present day, Topps is still the biggest baseball card company. While not as cheap as 10 cents a pack anymore, the cards are still extremely popular. Fans collect cards and even sell them. Rookie cards are especially sought after since they have the potential to be of high value in the future.
The most expensive card that has ever been sold was a 1952 Mickey Mantle card by Topps. The card was sold in an auction in 2022 for $12.6 million. At the time it was sold, it was the most that had ever been paid for sports memorabilia.
One of the most valuable baseball cards from 2024 was a Paul Skenes rookie card which was part of the Topps Chrome update series. The card had a patch of his uniform in it from one of his first games and was autographed. Since the card was one of a kind, Skenes’ team, the Pittsburgh Pirates, were willing to give a number of items to the fan that got the card.
In exchange for the card, the Pirates offered to give the fan a meet and greet with Skenes, two autographed jerseys from him, two season tickets behind home plate for the next 30 years, and more. The card has yet to be found yet or if it has been found, it was not publicly announced.
Another extremely sought-after card from the 2024 season was Cincinnati Reds player Elly De La Cruz’s rookie card. Like Skenes, the card was a Topps Chrome update card, which was autographed and had an MLB Debut patch on it. There were 250 other cards that are one of one like this for other rookie players.
At the start of this year, Aaron Judge was named Topps’ 2025 Baseball Series One Athlete. Being on the cover of the baseball card pack is a huge honor for players considering the brand saves the space for one of the best players in the league.
Edited by Brittany Snow
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