Sports Cards

Everyone knows the T206 Honus Wagner baseball card sold for $7 million because it’s super rare, right?

Afterall, once Wagner found out his face was featured on a tobacco baseball card advertisement, he famously ordered them to stop printing his card.

This led to the Wagner card being more rare than any other from the legendary 1909-1911 T-206 card set, right?

Wrong.

Ty Cobb has a much more rare card from the T-206 series. It features a red background with a “Ty Cobb” Tobacco advertisement on the back.

There are only 22 of these Ty Cobb cards in existence. The Honus Wagner T-206 includes 70-80 examples.

In 2016, someone paid about $1 million for the highest-grade PSA 4.5 version of the Ty Cobb T-206 ‘Cobb Back’ card. But nobody knows for sure, it was a private sale.

You could easily make the case for this card being worth at least as much as the most valuable T-206 Honus Wagner.

Is it just the Honus Wagner T-206 “hype” that’s overshadowing possibly the greatest baseball card of all-time?

If you had to pick one over the other, which way are you going? I know what my vote would be.

The $50 Million Mickey Mantle Card –

When Ted Lodge found a box of 1952 Topps in his father’s attic, it contained several Mickey Mantle cards.

He sold all the Mickey Mantle cards to Alan Rosen in 1986, who then sold one card to Anthony Giordano for $50,000.

Giordano had the card graded, a SCG 9.5, one of the highest known grades for the card.

In 2022, the card sold for $12.6 million at a Heritage Auctions sale.

But that’s not the most valuable 1952 Mickey Mantle rookie card.

The most valuable belongs to collector Marshall Fogel. The retired lawyer bought the card from David Hall, founder of Collectors Universe, back in 1995 for $121,000.

There are only three PSA 10 Mickey Mantle rookie cards in existence. And Fogel believes he owns the most pristine example.

He’s been offered $25 million for his card, but he turned it down.

Fogel estimates his 1952 Mickey Mantle PSA 10 rookie card could be valued at $50 million.

And he’s not selling.

Legendary card collector Ken Kendrick owns the second PSA 10 Mantle rookie, and the third PSA 10 card is owned by a mystery collector.

What do you think Fogel’s Mickey Mantle rookie card is worth?

sports cards — *Sports Card Market Report, 2024*

Top 10 Most Valuable Baseball Cards

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Rank	Card	Grade	Date Sold	Facts	Buyer & Seller	Image	Value
1	1952 Topps Mickey Mantle Rookie Card	SGC 9.5	2022	There are two variations of the 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle with subtle design features. About 1,800 1952 Topps Mantle cards are known to exist, most in poor condition.	When Ted Lodge found a box of 1952 Topps in his father's attic, it contained several Mickey Mantle cards. Alan Rosen purchased them in 1986, and sold one to Anthony Giordano for $50,000. Giordano had the card graded, an SCG 9.5, the highest known grade for the card.		$12,600,000
2	1909 T206 Sweet Caporal Honus Wagner	SGC 2	2022	An estimated 50 to 200 T206 Wagner cards were produced. This sale was an all-time record for highest price ever paid for a baseball card - until one month later the SCG 9.5 Mickey Mantle Card sold for $12.6 mil.	Sold in the early 1970s for $1,100, and again in 2012 for $1.2 million to an unidentified buyer.		$7,250,000
3	1914 Baltimore News Babe Ruth	SGC 3	2021	The 11 card set printed by the Charm City newspaper included game schedules on the back of the card.	Purchased by fractional share platform, Collectable, investors can buy shares in the card for $10 bucks each. The card is kept at the Babe Ruth Museum in Baltimore.		$6,000,000
4	1952 Topps Mickey Mantle Rookie Card	PSA 9	2021	While the PSA 9 graded Mantle card sold for $5.2 million, there are three PSA 10 graded cards that have not sold for years.	Once owned by pro football player Even Mathis, the card was purchased by actor, Rob Gough.		$5,200,000
5	1933 Goudey Babe Ruth #53	PSA 9	2021	The yellow background Ruth card in one of four in the 1933 Goudey set.	Sold by lifelong card collector and neurologist Dr. Thomas Newman.		$4,212,000
6	2009 Bowman Chrome Prospects Mike Trout	BGS 9	2020	The card is one-of-a-kind, signed by Trout and marked "1/1"	Sold by Dave Oancea, also known as "Vegas Dave." Oancea paid $400,000 for the card in 2018.	$2009 bowman chrome draft prospects mike trout superfractors$	$3,840,000
7	1916 M101 Sporting News Babe Ruth	PSA 7	2021	The 1916 Sporting News set inlcudes 200 cards, some cards had advertisements on the back, while others were blank. Only 35 known Sporting News Ruth cards exist. One PSA 7 graded card, and one PSA 8 card.	Mile High Card Company sold the card to an unnamed buyer.		$2,400,000
8	1955 Topps Roberto Clemente Rookie	PSA 9	2021	While there is 11 PSA 9 graded Clemente rookie cards, there is only 1 PSA 10 card. The 'Dmitri Young Collection' Clemente PSA 10 card last sold in 2012.	Goldin Auctions sold the Clemente card to a private collector		$1,107,000
9	1925 Exhibits Lou Gehrig	PSA 5	2022	1925 was Gehrig's breakout season. Only 2 cards in higher graded PSA 6 condition exist.	Memory Lane auctions sold the card with a starting bid of $200,000.		$1,032,000
10	1969 Topps Reggie Jackson Rookie	PSA 10	2021	The only PSA 10 Reggie Jackson Topps rookie card to exist, it's part of the famous Dmitri Young Collection. The last time the card sold was in 2012 for $115,000.	Heritage Auctions sold the Reggie Jackson rookie to a private buyer		$1,005,800

13 Most Valuable Baseball Cards of All Time (2024 Updated Guide)

The list of most valuable baseball cards of all time is constantly changing. A string of record-breaking auction sales has taken the most expensive baseball cards to new heights. So let’s take a look at the most recent list of the top 13 most valuable baseball cards…

LEARN MORE –> 13 Most Valuable Baseball Cards of All Time (2024 Updated Guide)

Top 10 Most Valuable Football Cards

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Rank	Card	Grade	Facts	Value	Date Sold	Buyer & Seller
1	2017 National Treasures Pat Mahomes Auto	BGS 8.5	The Panini card is identified as 1 of 1, making it the most valuable football card ever sold. The autograph is graded BGS 10, with the NFL Shield Rookie Patch.	$4.3 million	2021	The sale by PWCC Marketplace to LJ's Card Shop in New Albany, Ohio broke the record held by the Tom Brady $3.1 million card.
2	2000 Playoff Contenders Tom Brady Auto/Ticket	BGS 9 BGS	Only 7 Tom Brady 'Contenders' cards were produced, one for each of his 7 Super Bowl victories.	$3.1 million	2021	The card sold at a Lelands Auctions sale in 2021 breaking a record for most valuable football card ever sold. The next month, the identical card graded BGS 8.5 sold for $2.2 million.
3	1935 National Chicle Bronko Nagurski Rookie	PSA 9	It's the only PSA 9 Bronko Nagurski card in existence. Bronko was inducted into the Football Hall of Fame in 1963. He was also a professional wrestler, and named World Heavyweight Champion several times.	$350,000	2011	Memory Lane auctions brokered the sale to a private buyer.
4	1958 Topps Jim Brown Rookie	PSA 9	Only 6 PSA 9 Jim Brown rookie cards exist, and no PSA 10 grade cards exist.	$336,000	2017	The card was purchased at a Heritage Auctions event in February, 2017.
5	1957 Topps Bart Starr Rookie	PSA 9	Bart Starr was MVP of two Super Bowls, four-time Pro Bowl, league MVP, and Hall of Fame inductee in 1977.	$288,000	2017	One of only 3 PSA 9 Bart Starr rookie cards, with no PSA 10 cards. Sold by Heritage Auctions.
6	1965 Topps Joe Namath Rookie	PSA 9	Namath received offers to play professional baseball, and was known to dunk during his high school basketball games. After his football career, Namath developed his acting career appearing on The Love Boat, The Brady Bunch, The A-Team, ALF, and hosted The Joe Namath Show.	$264,000	2018	Only 5 cards have a PSA 9 grade. Heritage Auctions sold the Namath card to a private collection.
7	2000 Bowman Chrome Tom Brady Refractor	BGS 9.5	The 2000 Bowman Chrome Brady card is one of 37 with a BGS 9.5 grade.	$233,700	2021	Sold by Goldin Auctions.
8	2000 Bowman Tom Brady Gold Rookie	BGS 9	Tom Brady was the 199th pick overall in the 2000 NFL Draft. Six other quarterbacks were picked before Brady in the draft including Chad Pennington (18th pick) Giovanni Carmazzi (65th pick) Chris Redman (75th pick) Tee Martin (163rd pick) Marc Bulger (168th pick), and Spergon Wynn (183rd pick)	$230,000	2021	Heritage Auctions sold the Bowman Brady card, one of six cards with a BGS 9 grade.
9	1976 Topps Walter Payton Rookie	SGC 10	Payton's would often stiff-arm tacklers, and would refuse to go out of bounds. Instead, he would prefer to punish the defense rather than escape to the sidelines. He also used his "stutter-step" to throw off tacklers, and was known to leap over defenders for touchdowns.	$228,000	2021	Sold by Heritage Auctions
10	2000 SP Authentic Tom Brady Rookie	BGS 10	Brady grew up a San Francisco 49ers fan, and his hero was Joe Montana. He attended the same high school as Lynn Swann and Barry Bonds, and was drafted to play baseball as a catcher by the Montreal Expos	$144,000	2020	Goldin Auctions