Baseball Card Market Report for April 13-19, 2023 - Top eBay Sales

PLUS -- Do cards of game-changers cost more?

Apr 21, 2023

Note: When you click on links to various merchants in this newsletter and make a purchase, this can result in this newsletter earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

Flat Top

The #1 spot on our list of top-selling baseball cards on eBay last week (see bottom of post) is a pretty cherry 1954 Topps Hank Aaron rookie card in PSA 7 condition.

That one pulled in a cool $15,254 on the strength of 29 bids.

Definitely nothing to sneeze at.

Do you like your baseball cards with a side order of nostalgia?

Then you might enjoy our free weekly Wax Pack Gods newsletter, where we dive deep into the fun, silly, and amazing joys of the hobby that keep us coming back year after year.

Here are a few examples of recent posts, just to whet your cardboard appetite:

Come join the fun!

Check Out Wax Pack Gods

But if you look at PSA’s own running list of auction sales for that card in that condition, you’ll find that it’s been almost a years since an Aaron RC sold for such a paltry sum. And before that, it was November of 2021.

Consider this another data point in the case for some flatness at the very top of the market, even for guys who inarguably changed the game forever.

And, speaking of game-changers …

Do Game-Changers Cost More?

So, Major League Baseball rolled out a bunch of ballyhooed/bellyached-about rules changes this year.

And that all sort of reminded me about how they lowered the mound in 1969, at least partially in respone to the so-called “Year of the Pitcher” in 1968.

And that made me wonder how the guys who precipitated the drastic changes have fared in the card market over the years, relative to their competition.

To find out, I did a familiar thing.

First, I found five pitchers who finished among the MLB leaders in wins in 1968 and who are not Hall of Famers (to remove that honor from the list of factors affecting card value). Then, for each of the five, I:

Found one of his top historical comps who wasn’t a top winner in 1968, according to Baseball Reference’s Similarity Scores (or other swags in some cases)
Found the top rookie card for each of those two hurlers, by measure of number of graded card sales
Found the Card Value Multiplier for each of those cards
Found the Multiplier of Multipliers (MoM) for the two cards, with Big Winner dude in the numerator and his comp in the denominator

Here’s are how this week’s matchups played out …

(The following section contains affiliate links to eBay listings for the cards being discussed.)

Denny McLain v. Jack McDowell

McLain won an astounding 31 games in 1968, which may be more than the A’s finish with this year. He won both the MVP and Cy Young Awards for his efforts, added another CYA in 1969, then went downhill fast.

McDowell was the White Sox ace at he same time Frank Thomas was lighting up opposing pitchers in the early ‘90s, and he won his own CYA in 1993.

1965 Topps Denny McLain (#236) - PSA 8

WAR: 19.3
Value: $60
Common Value: $14
Multiplier: 4.3

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

1988 Topps Traded Jack McDowell (#68T) - PSA 10

WAR: 27.8
Value: $30
Common Value: $7
Multiplier: 4.3

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

Multiplier of Multipliers (MoM): 1.0

Dave McNally v. Mike Cuellar

McNally won 22 games for the 1968 Orioles, who couldn’t quite hang with the Tigers (eventual World Series champs). He’d win 20+ in each of the next three seasons, too.

Cuellar was with the Astros in 1968, but he’d join McNally with the O’s in 1969, copping AL Cy Young honors in the process. He also nailed down 20+ wins each year from 1969-71, then did it again in 1974.

1963 Topps Dave McNally (#562) - PSA 8

WAR: 25.5
Value: $95
Common Value: $22
Multiplier: 4.3

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

1959 Topps Mike Cuellar (#518) - PSA 7

WAR: 26.9
Value: $70
Common Value: $16
Multiplier: 4.4

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

Multiplier of Multipliers (MoM): 0.98

Mel Stottlemyre v. Steve Rogers

Stottlemyre won 21 games for the last Yankees team that carried Mickey Mantle on its roster. It was the second of three times the future Yanks pitching coach would win 20+.

Rogers was the ace of the Montreal Expos for what seemed like their entire north-of-the-border existence (except for that Pedro year), but he topped out at 19 wins in 1982.

1965 Topps Mel Stottlemyre (#550) - PSA 8

WAR: 43.1
Value: $125
Common Value: $22
Multiplier: 5.7

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

1974 Topps Steve Rogers (#169) - PSA 9

WAR: 44.7
Value: $50
Common Value: $8
Multiplier: 6.3

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

Multiplier of Multipliers (MoM): 0.9

Luis Tiant v. Billy Pierce

Tiant won 21 games for the Indians in 1968, lost 20 for the Tribe in ‘69, then had trouble sticking in the majors in 1970 and 1971. He turned up in Boston in 1972 and became a Red Sox legend en route to career numbers that might still land him in Cooperstown.

Pierce won 20 games twice for the White Sox in the 1950s and made seven All-Star teams in an 18-year big league career.

1965 Topps Luis Tiant (#145) - PSA 8

WAR: 66.1
Value: $590
Common Value: $14
Multiplier: 42

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

1951 Bowman Billy Pierce (#196) - PSA 7

WAR: 53.4
Value: $65
Common Value: $55
Multiplier: 1.2

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

Multiplier of Multipliers (MoM): 35

Nelson Briles v. Frank Lary

Briles won 19 games for the ‘68 Cardinals after pacing the National League with a .737 winning percentage in 1967. He’s sort of the forgotten man on that team thanks to Bob Gibson’s dominance, though Briles did his part in that regard by giving up seven runs in 11.1 innings in the 1968 Fall Classic against the Tigers.

Lary won 21 games for the Tigers in 1956 and 23 in 1961. In that latter season, he led the American League with 22 complete games. Predictably, his right shoulder turned into a pumpkin soon after, and he reach 100 innings just one more time (1963) before hanging up his spikes in 1965.

1965 Topps Nelson Briles (19) (#431) - PSA 8

WAR: 20.8
Value: $42
Common Value: $16
Multiplier: 2.6

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

1955 Bowman Frank Lary (#154) - PSA 7

WAR: 30.3
Value: $50
Common Value: $50
Multiplier: 1

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

Multiplier of Multipliers (MoM): 2.6
—

So, do 1968’s big winners have an advantage over their non-game-changing counterparts when it comes to card prices?

Maybe. But probably not.

The first three matchups above are a wash.

Briles handily handles Lary, but he (Briles) also played a key role on some great early 1970s Pirates teams. That’s two strong fan bases (Cards and Bucs) to chase after Briles, while Lary has just one (Motown).

Tiant eats Pierce’s lunch, but Tiante just may be the best pitcher not in the Hall of Fame (and not named Clemens). So, maybe not really a fair comparison.

Wanna know what else doesn’t seem fair sometimes?

That some of our favorite baseball cards cost so darn much to own ….

Top Baseball Card Sales on eBay for April 13-19, 2023

(Quick note — this list contains affiliate links to the original eBay listings.)

If you want to see updated 30-day market toppers anytime, we have a couple of resources over on WaxPackGods.com:

Most expensive baseball cards sold in the last 30 days
Most expensive football cards sold in the last 30 days
Most expensive basketball cards sold in the last 30 days

Now, on with the show …

Baseball Card Values Newsletter

Discussion about this post