Baseball Card Market Report for December 8-14, 2022 - Top eBay Sales

PLUS -- Trolling the Investment Corner for the next Hall of Famers

Dec 16, 2022

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Killer Sale(s)

Take a gander at the top of the list of most expensive baseball cards sold on eBay last week (bottom of post), and you’re likely to see a couple of things you hardly ever do.

First, Harmon Killebrew is at the top of the list.

And second, a 1963 Topps baseball card is at the top of the list.

And, yes, they both occupy the top of the list, because card #1 is PSA 9 copy of Killer’s 1963 Topps card.

Don’t get me wrong — Killebrew and ‘63 Topps are both Hall of Famers in their respective fields. It’s just that neither one hardly ever tops the usual heavy hitters like Mantle, Ruth, Jackie, 1952 Topps, T206, and the like.

But, at a relatively modest $13,200, this Killer takes the cake.

Just the latest in a trail of breadcrumbs that seems to be leading to the conclusion that the market ain’t what it used to me.

One minor surpise here is that Fred McGriff didn’t make the cut anywhere along the line. Crime Dog is the newest Hall of Famer, you know.

Speaking of which, it’s time to go out …

Hunting Hall of Famers in the Investment Corner

So, it’s that time of year again.

No, not Christmas time.

It’s Hall of Fame hype time!

And, with the announcement — or non-announcement, as the case may be — of the members of the Cooperstown Class of 2023 looming just over the horizon in January, it’s time for us to dive in and try to find some cards now that might rocket to the moon once the new inductees are known.

Or at least, you know, not drain our virtual savings account to virtually zero.

If you’ve been around here awhile, you know the drill. But in case you haven’t or if you need a refresher, this monthly exercise works like this:

I get to fake spend about $1000 on cards matching our theme — dudes on the 2023 HOF ballot in this case.
I have to “buy” cards that have actuall sold on eBay recently.
I have to revisit these picks in a year to see how they’ve performed.
We all have to realize that this is all cardboard we’re talking about, so investing any real money in said baubles is dicey at best and likely to leave you with significantly less money if it all turns out to be a *ahem* house of cards. This is all for fun, in other words, and not money will or even should change hands.

Got all that?

Cool, on to the picks …

1995 Topps Traded & Rookie Carlos Beltran (#18T) - PSA 10 - $112.50

Beltran, of course, was a key figure in Trashcan-gate, but also put up a pretty convincing Hall of Fame case over the course of his 20-year big league career. So, will his 2700+ hits, 435 home runs, and 312 stolen bases outweigh his larceny here in his first time on the ballot?

I’m guessing “no” based on how the steroid guys have fared, but I’m also taking a flyer on this “perfect” Beltran RC, which seems unlikely to tank anytime soon.

See listing (affiliate link)

1995 Bowman's Best Blue Scott Rolen (#87) - PSA 9 - $104.99

I’ve trumpted Rolen’s cards in this space for as long as there has been a this space, so I’m not about to stop now … and maybe not even after he gets elected. That could easily happen this year, as he’s a top-ten all-time third baseman and nabbed over 63% of the vote on a much more crowded 2022 ballot.

See listing (affiliate link)

1989 Upper Deck Gary Sheffield (#13) - PSA 10 (4) - $122.5

Sheffield has two shots left at the Hall of Fame by way of the BBWAA ballot, and, like Rolen, he should benefit from the improved air space this time around. After appearing on just under 41% of ballots last year, Sheff has a long way to go, but he also has more than 500 home runs, a specious PED connection, and a run of classic rookie cards — including this one — that were hobby icons for a long time.

See listing (affiliate link)

1994 Bowman's Best Blue Billy Wagner (#19) - PSA 10 - $127.52

Wagner may be the greatest reliever not already in the Hall of Fame, and he definitely put up an amazing 11.9 strikeouts per nine innings in the days before everyone was expected to throw his arm off for about 20 pitches and then rest for the next week. Wagner has three shots remaining on the “regular” ballot and reached 51% last year — his chances of reaching Cooperstown soon look pretty good.

See listing (affiliate link)

1994 SP Foil Alex Rodriguez (#15 ) - PSA 9 - $271

A-Rod debuted on the ballot with a measly 34.3% of the vote last year, which is frankly ridiculous. Yes, PEDs blah blah blah — even dudes who secretly wear an “S” under their uniforms would be amazed by Rodriguez’s numbers. He may never make the cut by way of the writers, but A-Rod will get enough votes and cause enough stir to keep his 1994 SP rookie card moving upward over the long term.

See listing (affiliate link)

1995 Bowman's Best Blue Andruw Jones (#7) - PSA 10 - $213.50

Like Rolen, Jones sort of secretly crept into the upper reaches of the all-time list of players at his position. Unlike the hot corner man, though, this lockdown centerfielder fell off the table in his 30s and also carries some off-field baggage that weighs down his candidacy. Still, Jones is just halfway through his time on the writers’ ballot, and his 41.4 % from last year makes his cards — including this 1995 Bowman RC — good bets to appreciate over time.

See listing (affiliate link)

1992 Fleer Update Jeff Kent (#U104) - PSA 9 - $24.27

Kent enters his final year on the ballot with a few strikes against him: 1) his statistical case is marginal; 2) he pulled only 32.7% of the vote last year; and 3) he was not the most likable player of his (or any) generation.

Chances are that Kent will fall short, but his Fleer Update rookie is fun because it shows him as a Met and because it’s a bit of a lottery ticket.

See listing (affiliate link)
—

All in all, we (faux) spent $976.28 on this suite of cards, which leaves us just about enough dough to buy another Jeff Kent rookie card if we’re feeling lucky.

Otherwise, we can just sit an wait nervously to see how the 2023 ballot plays out … that’s when we’ll get some early indication of our returns here.

Then, as usual, we’ll check back next December to see how we fared with these picks.

And, speaking of checking back a year later, how about checking in on some guys who are …

Still Waiting for the Call (take 2) … but not all of ‘em!

Last December, we spent our fake grand on players who were up for Hall of Fame election in 2022, but who loomed as longshots to actually get the call, for a variety of reasons.

But, man, if they hit, they’d hit BIG!

Here was our lineup of buys 12 months ago …

1987 Topps Barry Bonds (PSA 10)

Bought (10/2021): $220.75
Sold (10/2022): $250.00
Profit/Loss: $29.25 (13%)

1985 Fleer Roger Clemens (PSA 9)

Bought (10/2021): $87.50
Sold (10/2022): $80.00
Profit/Loss: -$7.50 (-9%)

1995 Bowman's Best Blue Scott Rolen (PSA 9)

Bought (10/2021): $94.99
Sold (10/2022): $105.00
Profit/Loss: $10.01 (11%)

1989 Donruss Curt Schilling (PSA 10)

Bought (10/2021): $95.00
Sold (10/2022): $50.00
Profit/Loss: -$45.00 (-47%)

1998 Bowman Chrome Jimmy Rollins (PSA 10)

Bought (10/2021): $93.71
Sold (10/2022): $95.00
Profit/Loss: $1.29 (1%)

1994 Flair Alex Rodriguez (PSA 10)

Bought (10/2021): $75.00
Sold (10/2022): $70.00
Profit/Loss: -$5.00 (-7%)

1989 Topps Gary Sheffield (PSA 10)

Bought (10/2021): $50.00
Sold (10/2022): $40.00
Profit/Loss: -$10.00 (-20%)

1997 Fleer David Ortiz (CCG 10)

Bought (10/2021): $156.00
Sold (10/2022): $156.00
Profit/Loss: $0.00 (0%)

1990 Leaf Sammy Sosa (PSA 10)

Bought (10/2021): $71.00
Sold (10/2022): $50.00
Profit/Loss: -$21.00 (-30%)

1978 Topps Pete Rose (PSA 9)

Bought (10/2021): $57.00
Sold (10/2022): $80.00
Profit/Loss: $23.00 (40%)

—

So …

Big Papi actually overcame a so-so HOF resume to land his Cooperstown plaque … and his 1997 Fleer flatlined over the course of a year.

Bonds, Clemens, Sosa, and Schilling all fell off the ballot as expected, and their cards were a mixed bag — Bonds is up, Clemens is down, Sosa is down even more, and Schilling is digging a cardboard hole in a basement somewhere.

Rolen is back and may actually get the call this year — no surprise to see his cards climbing.

Rollins and A-Rod are back and have no chance this year — no surprise to see their cards stagnate.

Sheffield is back and in his ninth year of eligibility — the downturn is a little surprising and may represent an opportunity to make some hay.

Rose … well, he wasn’t actually on any sort of ballot or even eligible for enshrinement, but his 1978 Topps card is up, anyway. By quite a bit, actually.

Add it all up, and we “sold” these cards for $976 this year after “paying” $1000.95 last year, a loss of $24.95, or 2.5%.

I think I’ll just (fake) hold onto ‘em for awhile longer and see if they don’t someday end up on a list like the …

Top Baseball Card Sales on eBay for December 8-14, 2022

(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
Most expensive hockey cards sold in the last 30 days

Now, on with the show …

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Baseball Card Market Report for December 8-14, 2022 - Top eBay Sales

PLUS -- Trolling the Investment Corner for the next Hall of Famers

Killer Sale(s)

Hunting Hall of Famers in the Investment Corner

Still Waiting for the Call (take 2) … but not all of ‘em!

Top Baseball Card Sales on eBay for December 8-14, 2022

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Discussion about this post