Baseball Card Market Report for September 12-18, 2024 - Top eBay Sales

PLUS -- Checking in on 1974 Topps baseball cards

Sep 20, 2024

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.

Without a Shoe to Stand On

Man, if you like your cardboard history to line up with your baseball history the list of the most expensive cards sold on eBay last week (bottom of post) is right up your alley.

Starting with a seldom-seen Shoeless Joe Jackson card that brought about 75K, this week’s lineup is loaded with movers and shakers from baseball’s past…and present.

From another Jackson card to Reggie Jackson, Jackie Robinson, Joe DiMaggio, Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Barry Bonds, Shohei Ohtani, and on and on and on — there’s something for just about anyone to grab onto (philosophically, at least, if not with your actual dollars).

And speaking of hobby history, it’s about time we go…

Checking in on 1974 Topps Baseball Cards

Earlier this month on YouTube, we ran down the most expensive recent sales on eBay for 1974 Topps baseball cards:

That set has an understated design that sometimes leaves it out of the limelight, but the truth is, it’s also a historic issue for the hobby. In particular, the 1974 set was the first one that Topps issued all at once rather than in series.

Not only that, but the early runs showing some players of the San Diego Padres with a team designation of “Washington Nat'l Lea.” left us with some of the most iconic variations ever.

And, since it’s been 50 years since this set was “live,” I thought this would be a good time to check in on the market for graded 1974s in general.

What follows is a rundown of the dozen most valuable 1974 Topps cards in PSA 8 condition (the most common graded condition according to the PSA Population Report) based on recent actual selling prices reported in the PSA Auction Prices Realized tool.

I’ve also included the population of each card in PSA 8 condition to help explain why some lesser names appear in this list.

(Note: The following section contains affiliate links to eBay listings for the cards noted.)

1974 Topps Hank Aaron (#1) - PSA 8

Value: $300
PSA Population: 792

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

1974 Topps John Freislben (small print) (#599) - PSA 8

Value: $245
PSA Population: 85

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

1974 Topps Nolan Ryan (#20) - PSA 8

Value: $210
PSA Population: 1731

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

1974 Topps Dave Winfield (#456) - PSA 8

Value: $200
PSA Population: 2350

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

1974 Topps Pete Rose (#300) - PSA 8

Value: $175
PSA Population: 908

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

1974 Topps Padres Team (Washington Nat'l Lea.) (#226) - PSA 8

Value: $160
PSA Population: 177

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

1974 Topps Mike Schmidt (#283) - PSA 8

Value: $150
PSA Population: 1385

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

1974 Topps Clarence Gaston (Washington Nat'l Lea.) (#364) - PSA 8

Value: $125
PSA Population: 79

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

1974 Topps Tom Seaver (#80) - PSA 8

Value: $125
PSA Population: 627

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

1974 Topps Johhny Bench (#10) - PSA 8

Value: $125
PSA Population: 625

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

1974 Topps Reggie Jackson (#130) - PSA 8

Value: $110
PSA Population: 672

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

1974 Topps Dave Parker (#252) - PSA 8

Value: $95
PSA Population: 1145

Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)

—

This is a pretty fun list, if you ask me.

Not only do we get a couple of “Washington Nat'l Lea.” entries, but we also get rookie cards of Dave Winfield and Dave Parker, along with the all-time home run king, the all-time hits leader, the all-time strikeout leader, and other stars of the day.

There’s also a rookie card of John Freislben, which exists in three varieties: with the team name as Washington or with the team name as San Diego, with either large or small print.

As you can see, small populations of an otherwise “common” player can drive older cards like these into a whole other pricing realm.

Speaking of another pricing stratosphere, it’s time for the …

Top Baseball Card Sales on eBay for September 12-18, 2024

(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