PSA released its yearly list of most graded cards Thursday and Shohei Ohtani led the way in 2023, with four of his cards among the top 10. PSA — “Professional Sports Authenticator” — handles more than 75 percent of all cards graded in the U.S., according to the company (the rest of the grading market consists of companies like CSG, SGC, and Beckett). Grading a card can increase its value significantly, as experts can verify its authenticity and opine on the condition of the card. For instance, you may have thought you had a “gem mint” condition Don Mattingly 1990 Score (which would have graded as a “10”). It could very well have a surface scratch, dinged corner or frayed edge that could bring it down several levels to “near mint” (graded as a “7”). So when you want to sell the card, you have an objective “grade” to put next to it that all buyers can identify.
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These “most graded cards” lists can serve as a buzz index of sorts — and, as you’ll see in the NFL rookie section, a bit of an “oh man, I remember when we loved him six months ago” time machine aspect — as collectors send in the cards they think will be in demand on the marketplace and want to maximize the value.
Ohtani’s 2018 rookies — in Bowman, Topps and Topps Update, with the then-Angel hitting in two and pitching in two — finished 1st, 6th, 7th and 9th on the year-end list, with still-popular classics like Ken Griffey Jr.’s 1989 Upper Deck rookie and Michael Jordan’s 1990 Fleer also among the most graded.
The Top 10:
- 2018 Bowman 49 Shohei Ohtani
- 2022 Bowman Chrome Prospects BCP50 Elly De La Cruz
- 1989 Upper Deck 1 Ken Griffey Jr. Star Rookie
- 2023 Topps Now Draft D1 Victor Wembanyama
- 2022 Bowman Paper Prospects BP50 Elly De La Cruz
- 2018 Topps Update US285 Shohei Ohtani
- 2018 Topps Update US1 Shohei Ohtani Pitching In Red Jersey
- 2022 Topps Update US44 Julio Rodriguez
- 2018 Topps 700 Shohei Ohtani Pitching
- 1990 Fleer 26 Michael Jordan
Rookies Victor Wembanyama and Elly De La Cruz were also among the Top 10, with Wembanyama’s Topps Now card making the list — it was an on-demand product featuring the Spurs phenom in a suit and had a print run of 72,171, according to Topps.
Looking at athletes overall, Ohtani had the most cards graded by PSA in 2023, followed by Jordan, the Mariners’ Julio Rodriguez, Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence, and Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow. And narrowing it down to just rookies, the most-graded by sport were Paolo Banchero (NBA), Elly De La Cruz (MLB) and Kenny Pickett (NFL). Wembanyama had the second-most PSA graded cards among NBA rookies, despite his market being limited to a handful of offerings (mostly Bowman, SI For Kids, a French card game called Slam Deck and on demand post-draft products from Topps and Panini).
Victor Wembanyama a true phenom, even in card collecting
The Spurs rookie had the No. 4 card on the most graded list, and PSA President Ryan Hoge says that becomes even more impressive when you consider Wembanyama’s first fully licensed, flagship rookie card in his San Antonio Spurs uniform (from 2023-24 NBA Hoops) “didn’t even hit the market until just a couple of weeks ago.”
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He expects Wembanyama’s popularity to grow.
“Collectors are super excited for him,” Hoge said, pointing to Wembanyama’s SI for Kids card, technically the first made of the French 19-year-old. “We’ve already authenticated and graded more than 1,200 copies of Wembanyama’s 2023 SI for Kids card.” For context, Hoge says, in 20 years since its release, PSA has only authenticated and graded about 3,000 total copies of LeBron James’ first SI for Kids card.
“We’re expecting Wembanyama’s key cards from upcoming flagship products such as Panini Prizm and Donruss Optic to be wildly popular throughout 2024 with collectors and PSA submitters,” Hoge added. So expect more Wembanyama on the 2024 list.
Kenny Pickett, Brock Purdy lead NFL rookie grading
The list of PSA’s most-graded NFL rookies is the most interesting of the major sports:
- Kenny Pickett
- Brock Purdy
- Desmond Ridder
- Garrett Wilson
- Sam Howell
The list, while a little head-scratching in December 2023, makes sense in a certain context — for the first eight months of the year, there was excitement and buzz around Pickett and Ridder starting for their respective teams. Plus, the best-selling “ultra modern” (a term that captures cards made in the last five years) football cards are usually quarterbacks, so the list being dominated by four of them isn’t a surprise. Purdy finishing second to Pickett is also initially a little weird, considering he led the 49ers into the playoffs in 2022 and his card prices were exploding this time last year, but he had UCL reconstruction surgery in March and his status coming into 2023 was still very much up in the air in the preseason. He wasn’t even cleared until late July and even then he was shaking off rust.
“A large amount of the PSA grading submissions came between the January end of the 2022 NFL season and the July/August start of the 2023 NFL training camp,” Hoge explained.
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As for next year? Hoge says that the surge in submissions for rookies coincides with Panini’s release schedule. “Most 2022 products were still being released into the 2023 calendar year, while 2023 product releases featuring current top rookies like CJ Stroud didn’t begin hitting the market until the fall,” Hoge said. “So, just looking into the crystal ball a bit, expect guys like Stroud, Anthony Richardson, Bryce Young, Will Levis, etc., to be incredibly popular in PSA grading submissions between January 2024 and September 2024, as not only their rookie year products continue to hit the market, but also the excitement builds for their second seasons in the NFL.”
And what about the 1952 Mickey Mantle?
Hoge says PSA has authenticated and graded nearly 2,000 total copies of the 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle, arguably the most famous trading card ever made.
In 2023, the company authenticated and graded 60 copies.
“When these surface, they always seem to have a great story or provenance with them,” Hoge said. For example, at the Toronto Card Show in early November, where PSA offered on-site grading for the first time outside of the United States, a customer showed up to the booth with three copies of the 1952 Topps Mantle.
“That’s the great thing about vintage collectibles,” Hoge said. “You can’t possibly imagine what is still hiding out there in the world, just waiting to be found.”
(All photos via PSA)