The hobby of collecting baseball cards has been around for over 150 years. Ever since the inception of the cigarette card in the late 19th century, fans have cherished the cardboard collectibles featuring their favorite players. With the explosion of sets produced throughout the 20th century, rare misprints and one-of-a-kind specimens have emerged that fetch prices in the millions on the secondary market. Here are 10 of the rarest baseball cards in existence today based on their scarcity and monetary value.
1909-11 T206 Honus Wagner – Estimated surviving population: 50-200 copies. The poster boy for rare cards, the Wagner is the holy grail for collectors. Produced between 1909-11 by the American Tobacco Company, it is believed the cigar maker didn’t authorize his likeness due to his disdain for smoking. Only a small number ever made it to market before being pulled. High grade examples have sold for over $6 million making it the most valuable card.
1986 Fleer Michael Jordan RC error – Surviving Population: 1 copy. A true one-of-a-kind, this error card features an orange Fleer logo on an otherwise correctly produced rookie card of Jordan. It is believed an orange ink misprint occurred during production. Its scarcity and association with arguably the greatest basketball player ever yields an estimated value of $2-5 million.
1909-11 T206 Eddie Plank – Surviving Population: 3-5 copies. Like Wagner, Plank’s card was part of the iconic ‘T206’ series by American Tobacco. Far fewer are known to exist with the last PSA 8 copy selling at auction for $585,000. Its rarity is heightened by the fact Plank was a less heralded player than many of his peers featured on rare pre-war tobacco cards.
1933 Goudey #53 Shoeless Joe Jackson – Surviving Population: 1-2 copies. One of sport’s biggest controversies involved Jackson’s supposed role in the infamous ‘Black Sox’ scandal of 1919 where members of the Chicago White Sox were accused of intentionally losing the World Series. A PSA 8 sold at auction for over $500,000, a testament to its rarity and association with baseball’s most enduring scandal.
1951 Bowman Color Mickey Mantle RC – Surviving Population: Under 10 copies. While the standard ’51 Mantle rookie is quite collectible itself, only a tiny number were printed with color photos like modern cards. The fact it is the only widely recognized color RC of ‘The Mick’ makes these among the most prized post-war cards in the hobby. $250K+ prices have been paid for high grade examples.
1909-11 T206 Sherry Magee – Surviving Population: 1-3 copies. One of the great oddball rarities, so few Magee’s are known to exist that it is considered nearly as elusive as the Wagner. Its extreme scarcity is magnified by the fact Magee was not a Hall of Famer like other pre-war stars with scant surviving cards. Its valuation tops over $1 million for a pristine specimen.
1933 Goudey #161 Babe Ruth – Surviving Population: 6 or fewer copies. While not quite the rarest Goudey like the Jackson, finding an intact 1933 Ruth in a holder is akin to discovering a new species. Graded examples that have changed hands have drawn prices north of $1 million. Its raw rarity coincides with The Sultan of Swat’s enduring popularity over 85 years after retirement.
1910 E90-1 Tobacco Cabinet Horner’s Cigars Frank Chance – Population: 1 copy. One of one cards don’t get much rarer. This pre-1910 cabinet card featuring the Chicago Cubs legend is the lone known survivors of its kind. Its scarcity and association with one of Tinker-to-Evers-to-Chance makes it almost beyond valuation in its importance to the early history of baseball memorabilia collecting.
1909-11 T206 Diamond Stars Joe Jackson – Surviving Population: 1 copy. Topping even the 1909 Honus Wagner in scarcity is this one-of-a-kind variation featuring Sholess Joe. Like the infamous player it pictures, this card’s existence has almost taken on mythical folklore. When it briefly resurfaced after decades and authenticated, it drove the hobby into a frenzy with a value exceeding $2 million.
1909-11 T206 Rear Likeness Cabinets Eddie Plank – Population: 1 copy. As scarce as it gets, there is only one known surviving example of this scarce subset printed within cabinet cards of the time, featuring Plank facing away from the camera. Its significance as the lone Plank in this extremely rare pre-1910 format made it’s $2.88 million sale price in 2016 the highest publicly reported mark for any vintage card. Its status as a true unicorn of the industry likely ensures it will hold the top spot for rarest baseball card in history for the foreseeable future.
The rarest cards tend to be pre-WWI tobacco issues, one-of-a-kind errors from the postwar era, or specimens featuring legendary players whose likenesses only escaped destruction through sheer luck. As values smash records, today’s game-worn memorabilia market shows there is still plenty of potential for new modern rarities to emerge that could someday give even these a run for their money among the most prized cardboard in collector basements and institutions. The hunt will continue as long as their remains a fanatic love for the pastime of collecting.
