1995 Pinnacle Baseball Card Price Guide
The 1995 Pinnacle baseball card set was a notable release during the baseball card boom of the 1990s. Pinnacle was one of the leading manufacturers during this time and their 1995 offering contained a variety of insert sets and parallels that generated a lot of interest among collectors. Let’s take an in-depth look at the 1995 Pinnacle set and examine some notable cards and estimates of their current values according to the major price guides.
The base 1995 Pinnacle set contained 792 cards and featured players from both the American and National Leagues. The design featured stylized team logos along the left side of each card alongside photo or action shots of the players. Ranging from common to rare, the base cards can still be found in collection relatively inexpensively depending on the player and condition. Commons from this set in Near Mint to Mint condition typically sell for under $1 while stars can fetch $5-10. Hall of Famers and acclaimed veterans may command $15-25.
Two insert sets released alongside the base cards were Pinnacle Studio and Portraits. Studio contained 144 cards highlighting unique action shots of players. Portraits contained 144 cards in a simple headshot design. Both inserts had the same numbering system as the base cards and offered collectors chances for autographs or higher numbered parallels. Commons from Studio and Portraits sell between $1-3 while stars and HOFers range from $5-15.
In addition to the inserted sets, Pinnacle also included several parallel variations of the base cards. Red #/1000, Blue #/150, and Green #/75 parallels existed for many of the most popular players. Of highest value are the extremely rare Gold parallels numbered to just 5 copies. Even modern stars from the base Red, Blue, and Green parallels in top grades can fetch $10-20 while the scarce Gold parallels for the games all-time greats are true unicorns that could sell for thousands in the right auction.
Perhaps the crown jewel of the 1995 Pinnacle set were the sought-after Precious Metal Gems cards. Containing 36 cards total that mimicked gemstones, the Precious Metal Gems featured renowned players of the time in extremely short printed parallels. Included were Sapphire #/10, Emerald #/5, Ruby #/3, Diamond #/1. While still in print over 25 years later, high grade mint PMG cards for big names can sell for hundreds today due to their low populations. The true 1/1 Diamond parallels regularly sell for thousands if and when they access the open market.
Other inserts from 1995 Pinnacle include Studio Extended Play (action shots), Portraits Extended Play (headshots), 20 Years of Topps Designs (tribute cards), All-Stars (players photographed in front of star backgrounds), League Leaders (league statistical champions), Action Portraits (graphic photos), and Special Editions (higher-end inserts). Commons and stars from these subsets usually sell between $1-10 based on player, condition, and serial numbers. Notable RCs from 1995 Pinnacle that can sell for more include Hideo Nomo, Derek Jeter, Todd Helton, and Nomar Garciaparra.
When researching 1995 Pinnacle card values, the three major price guides – Beckett, PSA, and COMC – provide a range of estimated prices to use as a baseline. With over 25 years elapsed since original release, condition and serial number scarcity have a huge impact on actual sale prices. Top PSA 10 gems can sell exponentially over guide values. Here are some value estimates from the major guides for notable 1995 Pinnacle cards:
Ken Griffey Jr. Base: $5-10 NM, $15-25 Mint
Ken Griffey Jr. Studio: $8-15 NM, $20-30 Mint
Ken Griffey Jr. Red Parallel: $15-25 NM, $30-50 Mint
Ken Griffey Jr. Sapphire PMG: $100-250 NM, $400-1000 Mint
Barry Bonds Base: $3-8 NM, $10-15 Mint
Barry Bonds Blue Parallel: $10-15 NM, $20-30 Mint
Barry Bonds Emerald PMG: $75-150 NM, $200-500 Mint
Cal Ripken Jr. Base: $3-8 NM, $10-15 Mint
Cal Ripken Jr. Portrait: $5-10 NM, $12-18 Mint
Derek Jeter RC Base: $3-8 NM, $8-12 Mint
Derek Jeter RC Studio: $5-10 NM, $12-18 Mint
Ken Griffey Jr. Diamond PMG: $1000+ Est. Market Value
The 1995 Pinnacle baseball card set remains a highly collectible release from the height of the baseball card boom era. Loaded with inserts, parallels, and one-of-a-kind Precious Metal Gem cards, it provides opportunities for all levels of collectors. While commons can still be found inexpensively, top graded copies of stars and short printed serial numbered inserts continue increasing in value with time. Using the major guide values as a guidepost, the 1995 Pinnacle set lives on as an iconic part of card collecting history from the 1990s.
