The 2018 Major League Baseball season saw an impressive crop of talented rookies make their debuts and many of them had highly sought-after rookie cards released in 2018 Topps baseball products. Some of the top rookies of 2018 included Shohei Ohtani, Ronald Acuna Jr., Juan Soto, Gleyber Torres and Walker Buehler. With so many exciting young players breaking into the big leagues, collectors were eager to find and accumulate their rookie cards.
Shohei Ohtani was arguably the biggest rookie story of 2018 as he was the first player in decades to regularly pitch and hit as a pitcher/designated hitter for the Los Angeles Angels. As a two-way player with immense talent on both the mound and at the plate, Ohtani generated incredible hype. That translated to strong demand for his rookie cards, including his prestigious Topps Chrome Refractor rookie card which showed him in an Angels uniform. Ohtani rookies were some of the most popular and valuable cards pulled from 2018 Topps packs and boxes.
Another mega-prospect who burst onto the scene was Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Atlanta Braves. Acuna jumped directly from Double-A to the majors and showed from day one that he was ready with his elite five-tool skillset. Topps commemorated his arrival by including a special “Diamond Debut” parallel marking Acuna’s first MLB game. This parallel and his standard base rookie became must-haves for player collectors. Acuna went on to have a spectacular rookie campaign that ended with him running away with the NL Rookie of the Year award.
While Ohtani and Acuna got most of the early season hype,Washington Nationals outfielder Juan Soto slowly emerged as another impossible-to-ignore rookie force. Despite being only 19 years old, Soto held his own against major league pitching and played a key role in the Nats’ late-season surge. Soto’s smooth lefty swing and mature approach at the plate made him a fan favorite. The rookie crop being so strong, Soto’sCards slipped under the radar more than the other top talents. But savvy collectors recognized Soto as a special talent and future star, making his cards like the Topps Fire parallel a wise long term investment.
In addition to their talents on the field, another thing that made Ohtani, Acuna and Soto’s rookie cards so widely collected was their scarcity in retail packs. Meanwhile, Gleyber Torres gave Yankees fans an exciting young position player to follow. Though he received a late season call-up, Torres still made a strong enough impression that year to garner a prominent rookie card footprint in 2018 Topps products. Torres had multiple parallels like Topps Chrome that kept collectors engaged.
On the pitching side, LA Dodgers hurler Walker Buehler also splashed onto the scene in 2018. Despite limited innings due to injury issues, Buehler showed electric stuff when on the mound. Like Torres, Buehler’s late call-up meant collectors had to stay on the hunt for his Topps rookie cards in retail. Getting less attention from the hobby at the time compared to others, Buehler rookie cards proved to be quality long term investments for discerning collectors.
In addition to starring rookies, 2018 Topps baseball had its usual assortment of parallel and short printed variants to keep the hobby on its toes. Autograph and memorabilia cards of the top prospects added significant chase value to hobby boxes. Topps Chrome and Bowman Chrome were particularly hot due to the flashy refractors and color parallels they provided of players like Acuna. For collectors seeking the biggest stars of tomorrow in their early career, 2018 Topps baseball proved to be a highly rewarding year. While prices have since risen on cards of players who panned out, it’s always fun to look back on the rookies who first broke in during an exciting 2018 MLB season.
