The 2022 Topps baseball card set featured some of the most sought after rookie cards and star players in the MLB. With the rise of the trading card market over the past couple years, the prices of high-end cards from this set skyrocketed. Let’s take a look at some of the priciest cards from 2022 Topps and what factors contributed to their value.
Perhaps the most expensive card from the entire set is the Justin Verlander rainbow foil parallel. Numbered to only 5 copies in existence, this parallel features Verlander’s image with iridescent foil textures in red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple. As one of the elite pitchers and reigning AL Cy Young winner, Verlander commands a lot of attention from collectors. His status and on-field success, combined with the extreme rarity of only 5 copies of this parallel made it extremely valuable. Recently, one of these rainbow Verlander parallels sold for a staggering $99,000, making it easily the most expensive card from 2022 Topps.
Another extremely valuable card is the Julio Rodriguez rookie rainbow foil parallel, which is also limited to a print run of just 5 copies. Rodriguez had a phenomenal rookie season that saw him named an All-Star, win the AL Rookie of the Year Award, and help lead the Mariners back to the playoffs. His emerging star power combined with the ultra-rare parallel version resulted in one of these rainbow Julio RCs selling for $80,000. Rodriguez is considered a future superstar, so interest and prices for his rookie cards are only expected to rise further in the coming years.
In terms of standard base rookie cards without parallels, the top 2 most expensive from 2022 Topps belong to Cardinals superstar Nolan Arenado and Guardians ace Shane Bieber. The Arenado rookie has gained value since being traded from the Rockies to the Cardinals, where he’s helped them reach the playoffs in 2021 and 2022. High-grade examples of his 2009 Topps rookie have sold for up to $3,000. Bieber won the 2020 AL Cy Young but injuries limited his playing time in 2022. His 2018 Topps Chrome rookie card reached a price of $2,500 for top PSA 10 condition copies. Both players have proven themselves as elite MLB talents, which collectors recognize.
Two other rookies who had breakout seasons in 2022 and saw their rookie card values surge were Reds pitcher Hunter Greene and Mariners outfielder George Kirby. Greene’s 2022 Topps Chrome Auto Refractor rookie sold for as much as $2,000 after he struck out over 100 batters in his first MLB season. Kirby became a key part of Seattle’s pitching staff and helped lead them to 90+ wins. His 2022 Topps Chrome Auto rookie traded hands for $1,800. Both Greene and Kirby look primed to develop into frontline starters, making their rookie cards solid long term investments.
Veteran superstars also held value in this set. A PSA 10 graded version of Mike Trout’s 2009 Topps Update rookie card reached $450,000 at auction. Trout is considered the best player of his generation and his rookie remains one of the iconic cards in the sport. Other star veterans like Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, and Ronald Acuña Jr. had their top rookies or most prominent parallels sell in the $1,000-$3,000 range. Established players with a history of success will usually retain strong collector demand for their early career cards.
The 2022 Topps set featured cards for some of today’s most elite MLB talents. For the ultra-rare parallel versions of stars like Verlander and Rodriguez, prices skyrocketed into the 5 and 6 figure range. Top rookies for future stars like Greene, Kirby, and Arenado also gained value. And proven veteran superstars like Trout, Ohtani and Betts maintained strong collector interest in their early career cards. With the sports card market continuing to heat up, prices for these high-end 2022 Topps cards are likely to remain strong or possibly increase further going forward.
