The 2020 Bowman Chrome Baseball set marks one of the final flagship baseball card releases before the COVID-19 pandemic brought the sports world to a halt in mid-March. The Chrome version of Bowman is highly anticipated each year by collectors due to the shiny refractors and colorful parallels contained in the set. Baseball prospects and young stars who have not yet debuted in the major leagues are the focus of Bowman, making it an ideal product for investing in future Hall of Famers. Some of the biggest rookie cards from recent years, such as Juan Soto, Pete Alonso, and Ronald Acuña Jr. first appeared in Bowman Chrome. With no minor league baseball season in 2020, the class of prospects featured did not have as much playing time as usual. Collectors still flocked to retail stores and broke record numbers of cases online searching of the next generational talent to be featured in what became one of the final “normal” trading card releases.
The 2020 Bowman Chrome Baseball base set contains 300 prospect and minor league player cards along with 50 major leaguers. Top prospects featured include Bobby Witt Jr. (Vlad Guerrero Jr.’s teen teammate in the J2 class), Spencer Torkelson (Arizona State 1B/3B expected to be a top-3 pick in 2020 MLB Draft), Emerson Hancock (Georgia RHP in consideration for No. 1 overall pick) and more. Parallels in the set include Chrome, Rainbow Foil, Black and Gold parallels as well as Specialty parallels like X-fractors, Hit List, Atomic Refractors and Pink Refractors. The base Chrome cards have proved to be some of the cleanest, sharpest looking cards in the hobby in years. With markets booming in the early months of the pandemic, collectors scrambled to complete sets, rainbow parallels and chase down rookie hits of top prospects. Prices for flagship Bowman Chrome rookies like Luis Robert, Gavin Lux and others skyrocketed online.
Perhaps the biggest story from 2020 Bowman Chrome was the sustained hype around Cardinals prospect Nolan Gorman, who collectors viewed as a potential five-tool star in the making. Gorman’s base Chrome rookie became one of the most sought-after non-auto/numbered cards on the secondary market, reportedly selling for upwards of $100 per copy at the peak of his hype in late spring/early summer. As a top-10 overall prospect taken in the 2018 draft, Gorman generated early social media buzz with his prodigious home run power and ability to hit for both power and average during his 2019 rookie ball campaign. Many see him as a potential franchise cornerstone for the Cardinals down the line. Rainbow foil and parallel versions of his rookie exponentially increased in value on the strength of his production and prospect status. Only injuries sustained to start 2020 tempered collectors’ demand for his cards somewhat as the season progressed.
One of the standout aspects of 2020 Bowman Chrome was the inclusion of highly desirable on-card autographs from the draft class and top international signings. Rookies like Robert Hassell III, Zac Veen, Nick Gonzales, Austin Martin all carry significant pedigree and upside. Their low serial autographs became Holy Grail cards for team collectors and investors hoping to snag early hits of future stars. The frequency of autograph parallels also increased versus years past, with specialized swatches and Memorabilia cards of prospects like Jasson Dominguez becoming some of the most expensive cards on the secondary market. Dominguez in particular broke record selling prices due to his status as one of the highest-paid international prospects ever. His autographs in Bowman Chrome routinely sold for thousands on auction sites.
With the unprecedented hobby boom throughout 2020 due to COVID and new collector interest, retail releases of 2020 Bowman Chrome sold out faster than any previous year. As the last “normal” release before pandemic protocols upended the sports world, it exists now as a historical artifact chronicling the final superstar prospects from the amateur ranks prior to widespread shutdowns and cancellations. Hobby experts expected record numbers of the set to be cracked in coming years as the new crop of stars make their MLB debuts. Names like Witt, Torkelson, Hancock and others may someday achieve the stratospheric levels that Soto, Acuña and others who first appeared in Bowman Chrome have reached in today’s active player market. For collectors and investors, 2020 Bowman Chrome stands as a remarkable final snapshot of the pre-COVID baseball landscape―a true golden era release that serves as the genesis for the next great wave of MLB superstars.
