Baseball cards have been popular collectibles for over a century, with fans and collectors seeking to obtain complete sets of their favorite players and teams throughout the years. The mass production of cards by various companies often led to mistakes being made, resulting in error variants that are now highly valuable among enthusiasts. Some of the rarest and most sought-after cards in existence are errors, with certain examples fetching tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars at auction.

While errors can occur in any sport or niche of collecting, baseball seems to have more significant mistakes documented over the decades compared to other industries. The sheer number of variations and parallels produced each year throughTopps, Bowman, Fleer and others have arguably increased the chances for something to go awry. Here is a look at some of the most noteworthy error baseball cards that collectors have unearthed and continue pursuing to this day:

1952 Topps #122 Warren Spahn: Considered the “Holy Grail” of error cards, only one example is known to exist of this card showing legendary pitcher Warren Spahn in a Brooklyn Dodgers uniform rather than his correct team, the Boston Braves. It is believed the photo negative was switched at the printers with another image. In pristine condition, it has sold for over $250,000 at auction.

1956 Topps #106 Mickey Mantle: Again, just one specimen is accounted for in this switch error depicting Yankees star Mickey Mantle in the uniform of the Washington Senators. It is similar to the Warren Spahn mistake, with the wrong photo placed on the cardstock during production. In gem grade it could bring in excess of $100,000.

1958 Topps #1 Elvis Presley: While not exactly a baseball error, this card of the rock icon mistakenly appeared at the front of a 1958 Topps baseball series pack instead of the intended #1 player. Only a small number are known to exist and it remains one of the oddball rarities prized by eclectic collectors. Values start in the low five figures.

1963 Topps #130 Pete Rose: Another singular error involves rookie star Pete Rose’s1963 Topps card having an image of him alongside his name and stats on the back, but with no picture on the front. How this lone variant slipped through without a front pose is a true mystery. It is likely a seven-figure card if one ever becomes available.

1972 Topps Ron Blomberg: The first designated hitter in Major League history has his rookie card in the 1972 Topps set listing an incorrect position of “OF” rather than “DH.” Only a small number carrying this error are accounted for today.

1977 Topps #634 Randy Jones: A Padres ace known for sporting a distinctive moustache, this card by mistake shows Randy Jones clean-shaven instead. Sought by ‘70s collectors for its bizare nature.

1989 Bowman #1 Ken Griffey Jr: Considered the most counterfeited card of all-time, errors of this rookie of “The Kid” vary significantly. One variance has the wrong player photo while others contain statistical or template flaws. Exceptional examples still fetch 4-5 figures.

1992 Bowman Juan Gonzales: This early chrome rookie card of the former AL MVP is commonly found with colorization mistakes, most notably on the powder blue Rangers uniform being inked over completely black. Color errors like this can still fetch over $1,000.

1994 SP Authentic #29 Kirk Rueter: An enormously rare error exists involving Giants pitcher Kirk Rueter’s autograph card from this high-end insert set. Instead of his signature, it bears a blank white space—either never signed by Rueter or had the signature wiped off/altered somehow prior to packaging. Just a handful reportedly exist and the card likely holds immense value.

2000 Bowman Chrome Refractors #175 Kazuo Matsui: The insert set featuring Japan’s Matsui has his name misspelled as “Kazuo Matsu.” The mistake proved to be short printed and is popular with collecting fans of variable names cards. Multi-hundred dollar range.

2004 Topps Tiffany #660 Nomar Garciaparra: Issues arise when Nomar’s photo is replaced with another unidentified Red Sox player on this ultra-high end parallel printing of the base Topps issue. Values estimated into the low five-figures.

2007 Topps Tribute Mike Piazza: The popular collector set paying homage to retired stars contains an error card of Mike Piazza in a Padres uniform despite never having played for that franchise. His time with other teams is accurately depicted on other Tribute cards in the variantrun.

These are just some of the most significant baseball card mistakes that fans and graders continue to discover and authenticate from baseball’s vast card printing history. As the hobby evolves, new errors are sure to emerge, with certain fortunate collectors possessing tomorrow’s valuable anomalies still unknown today. The chase and thrill of adding an error to a collection endures as one of the hobby’s singular appeals.