The 1970s saw the peak of baseball card collecting as kids flocked to stores and supermarket to purchase packs looking for their favorite players. While most cards from the era hold little monetary value today, there are some ultra-rare 1970s baseball cards that have sold for eye-popping prices at auctions. Let’s take a look at some of the most valuable and expensive baseball cards from the 1970s.

The most expensive 1970s baseball card is the 1973 Topps Rod Carew rookie card. Widely considered one of the rarest and most coveted baseball cards in existence, the Carew rookie has sold at auction multiple times for over $100,000. In December 2018, PWCC Marketplace auctioned off a PSA Gem Mint 9 copy of the Carew rookie for $110,100, setting a new record. Other high-grade copies have sold for upwards of $90,000, making this one of the top rookie cards across all sports. The rarity of the Rod Carew rookie is due to its odd paper quality and low print run compared to other Topps cards of the era.

Not too far behind is one of the true “holy grails” of baseball cards – the 1909-1911 T206 Honus Wagner. While not specifically from the 1970s, high-grade examples have traded hands and set records multiple times that decade. In 1973, a PSA Authentic copy sold for $23,000. By the late 1970s, a PSA 3 copy had traded privately for $35,000. The T206 Wagner is notoriously scarce and holds a mystique as one of the first true star sports trading cards. Though from over 60 years prior, its intrinsic historical value has kept it amongst the most prized possessions in a collection.

Two ultra-rare Yankees rookie cards involving star sluggers also had record sales in the 1970s. In 1975, a 1971 Topps Thurman Munson rookie card graded PSA 4.5 sold for $9,000, at the time a record price for a modern-era baseball card. Only a handful of high-grade Munson rookies are known to exist, making each one a holy grail find. Another massive sale occurred that same year when a 1968 Topps Mickey Mantle rookie fetched $5,800. Though off-center and graded only PSA 2, it marked an astronomical price for any post-war era card up to that point. Both Munson and Mantle rookies now routinely sell for six-figure sums when higher graded.

One of the most notoriousprinting errors in sports cards occurred in 1975 which has created an expensive modern-day rarity. Due to an oversight in the production process, a small subset of 1975 Topps Rudy May cards had a blank back instead of the standard player stats and team information. Often referred to as the “blank back error card”, only a small handful are known to exist in high grade. In 2018, Heritage Auctions set a new Rudy May blank back record selling a PSA 8 copy for $72,000.

Two stars of the Big Red Machine also possess 1970s rookie cards that have reached impressive prices. In the early 1970s, a near-mint 1955 Topps Johnny Bench rookie sold privately for around $3,500. Then in 1978, a PSA 6 copy of the 1968 Topps Joe Morgan rookie sold for an astounding $9,600 at the time, highlighting the rising interest in vintage stars and their early career cards. Today both the Bench and Morgan rookies are routinely six-figure cards in near-mint condition or higher.

Other notable expensive 1970s cards that have achieved high prices include:

1971 Topps Nolan Ryan rookie (PSA 8.5 $46,500 in 2018)
1975 Topps Mike Schmidt rookie (PSA 9.5 $50,100 in 2020)
1962 Topps Willie Mays (PSA 8 $77,100 in 2014)
1954 Topps Sandy Koufax (PSA 8 $49,000 in 2013)
1951 Bowman Mickey Mantle (PSA 8.5 $35,000 in 2005 private sale)
1972 Topps Roberto Clemente (PSA 9 $34,800 in 2016)
1970 Topps Hank Aaron (PSA 9 $37,200 in 2021)

While most 1970s baseball cards hold little monetary value today, the scarcest and highest-graded rookie cards and vintage stars from the era have reached prices well into the five and six figures. As nostalgia and collecting demand grows, these ultra-premium athletes from the 1970s will likely continue climbing up auction lists and crossing new thresholds that seemed unimaginable just a decade ago. For patient collectors, rare 1970s cards can provide an opportunity for appreciation far exceeding more traditional investments.