Oswald Peraza has quickly become one of the most highly anticipated prospects in all of baseball since making his professional debut in 2018. As a result, the demand for Oswald Peraza baseball cards has skyrocketed in recent years. Here is an in-depth look at some of the most valuable and sought after Peraza cards on the market today.
Peraza was signed by the New York Yankees out of Venezuela in July 2016 for a $1.5 million bonus. He began his career the following year with the Yankees’ Dominican Summer League team, hitting .258 with 4 home runs and 26 RBI in just 49 games as an 18-year old. While the statistics were not eye-popping, scouts were impressed by Peraza’s explosive athleticism, solid defensive skills, and developing plate discipline for such a young player.
This positive debut led to Peraza receiving card treatments from Bowman and Topps in 2018. Some of the more desirable cards from this period include the 2018 Bowman Chrome Yellow Refractor (#249), 2018 Bowman Chrome Blue Refractor (#150), and 2018 Bowman Chrome Green Refractor (#99). With fewer than 250 copies of each produced, these early chrome refractors of Peraza have seen their values steadily increase since issue as his prospect stock has risen. Highly graded examples now typically sell for $50-150 depending on the specific parallel.
Peraza’s breakout season came in 2019 when he hit .815 OPS between Low-A and High-A at ages 19-20. This breakout amplified interest in his cards, which began showing up in more mainstream products that year including Topps Chrome, Topps Triple Threads, and Topps Sterling. Particularly hot cards included the 2019 Bowman Platinum Blue Refractor (#250), 2019 Topps Chrome Blue Refractor, and 2019 Topps Chrome Orange Refractor /499. These cards frequently trade hands for $125-250 these days in high grades as collectors aim to acquire Peraza’s first mainstream chrome refractors.
The 2020 minor league season was cancelled due to COVID, but Peraza still received recognition as the best Yankees’ prospect by being featured prominently in that year’s Topps Chrome Update release. Some top 2020 Peraza cards are the Chrome Update Gold Refractor /70, Rainbow Foil Variation, and Holofoil Variation. These showcased prints tend to sell in the $175-300 range graded. His continued prospect buzz led to strong demand for 2019-20 bowman paper autographs and refractors.
Coming off a .311 average with 21 stolen bases in Triple-A in 2021, Peraza looked MLB ready and got his first big league taste that September. He responded by getting two hits in his debut including a triple. This hype-building performance continued to drive interest amongst collectors. Some of Peraza’s priciest 2021 cards include Topps Chrome Update Black Refractor /50 ($400-600), Topps Sterling Silver Pack Refractor /25 ($700-1100), and Bowman Sterling Gold Autograph /5 ($1500-3000).
Peraza is expected to claim the Yankees’ starting shortstop job in 2022 after an impressive spring showing. Should he establish himself as an everyday player, particularly if he contributes right away, his vintage rookie cards from 2021 Topps products like Series 1, Update, and Chrome are primed to soar in value as defining items from his true rookie season. Currently prices range from $20-75 but a Rookie of the Year-caliber campaign could easily boost them into the triple digits. Only time will tell if Peraza achieves superstar status, but all signs point to him accumulating a very desirable collection of cards over the coming years as one of baseball’s top young talents.
As this breakdown illustrates, Oswald Peraza’s burgeoning prospect fame and brief MLB playing time so far have coincided with some volatile shifts in the values of his rookie cards. With top-tier talent and a spot on one of MLB’s marquee franchises, he is poised for stardom that could catapult historically rare Paraza cards like gold refractors and autographs into four-figure or greater territory. Even his common rookie issues stand to gain tremendously should he emerge as the shortstop of the future for the Yankees. Savvy collectors who identified Peraza’s potential early and snapped up affordable cards likely feel very pleased with their foresight as the baseball world’s fascination with this exciting young player only continues to mount.
