James Outman is a rising star outfielder in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization who has seen his baseball card values increase substantially over the past year. The 24-year-old was a ninth round draft pick of the Dodgers in the 2018 MLB June Amateur Draft out of high school in San Diego, California. While he didn’t initially create much buzz on the baseball card collecting front, Outman’s breakout 2021 season has turned him into one of the Dodgers’ top prospects and a sought-after name in the hobby.
As a 2018 draft pick, Outman’s earliest issued baseball cards came in sets like 2018 Topps Chrome Draft Picks & Prospects, Topps Now Draft, and 2018 Bowman Draft. As is common for mid-to-late round high school draftees though, his rookie cards from those sets hold little value today, typically selling for under $5 in near mint condition. Outman spent his first few professional seasons in the lower levels of the minors, showing some promise but not outstanding numbers that would drum up interest in his cards.
That all changed in 2021 as Outman dominated at Double-A and Triple-A, making his arrival into the top prospects discussion and onto the radar of serious baseball card collectors. Assigned to Double-A Tulsa to start the year, Outman slashed .317/.390/.576 with 19 home runs over 108 games, earning a late-season promotion to Triple-A Oklahoma City. There, he continued mashing with a .310 batting average and 4 homers in 17 games. Between the two stops, Outman led all Dodgers minor leaguers in batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage.
Naturally, Outman’s breakout season drove increased demand for his baseball cards as collectors sought to acquire the latest Dodgers top prospect. Prices rose on his 2018 and 2019 Bowman and Topps Chrome cards from the previous years, but 2021-dated rookies and prospects became the real movers. Cards like 2021 Bowman Paper Baseball Outman saw values climb from under $5 to around $15-20 per copy on the secondary market as his prospect stock soared. Even higher end parallels and autograph versions began to sell for $50-100, a major jump from just months prior.
In 2022, Outman has further cemented himself as a top Dodgers prospect, starting the season with Triple-A Oklahoma City. He was invited to major league spring training and held his own against big league pitching, going 5-for-15 with a home run. On the prospect rankings front, Outman broke into top 100 lists on both MLB Pipeline and Baseball America, coming in at #84 and #97 respectively in mid-season updates. His cards, especially colourful parallels and autographs from 2021 Bowman and Topps products, have continued appreciating in value through the first half of 2022.
Perhaps the best indicator of how far Outman’s cards have come occurred this May. In the now extremely popular 2021 Topps Chrome Update Baseball set, Outman had a blue refractor parallel card numbered to /150 copies. When the set first released last fall, Outman blues traded hands in the $5-10 range. But in May, with Outman’s prospect profile stronger than ever, one sold on eBay for a whopping $135. That’s over a 1300% increase in value in under a year for a parallel of a player who was still in A-ball 12 months ago.
Looking ahead, Outman’s cards that are poised to really boom in value if he continues developing his game are 2018 Topps Chrome Draft Picks & Prospects Autograph and 2018 Bowman Draft Autograph. Both captured Outman as an 18-year old high school draftee and hold abundant nostalgia as his “true” rookie cards. The Topps Chrome auto in particular, with its popular Chrome design, has future blue chip status written all over it should Outman go on to become an impact MLB regular. For now, copies trade in the $50-100 range, but several multiples of that figure could be on the horizon.
Of course, Outman still has steps to make in actually reaching the majors and succeeding there. But if his progress so far is any indication, the super tools are there for the left-handed hitter. As long as he stays healthy and on an upward developmental trajectory, Outman’s baseball cards can be expected to trend more strongly upward with each new accomplishment. Collectors wise enough to have jumped on Outman early stand to make some very nice returns on the still-rising Dodgers prospect. This could be just the start of James Outman’s baseball card story.
In conclusion, James Outman has emerged as a burgeoning star in the hobby over the past year thanks to his breakout minor league season. While not a household name yet, serious collectors have taken notice of Outman’s talents and power potential. His baseball cards from 2018-2021 have seen double and triple-digit percentage gains, signaling Outman as one to watch. If he lives up to expectations at the MLB level, some of his early signed cards could become true long-term blue chips in collections. Judging by his progress so far, Outman looks primed for continued success that should maintain the upward momentum of his already rising card values.