The most expensive sports card in history finally got beat by a rookie! A single, one of a kind 2009 Mike Trout BOWMAN chrome Prospects Superfractor sold at auction for $3.84 million dollars back in August 2020. With the buyer’s premium added to their final purchase price it ended up costing almost $4 million dollars in total.
Mike Nelson Trout is a recent name in baseball legend history. If you think about it, it’s really rather remarkable. Largely because, most of your overly high-priced baseball cards are of baseball greatest players who are either long ago passed away or are happily retired in the twilight of their life.
Of course, depending on the site that you’re looking at, some Mike Trout baseball cards are so close in value that it’s almost like reading an opinion piece, rather than an evaluation of the card’s actual worth. So, let’s look a bit more closely at this future hall of famer and his sports cards (see also “Best Magnifying Glass For Sports Cards“).
Mike Trout Rookie Cards
Otherwise known as the Millville Meteor, Mike Trout didn’t begin his major league debut as a superstar. But, as these things go, his career has been every bit the meteoric rise that the name implies, albeit for different reasons.
This includes three American League Most Valuable Player Awards, eight silver slugger awards, Rookie of the Year, and eight seasons in the All-Stars.
This makes his rookie trading cards an immensely valuable commodity for any hardcore baseball card collector’s set. The 2009 Bowman Chrome Draft Picks ; Prospects Mike Trout Gold Refractors Autographed baseball card commands a $90,000 price point.
While the value drops off from there, the remaining rookie cards on the list below are all incredibly valuable cards (see also “What Is A Rookie Card?“), especially for a player that is still active.
Mike Trout Cards to Watch
- 2009 Bowman Sterling Prospects Mike Trout Refractors Autographs #MT
- 2011 Bowman Chrome Mike Trout Gold Refractors #175
- 2011 Topps Update Mike Trout Diamond Anniversary #US175
- 2009 Bowman Sterling Prospects Mike Trout Autographs #BSPMT
- 2011 Bowman Sterling Rookie Autographs Mike Trout Gold Refractors #19
- 2011 Finest Mike Trout Refractors Autographs #84
- 2009 Donruss Elite Extra Edition Mike Trout Red Status Autographs #57
Mike Trout was drafted as the #25 overall pick in the 2009 MLB draft and has gone on to become the face of major league baseball. His rookie year included the best WAR of all rookies in the entirety of MLB’s history.
His Rookie of The Year (RoTY) season included 49 bases stolen and he also joined the 30 Home Run and 30 Stolen Base Club he was only the second Angel to do so in that team’s history.
Looking back at Mike Trout’s RotY season, it’s easy to see how and why he has become the phenomenon that he is today. Whether or not he becomes the next, true GOAT (Greatest of All Time) is looking more and more like a matter of time.
Mike Trout Baseball Card Values by Marketplace
The market for baseball cards (and all collectible cards for that matter) is alive and well, even in our current economic environment. Baseball cards with Mike Trout’s name on them are a hot commodity in these marketplaces and are only getting hotter as time goes on.
Goldin Auctions
Goldin is arguably the top marketplace for collectible cards and they currently have a ton of Mike Trout merchandise—everything from baseball cards to autographed baseball bats and sealed game tickets.
Their current highlights in the Mike Trout category include a 2021 Topps Dynasty Autographed Gold #DAP-MT3 Patch Card that has a market value of $2,000. They also have a $1,000 2020 Topps Triple Threads Autographed Relics Gold.
Gold Auction’s most expensive Mike Trout-related card is probably the 2019 Topps Heritage Clubhouse Collection Autographed Relic Patch, which is going for $2,500. Of course, cards move on this platform quickly, so everything is subject to change and you never know when a new Mike Trout card is going to hit the stratosphere.
Since most people don’t want to sell a kidney on the black market to afford a Mike Trout baseball card, there are some more reasonable alternatives on Goldin Auction as well. One of Goldin Auction’s more reasonable offers is the 2019 Panini Prizm Profiles #PI Mike Trout, which is selling for a mere $100.
The 2020 Panini Prizm White Donut Circles #196 retails for $125 in mint condition. The 2011 Bowman Chrome Draft #101 is a Mike Trout signed rookie card that is selling for a more reasonable $700, which isn’t bad for a Mike Trout Rookie Card.
COMC
COMC is another online card collectibles retailer that vows to use the latest and greatest technologies to bring you the best collectible cards currently on the baseball card market. When it comes to Mike Trout, they have plenty to offer as well.
This includes a $27,036 2020 Topps Finest Flashbacks Mike Trout card that is a 9.5 mint. They also have a 2011 Topps Update Series Platinum Diamond Anniversary Mike Trout card for $9,931.
But you don’t need to worry. Not every one that’s sold on COMC is worth taking out a second mortgage over. You can pick up a whole host of Mike Nelson Trout cards, namely the 2020 Topps Stadium Club cards for anywhere between $28.99 and $35.99.
Like Goldin Auctions, COMC also has several Trout cards that are more premium in value but don’t ascend well into the four-figure territory, so it’s worth checking out if you are in the market for Mike Trout.
Vegas Dave
While Vegas Dave (otherwise known as Dave Oancea) isn’t a collectible card marketplace per se, but he does happen to be someone who moved a Mike Trout card for $3.9 million. He originally purchased the card back in 2018 for $400,000.
For those of you reading this who don’t want to do that math, that’s a 975% markup. So somebody made a killer payday and all of it was based entirely on the name of Mike Trout. The previous record occurred in 2016 with a $3.1 million dollar transaction over a Honus Wagner card.
Top Selling Cards
Not every baseball card has to cost a fortune and some, while expensive, make the best-selling Mike Trout baseball cards list and tend to stay there. Nine of the top ten cards are Bowmans, with Topps rounding out the number 10 spot.
In fact, Bowman makes up 18 of the top 20 of the best-selling Mike Trout cards out there, with Topps only creeping in at #10 and #19 respectively. For what it’s worth, the 2011 Topps Finest Purple Refractor Rookie Autograph Mike Trout ⅕ sells for $1,900.
The Topps Finest Die Cut Rookie Autograph Mike Trout 5/10 sells for $2,277. Both of these Topps cards command a decent price point. However, Bowman owns the battlefield starting with a “2009 Bowman Chrome Draft Orange Refractor Autograph Mike Trout #25″ for $3,350 and ending with a “2009 Bowman Chrome Draft Gold Refractor Autograph Mike Trout 13/50″ for $1,850.
While Topps has several top-selling Mike Trout baseball cards, Bowman leads the way with the most Mike Trout best-selling cards in the collectibles market right now.
All Things Considered
Mike Nelson Trout is a legend before his time and one of the few who still walks the field to this day. His collectible cards, both autographed and absent his signature reflect his status on and off the field.
Many people consider him comparable, if not better than Rickey Henderson and Ken Griffey Jr.
While many of Mike Trout’s rookie cards in pristine condition command a very high price. There are many more that command a more reasonable price point in today’s market which means there’s a good chance that you could still pick up a good deal.
Who knows, perhaps one day they will have immense value as well. This could give a real boost to your card collecting over the long term, particularly if you can find a piece of cardboard in good condition that gets graded in the psa 10s.
He bought me my first baseball mitt, and taught me everything I know about baseball. When he came over one day with my first ever baseball card, I was absolutely elated. We started collecting them together, and getting excited whenever we went somewhere that sold them.
Here, I hope you find all of the information that you need to build your own amazing baseball card collection with friends, family and loved ones, and you too can find happiness in getting all of your favorite cards!
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