Most Valuable Baseball Cards 2000s Top Pick
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When considering the most valuable baseball cards of the 2000s, you automatically begin to think about who the best players were over the course of that decade. While that line of thought helps, there’s something else you’ll need to consider. Who’re the best players who had ROOKIE SEASONS in the 2000s? Now we have all the information we need to go out and find those cards with the BIG price tags.
As you can see in the list below, some of the players ended up being some of the best players of the 2000s. Those would be the ones that had rookie seasons in the earlier part of the decade. However, a couple on the list didn’t begin their domination of the sport until the next decade. And that’s where will start our list. With the player who not only dominated the 2010s but will likely end up dominating a good portion of the 2020s as well.
Please note: For the sake of variety we are only allowing one card per player. If not you’d just be reading about a bunch of Mike Trout rookie cards!
Top 3 Most Valuable Baseball Cards 2000s
Mike Trout 2009 Bowman Chrome
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So not only is this the most valuable baseball card of the 2000s, it’s the most valuable baseball card of ALL TIME. And guess what else? It’s also the most valuable trading card of all time. Period. As we stated in our most expensive rookie cards review, the Mike Trout Superfractor from this set recently ousted the famous Honus Wagner card when it sold for nearly 4 MILLION dollars. Can’t come up with that kinda change? Don’t worry there’s plenty of other Mike Trout rookie cards that are much more affordable!
Albert Pujols 2001 Bowman Chrome
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Not many players can match up to the first 10 years of Albert Pujols’ career. That includes the guy listed above too. However, once his age began to catch up, Albert’s batting prowess fell off a cliff. The move away from the Cardinals probably didn’t help either! At any rate, Pujols’ sudden decline has got to be the reason there’s such a disparity between the value of his rookie cards and Mike Trout’s. Regardless of the late-career drop-off, the card above has an estimated value of somewhere around $70,000 if it’s a grade 10.
Ichiro Suzuki 2001 Bowman Chrome Xfractor
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Close call between this one and the 2001 Ultimate Collection. Either way, both cards are closing in on the $20,000 mark for a grade 10 according to PSA. Not bad. And with the career this guy put up, totally justified. While Suzuki didn’t make his MLB debut until age 27, he made up fr the lost years by getting more base hits than anybody in the years following his rookie season. By the way, he ended up with over 3,000 of them for his career. Who knows, if he came to the league at the age most rookies do nowadays he might have come close to Pete Rose’s all-time record!
Most Valuable Baseball Cards 2000s: Honorable Mentions
Clayton Kershaw 2006 Bowman Chrome Draft
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He’s one of the greatest pitchers of all time and certainly THE greatest pitcher of his generation. Despite the epic playoff disappointments. Perhaps that and the general attitude of collectors not showing as much love to pitchers is why this card didn’t make our top 3. However, if you get one of the rarer Refractors you have a card that can easily be worth more than $5,000. Get the elusive Gold Refractor Autograph in 10-grade condition and that price rises to over $10,000.
Top Value Play: 2000 Topps Traded Miguel Cabrera
If you’re looking for a grossly undervalued item, look no further than this rookie card of Miggy. With everything thing he’s accomplished throughout his storied career it’s hard to understand why Cabrera’s biggest card is valued at less than $2,000 as a PSA 10. The guy recently joined both the 500 home run and 3,000 hit clubs and was the last player to hit for the Triple Crown. When compared to the other first ballot Hall of Famer’s on this list the low value seems like a true steal.
As we’ve mentioned the card shown here sells for somewhere around $2,000. However, if you’re looking to sink more into your investment take a look at the TTA40 card from the same set. While still nowhere near the value of other cards on this list it should bring in well over $5,000 in the right condition.
Looking to go even FURTHER back? Check out our list of the Most Valuable Baseball Cards of the 80s and 90s!
Most Valuable Baseball Cards 2000s Investment Strategies
Short (1 year or less)
While an offseason purchase could prove lucrative once the season heats up, this isn’t our favorite strategy. Look, these guys are all soon to be first-ballot Hall of Famers (with the exception of Suzuki who already is). That means these cards will continue to be viable investments for years to come. Let the market grow and you should find better returns.
Medium (1 to 5 years)
Now, this makes a little more sense. It’s hard to say when a certain player’s cards will suddenly become hot collector items. Sure, the market will go up and down but with these cards, you can expect a very high bottom. Over the next 5 years, you should be able to find a spot where you can make some incredibly nice gains.
Long (5 years plus)
With blue-chip players like these, a long term approach makes the most sense. As with many things in life, patience is the key. If tying your money up for longer periods of time doesn’t bother you, watch out for some mind-boggling returns if the market continues its upward march over the next decade or two.
Time to shift gears and check out the most valuable BASKETBALL cards of the 2000s