This year has a few rookies who are hyped beyond all belief. Stephen Strasburg, Mike Stanton, Jason Heyward, and eventually Aroldis Chapman are the big names, and I imagine Austin Jackson and some others aren’t bad, either.
I wouldn’t mind buying some baseball card packs to try and get some of the rookie cards for these guys. Trouble is, nowadays each player probably has 60+ “rookie” cards plus some chase cards that are outrageously priced (certainly true of this Strausburg card!) I also suspect card companies somehow managed to release cards of some of these guys in past years.
So, my question is, what packs can I find in stores that might have something relatively affordable, yet worth collecting?
It’s OK if the answer is “none”. That wouldn’t surprise me.
I did a bit of research into sports cards recently, and the basic answer is that the more you pay, the more they’re worth. For example, one of those brands that cost like $100 per pack are worth $20 for each card whether they’re a star or not.
Imho, your best bet is to buy single cards of players who are already guaranteed to go into the hall of fame. You pay more, but the cards are (nearly…I’m looking at you, Pete Rose) guaranteed not to decrease in value. Nowadays, there are also cards with serial numbers on them that make them more valuable as well, but they are insanely hard to get by buying packs.
Online, some people estimate that getting a 1/1 serial numbered card in a pack is a once in a lifetime event.