Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
When Topps announced on Tuesday that an 11-year-old from California had pulled the 1/1 Paul Skenes Rookie Debut Patch Autograph card that they had been promoting, the first question on most people’s minds was, “What are they going to do with it?” After all, the Pittsburgh Pirates had made a very generous offer to whoever the lucky fan who scored the card ended up being.
The Pirates had offered two season tickets behind home plate for 30 years, a meet and greet with Skenes, two autographed Paul Skenes jerseys, a softball game at PNC Park for 30 people as well as Pirates coaches and alumni, a private tour of Pirates City and LECOM Park, batting practice with the team, and other unnamed “unique experiences.”
On top of that, LSU gymnast Livvy Dunne, Paul Skenes’ girlfriend, also offered to share her suite with the person who ended up with the card. All of those prizes are something most adults, especially males, would be more than willing to accept, but perhaps they don’t mean quite as much to an 11-year-old from California.
There is also the fact that famous collector Ken Goldin stated that whoever pulled the Paul Skenes rookie card should sell it. “You can put your kids thru college with the money from the sale,” he said.
After a few days of consideration, the kid who pulled the Paul Skenes rookie card has made a decision. And they won’t be attending many Pirates games anytime soon. They also won’t be using Ken Goldin’s auction service.
Instead, the Skenes card will be auctioned off by Fanatics Collect in the company’s March premier auction.
JUST IN 🚨 The 11-year-old collector & his family have decided to sell the Paul Skenes 1/1 Rookie Debut Patch Autograph card at auction.
Fanatics Collect is honored to usher this iconic Topps MLB collectible into the next chapter of its journey. The card will be available in our… pic.twitter.com/2OWspuHwUP
— Fanatics Collect (@FanaticsCollect) January 24, 2025
According to The Athletic…
Even before grading, the value for the card could be estimated as a high six-figure item. With the gem mint grade, there’s an expectation the card could be sold for up to $1 million. The current record sale for a Skenes card is $123,220, which his 2023 Bowman Chrome Draft Prospects Autographs Superfractor (another 1/1 card) fetched in September. With a Debut Patch element, which Skenes wore on his jersey when he made his first start for the Pirates, it’s hard to compare the value of any other card to this one, though.
As an added bonus, Fanatics Collect also announced that all of the company’s proceeds from the sale of the card will be donated to Los Angeles fire relief funds.