Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
The Pirates offered a sizable bounty for a one-of-one Paul Skenes rookie card Topps sent out into the world last year. It ended up in the possession of an 11-year-old who spurned their offer in favor of auctioning it off, which seems to be like a pretty good call based on the massive bids that have already started to pile up.
There was a ton of hype surrounding Paul Skenes when the right-handed pitcher made his MLB debut last season after the Pittsburgh Pirates used the top overall pick in the 2023 draft to secure the talents of the LSU standout who helped the Tigers win the College World Series that year while racking up a slew of prestigious individual awards.
It’s safe to say he lived up to it, as Skenes finished with an 11-3 record, a 1.95 ERA, and 170 strikeouts while earning a spot in the All-Star Game, winning National League Rookie of the Year, and finishing in third place in the voting for the Cy Young Award.
Skenes appeared in his first MLB game against the Cubs on May 11, 2024 rocking a commemorative patch on his uniform that the folks at Topps removed in order to create a one-of-a-kind rookie card featuring that piece of cloth and the ace’s autograph before inserting it into a pack of the 2024 Topps Chrome Updates that were released last November.
The card was eventually discovered by an 11-year-old from Los Angeles who ultimately turned down the sizeable package the Pirates offered in exchange (which included two season tickets for the next 30 years and a couple of jerseys autographed by Skenes) before commissioning it for auction.
That sale, facilitated by Fanatics Collect, officially kicked off this week, and while it won’t wrap up until the evening of March 20th, it seems like the kid made a pretty good decision when you consider the 52 bids it’s attracted as of this writing have already driven the price up to $360,000.
Fanatics declined to offer an estimate before the auction began, but the card has already shattered the record that previously stood for a Skenes card after another one sold for $123,220 last September.
Must be nice.