Sho Time is what he’s called by his fans. Shohei Ohtani is unique and rare because he’s as strong a hitter as he is a pitcher and fielder. Not since Babe Ruth has the potential for greatness on the mound and in the batters box. Ohtani is a star on the field and was a star at the National Sports Collectors Convention in Chicago.
Ohtani’s status is frequently referred to as the Japanese Babe Ruth. This has led to a nearly countless number of rookie card variations with an even more difficult population to count. Chasing rookie cards is nothing new for baseball card collectors and investors.
Collectors Dashboard evaluates collectibles as an alternative asset class, effectively looking at collectibles that cost hundreds or thousands of dollars in the same light as stocks, bonds and real estate investments. Collectors with a deep passion to own certain collectibles have to often compete directly against investors who are solely seeking a profit. There are no assurances that any buyer will make a profit, and chasing the latest hot athlete can come with some incredibly painful outcomes.
The so-called “countless” cards easily measure in the tens-of-thousands. Low population rookie cards should command much higher prices than the base cards, but even for a player like Ohtani this will require his career to remain bright.
In July of 2021 a 2018 Bowman Chrome Rookie Autographs Orange Refractors #CRASO Shohei Ohtani signed rookie card sold for a stunning $145,200 at Goldin Auctions. The card was number 14 of just 25 examples and its grades were BGS GEM MINT 9.5/BGS 10. Goldin Auctions also auctioned a 17-card lot of Ohtani cards (rookies and refractors included) that sold for a sum of $290,400 in the same July 2021 auction.
The top sale we tracked before the All-Star game under Shohei Ohtani rookie cards was a Shohei Ohtani 2018 Bowman Chrome Red Refractor RC Auto Autograph 5/5 BGS 9.5/10 that sold on June 6, 2021 with an auction price of $56,716.16. Two other sales were very close to each other and they seem to be almost identical cards:
- May 11, 2018 — 2018 Bowman Chrome Red Refractor Shohei Ohtani Angels RC AUTO 5/5 for $35,100.00
- May 7, 2021 — 2018 Bowman Chrome Red Refractor Shohei Ohtani Angels RC Rookie AUTO 1/5 for $30,300.00
Shohei Ohtani is the newest client of Fanatics Authentic who created a sports card-like product with signed 8×10 photos. The signed photos were on display at the National Sports Collectors Convention in Chicago. Here’s what Fanatics Authentic offers online for signed items.
Heritage Auctions sold this 2018 Bowman Chrome Shohei Ohtani (Rookie Autographs) #BCRASO BGS Pristine 10, Auto 10 on December 10, 2020 for $810.00 and here are the offers to date on it according to Heritage Auctions:
- $4,750 on July 11, 2021
- $4,500 on July 11, 2021
- $3,000 on July 10, 2021
- $1,725 on June 9, 2021
- $1,600 on June 4, 2021
- $1,215 on May 26, 2021
Here is method to the rookie card madness, and just how many Ohtani cards beyond the rookie cards are for sale. COMC.com shows retail prices of graded and ungraded varieties of 2018 Shohei Ohtani cards and other years with close to 6,500 lots for sale on last look. eBay’s count of “Ohtani Rookie” items, which also includes many non-rookie items, was more than 22,000 items.
Shohei Ohtani had a receptive debut with Fanatics Authentic at the National Sport Collectors Convention in Chicago with a rather tall Ohtani banner announcement. This was a rather impressive outing and Fanatics already had over 100 items for sale.
The national convention was so large that words and video fail to capture the full square footage of the exhibit hall. What was easy to see was the vast number of Ohtani rookie cards and his post-rookie cards. To say it was just in “thousands” almost feels like an understatement. This snapshot (below) shows stacks of countless Ohtani rookies from just one dealer already at $5 per rookie (or $25 for 5 rookies). That same image shows that the dealer was also representing to ask for wholesale prices.
