The Top Carl Yastrzemski Rookie & Early Career Cards

It’s not often a player has a career long enough to have cards that span the entirety of two decades and into a third.

But if you’re a fan of 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s baseball cards, you can get a playing career card of one player for every year from 1960 to 1983.

That player played that entire career for just one team and was a first-ballot Hall of Famer. He is Carl Yastrzemski.

But who is Carl Yastrzemski? What is his rookie card? And what other Yaz cards are worth chasing? Let’s explore eight top cards for the Boston Red Sox number 8, Carl Yastrzemski.

Who is Carl Yastrzemski?

Carl Yastrzemski played an incredible 23 years in the big leagues, all with the Boston Red Sox. Despite playing much of his prime in an era of depressed offensive output, he put up an amazing career worthy of remembering.

Yastrzemski burst onto the scene in 1961 at age 21 and quickly established himself as a young star in the game, putting up a 125 OPS+ in his first six seasons, including winning a batting title. He did this for several losing Red Sox teams that never got close to the playoffs.

That all changed in 1967, when Yastrzemski took his game to another level, pushing the Red Sox all the way to Game 7 of the World Series.

He won the Triple Crown that year, leading the league in batting average, home runs, and RBI, plus runs scored, slugging, OPS, and OPS+. He was worth a whopping 12.4 WAR that season. He won his third batting title the next year.

For his long career, Yastrzemski put up a career line of .285/.379/.462, good for an OPS of .841 and 130 OPS+. He finished with 3,419 career hits (9^th all-time), 452 home runs, and a career WAR of 96.5.

He was a 7-time Gold Glove winner and an All Star a staggering 18 times. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1989, getting 94.6% of the vote in his first year of eligibility.

Carl Yastrzemski baseball cards

According to the Trading Card Database (TCDB.com), Carl Yastrzemski has appeared on 9,196 cards since his first cardboard appearance in 1960.

He appeared on playing days cards through 1983 products, with a few career highlight cards appearing in 1984.

Yaz continued to appear on cards after his playing days ended. These appearances increased greatly after around the year 2000, when parallels, relic cards, and certified autographs become more commonplace.  

The Carl Yastrzemski rookie card

Yaz’s rookie card, the 1960 Topps Carl Yastrzemski #148, is one of three Hall of Fame rookie cards in the classic 1960 Topps set. The Yastrzemski card is joined by the rookie cards of fellow HOFers Jim Kaat (#136) and Willie McCovey (#316).

PSA has graded 11,725 copies of the Yaz rookie, meaning it’s not particularly rare. In higher grades, though, the story changes.

Only one PSA 10 copy exists. It last sold way back in 2012 for over $83,800. There are 44 PSA 9s. The last sale of a PSA 9 was back in May of 2023 for $27,600. In a PSA 8, of which there are 591 copies, sells for $2,000-2,400.

Even in a PSA 7, with a higher count of 1,668 copies, these fetch a solid $700-850 depending on eye appeal. Prices go down from there, as condition is lowered and populations generally get somewhat higher.

In a PSA 4, for example, the card sells for $150-175. A PSA 3 can be had for about the same price as a hobby box of 2025 Topps Series 1.

I own a PSA 3 copy I’ve had since I was a teenager and finally got graded a few years ago.

For a far tougher chase, look for a copy of the 1960 Topps Venezuelan Carl Yastrzemski #148. The set, produced in Venezuela, consisted of 198 cards from the 1960 Topps set.

Due to lower production numbers, poor production quality, and the distance from Venezuela to the US hobby, these cards are quite hard to find now, and often are in poor condition.

PSA has graded only 57 times by PSA, with the highest graded copies being two PSA 5s. A PSA 4 copy sold in April of 2023 for $4,269.

Other great early Carl Yastrzemski cards

The 1961 Topps Carl Yastrzemski #287 card is Yaz’s second-year card and features the Rookie Stars icon. While well over 5,000 copies have been graded by PSA, there are only four PSA 10s in existence.

The last one sold for $51,660 back in 2021. In a PSA 9, of which there are fewer than 70, and sells for between $2,500 and $2,900 in that condition. In a much more plentiful PSA 8, they sell strongly in the $400-475 range.

While a year further into Yastrzemski’s career, the 1962 Topps Carl Yastrzemski #425 has been graded roughly half as much by PSA as the 1961.  

Due to this scarcity, they sell for about double a 1961 in a PSA 8 slab. There are only two PSA 10 copies in existence and 14 PSA 9s. The last PSA 9 sold for $6,500 in May 2021, while there have been no recorded sales of a PSA 10.

The 1963 Topps Carl Yastrzemski #115 has a total PSA population below 3,000. In top condition, it’s even tougher, with only 1 PSA 10 and 20 PSA 9s.

While the last sale of a 9 was way back in November of 2020 for $2,800. In a more plentiful PSA 8, they sell for a very reasonable $215-315.

With the lowest total PSA population so far on our list, the 1964 Topps Carl Yastrzemski #210 has been graded fewer than 2,500 times by PSA. Yet a PSA 8 sells for a very reasonable $210-240 price.

There are only 3 PSA 10s in existence, with the last sales of one in a PSA 10 slab for $7,575 and $15,600. There are 53 PSA 9s, with recent sales in the $1,800 to $1,900 range.

From a purely aesthetic point of view, the 1965 Topps Carl Yastrzemski #385 may be the best-looking card on our list today. There’s something about the perfectly framed Yaz, hands up to catch a pop-up on that iconic 1965 Topps design.

There are only 3 PSA 10s, with no recent sales. PSA 9s get a bit more plentiful, with 93 copies in existence. A PSA 9 sold recently for $1,380. In an even more plentiful PSA 8, they sell in the $200-240 range.

The 1966 Topps Carl Yastrzemski #70 has been graded a hair over 2,500 times by PSA, with only one PSA 10 and 59 PSA 9s.

PSA 9s sell for between $850-950, while PSA 8s can be had for $225-300, although one recent sale was for over $420. The 1966 O-Pee-Chee and 1966 Topps Venezuelan offer up tougher chases.

 Released during the magical 1967 season, the 1967 Topps Carl Yastrzemski #355 is another popular Yastrzemski offering.

Their association with that magic season means they tend to be worth more than Yaz cards from other years surrounding 1967. In a PSA 8 slab, they sell for around $400.

The last sale of one of the four PSA 10 was back in January of 2021 for $18,000. Recent sales of PSA 9’s have ranged from a bit over $2,000 to up to $3,300.

Final thoughts on the top Carl Yastrzemski rookie & early career cards

Carl Yastrzemski was an amazing player for close to a quarter of a century. He’s a member of the 3,000 hit club and a Hall of Famer. His rookie and early career cards offer hard-to-find, high-dollar collectible gems or reasonably priced vintage classics, depending on the grade.

If you’re a fan of 1960s Topps designs, Yaz cards are a great way to explore the decade.

What’s your take on Carl Yastrzemski and his rookie and other early career cards? What’s your favorite? Do you own any? Hope to pick one up? Tell us what’s on your mind at CardLines on X.

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