
Aaron Judge is the face of the New York Yankees, just won his 2nd MVP award, and led his team to the World Series. He’s one of the biggest names in the hobby, both literally and figuratively.
But who is Judge? What about his baseball cards? And his rookie cards? And are these cards good investments?
Check out the huge selection of Aaron Judge rookie cards on eBay
Aaron Judge is a 6-7, 282-pound, 32-year-old outfielder for the New York Yankees. He burst onto the scene in 2017, breaking the rookie home run record with 52 round trippers. In addition to winning the Rookie of the Year award that year, he finished 2nd in the MVP voting.
A few highly productive but injury-plagued years followed, but a strong and healthy 2021 saw him finish 4th in the MVP race. Then 2022 arrived, and Judge upped his game to another level.
Judge hit 62 home runs, setting the New York Yankees team and American League record. He put up a line of .311/.425/.686 good for an OPS of 1.111 and 210 OPS+. He led the league in runs, home runs, RBI, walks, on base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS, OPS+, and WAR. He also won the MVP award.
Say what you want about the importance of that particular home run record…I for one find it a bit silly to call it the “real home run record” and ignore 30 years of the game’s history…but it’s a monster season regardless.
After an injury-shortened but still strong 2023, Judge may have been better than ever in 2024. He led the league with 58 home runs and 144 RBI. He put up a .322/.458/.701 line with a OPS of 1.159 and OPS+ of 223. He was worth 10.8 WAR and again won the MVP award.
Judge has 315 career home runs and 716 career RBI as of this writing to go with a .288/.406/.605 line, good for a 1.010 OPS and 173 OPS+. He has been worth 52.2 WAR in his career, which is already leading to some early Hall of Fame chatter.
While writing this article, I was struck by the similarity between Judge and another former oversize slugger, Mark McGwire. McGwire was 6’5” and 215 pounds, while Judge is 6’7” and 282 pounds.
Both had a taste of major leagues the year before their full rookie year, hitting under .200. They followed that with monster rookie seasons which saw them win the Rookie of the Year award, place among the top 6 in the MVP, and capture the imagination of baseball fans everywhere. These happened 30 years apart, in 1987 and 2017, respectively
Both had injury issues before eventually getting healthy and making a run at the single-season home run record. Of course, McGwire has admitted to steroids use, which explains why his home run chase came at a more advanced age than Judge’s.
McGwire was a hobby star both early and late in his career, although PED use has tarnished his legacy and complicated his Hall of Fame candidacy. So, it feels to me that calling Judge a “once-in-a-generation talent” is probably accurate.
Check the latest prices of the Mark Mcgwire and Aaron Judge 2017 Topps “Then and Now” card
Back in the olden days, like before the year 2000, it was pretty easy to figure out which card was a player’s rookie card. It was his first card. End of story.
Sure, there were some who’d argue about Extended Rookie Cards (XRC) vs. Rookie Card (RC)*, but the card to chase was typically the first one released.
Later, a player’s first card, even if it was a Draft Pick or Prospect card, was considered the rookie card.
In 2006, MLB mandated that a card would not be a true rookie card unless the player had appeared on their team’s 25 (now 26) man major league roster. While this has brought clarity in some ways, companies like Bowman, Panini, and Donruss still print pre-rookie cards of many players, muddying the waters.
Judge is an example of this muddiness. His first card appeared in 2013. He got a taste of the big leagues in 2016. His rookie cards are technically in 2017.
* – XRC referred to a player’s first card in a Traded or Update set, while a RC was in a set released in packs. An example would be Barry Bonds 1987 RCs, and 1986 XRCs.
According to the Trading Card Database, Aaron Judge has appeared on 19,396 cards over his career.
As mentioned, Judge made his first appearance on a card in 2013. His rookie cards are in 2017. In total, Judge had 751 cards from 2013-2016, meaning he had a LOT of cards before his official rookie card. Crazy! As of this writing, Judge has already appeared on 1,774 cards in 2024, with more sets still to be released.
Judge had 2,067 cards produced in 2017, his official rookie year. Any attempt to whittle that list down to a handful of cards is going to be a challenge. Instead of listing Judge’s most expensive rookie cards, I’m going to present a mix of the ultra-rare and expensive along with some more affordable cards.
Your list of top Judge Rookie cards may differ. If you have a favorite Aaron Judge rookie card, Topps or Bowman, let us know at card_lines on Twitter.
Let’s start things off with a real gem and an incredibly difficult pull. The 2017 Topps Heritage Real One Auto Red Ink is limited to 68 copies and recent sales include PSA 10 copies for $13,700.
Card | PSA Pop | PSA Comp Pop | Recent Comp Sale |
---|---|---|---|
2017 Topps Heritage Real One Auto Red Ink Aaron Judge | 18 | PSA 10 = 14 | PSA 10 = $13,700 |
Find 2017 Topps Heritage Red Ink autos on eBay
68 autographed copies just too much for you? The 2017 Topps Chrome Red Refractor Auto Aaron Judge has only five total copies, with two copies graded by PSA (both PSA 10s). This is a sweet, hard-to-find Aaron Judge Topps rookie card and likely a highlight of any collection.
Find a 2017 Topps Chrome auto refractor of Aaron Judge
Card | PSA Pop | PSA Comp Pop | Recent Comp Sale |
---|---|---|---|
2017 Topps Chrome Red Refractor Auto Aaron Judge | 1 | PSA 10 = 1 | PSA 10 = $19,900 |
Coming down in the range of the more affordable, the 2017 Bowman Chrome “Batting” is the base Chrome offering, and is more widely available and reasonably priced. With an Image Variation “In Dugout” and rainbow of Refractors, there are escalating options if you want something a bit harder to find.
Note that a pretty sizable percentage of all graded copies are PSA 10s. Something to keep in mind when considering a purchase.
Find a 2017 Bowman Chrome Aaron Judge “batting” rookie card
Card | PSA Pop | PSA Comp Pop | Recent Comp Sale |
---|---|---|---|
2017 Bowman Chrome Aaron Judge “Batting” | 3,329 | PSA 10 = 2,651 | PSA 10 = $120-200 |
Another premium base offering is the 2017 Topps Chrome Aaron Judge “Catching”. Like the Aarib Hydge Bowman Chrome rookie card, this has a rarer “Running” Image Variation and many Refractor variations to chase as well.
Like the Bowman Chrome, a high percentage of PSA-graded copies are PSA 10’s. Also of note is that while this card has a much higher population than the Bowman Chrome, it sells within the same range, with a lower floor on recent sales.
Find the 2017 Topps Chrome Aaron Judge “catching” rookie card on eBay
Card | PSA Pop | PSA Comp Pop | Recent Comp Sale |
---|---|---|---|
2017 Topps Chrome Aaron Judge “Catching” | 8,738 | PSA 10 = 7,066 | PSA 10 = $160-180 |
The paper offering of Judge’s 2017 Bowman offers up a higher PSA population, plenty of PSA 10’s, and a more reasonable price point for someone just looking to dabble in Judge cards.
Find a 2017 Bowman Aaron Judge rookie card on eBay
Card | PSA Pop | PSA Comp Pop | Recent Comp Sale |
---|---|---|---|
2017 Bowman Aaron Judge | 9,376 | PSA 10 = 4,495 | PSA 10 = $65-85 |
Getting into the way back machine, we’ll explore Judge’s early pre-rookie/prospect cards with the 2013 Bowman Chrome offerings, in this case the Autograph version.
As one of the very first Judge Certified Autographs, these see plenty of demand and are strong sellers.
Find 2013 Bowman Chrome Draft Pick rookie cards of Aaron Judge
Card | PSA Pop | PSA Comp Pop | Recent Comp Sale |
---|---|---|---|
2013 Bowman Chrome Draft Picks & Prospects Aaron Judge Auto | 327 | PSA 10 = 201 | PSA 10 = $2,200-2,600 |
If you’re looking for a more affordable (relatively speaking) Aaron Judge card from the year he was drafted by the New York Yankees, here’s a great option.
With a relatively low population for such a popular card, and close to half of PSA graded copies in PSA 10 holders, this one may still have room to grow between now and November.
As with the other Bowman offerings, a rainbow of Refractors are out there to give you lots of options and price points.
Find 2013 Bowman Chrome Draft Picks Aaron Judge rookie cards on eBay
Card | PSA Pop | PSA Comp Pop | Recent Comp Sale |
---|---|---|---|
2013 Bowman Chrome Draft Picks & Prospects Aaron Judge | 3,539 | PSA 10 = 1,497 | PSA 10 = $350-400 |
The paper version of the 2013 Bowman Draft Picks & Prospects has a higher population than the Chrome version, but is still a strong seller, especially in PSA 10. That Gem Mint version will set you back a lot less than the Chrome or Autographed versions, so it offers a bit more of an “entry-level” Judge card.
In PSA 10, these go for somewhere between $140 and $180, offering another price point for Judge fans.
Find Bowman Draft Picks & Prospects Aaron Judge rookie cards on eBay
Card | PSA Pop | PSA Comp Pop | Recent Comp Sale |
---|---|---|---|
2013 Bowman Draft Picks & Prospects Aaron Judge | 7,917 | PSA 10 = 5,251 | PSA 10 = $140-180 |
As a general rule of thumb, it’s unwise to invest in a player’s cards during or just after his best season, especially if that season is all-time level, and includes a lengthy playoff run. Judge’s cards are hot right now, so it might not be the best time to acquire them.
But what of any Judge cards you already have in your collection? Sell now? Hold? What’s the approach?
Really, it all depends on how you think the rest of Judge’s career plays out. When healthy Judge is one of the best sluggers.
But there are a few things going against his Hall of Fame chances. One is age. Judge was 25 during his Rookie of the Year season, a bit on the older side. He’s now 32, and will turn 33 in April of 2025. His career totals of 315 HR and 52.2 WAR is a great start to his career, and represent roughly 3/4 of the way to likely Hall of Fame territory.
That raises the other big factor for Judge…health. Judge missed significant time in three different seasons during his late 20s. How will his massive frame age as he moves into his 30s? I expect it will be a challenge, although Judge is as capable as anyone to put up some 8-10 WAR seasons and pad his career numbers in a hurry.
The big season in 2024 makes his HOF outlook better. Another couple of seasons like 2022 or 2024 would put him above the average Hall of Fame WAR for a right fielder, a number that’s a bit skewed by the inclusion of Babe Ruth and Henry Aaron.
So, to maximize profit, this may be a good time to sell. That being said, if you think Judge is on the path to the Hall of Fame, or if you enjoy owning his cards, there’s an argument for hanging onto them.
After all, the cards of another non-Hall of Fame single-season home run record-holding New York Yankee continue to sell well over 60 years after he set the record (that’d be Roger Maris).
Regardless of whether you’re buying, selling, or holding Judge’s cards, Judge is driving an exciting time for the game and the hobby.
Check out the huge selection of Aaron Judge rookie cards on eBay
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