As the calendar turns to July, a team with little to play for calls up an exciting top prospect for their first taste of the big leagues. Will such a move give fans a glimpse of a brighter future and a chance to dream? And will collectors get that same chance to dream?
The current version of this story which is as old as the game and the hobby features the hulking young slugger James Wood of the Washington Nationals.
But who is James Wood? What are his prospect credentials? And what are the James Wood cards worth chasing?
James Wood made his big league debut on July 1, 2024 for the Washington Nationals. The 6’7”, 234 pound, 21-year-old outfielder is the #2 prospect in the game according to the MLB.com Top 100 Prospect list.
After a late slump in high school pushed Wood to the 2nd round, Woods was drafted by San Diego and signed to an above-slot $2.6 million bonus. The youngster was then the headliner in the blockbuster trade that sent Juan Soto from Washington to San Diego.
In four minor league seasons totaling 283 games, Wood has hit an impressive .302/.402/.539, good for an OPS of .941. He added 51 home runs and 58 stolen bases. In 2024, in 53 AAA games, he hit .353/.463/.595.
Scouting grades: Hit: 50 | Power: 70 | Run: 60 | Arm: 55 | Field: 55 | Overall: 65
Power is Wood’s biggest strength, although he has shown good speed and defense in the outfield in the minors. While an impressive prospect, Wood is of course not perfect. He has some swing-and-miss in his game. How he adjusts to big-league pitching will be an interesting development.
Despite having just made his major league debut, James Wood has already appeared on 1,753 cards according to the Trading Card Database at TCDB.com.
Wood likely won’t get his official rookie cards until 2025, but there are several early career cards worth chasing. These include his 1st Bowman and many other cards, both licensed and unlicensed.
Being ultra-modern cards, most all cards come in a rainbow of parallel versions. If you’re looking to invest, parallels tend to have much lower populations, both total and graded, than base cards and are the better investment if your budget allows for the higher buy-in price.
For base cards. looking at the population numbers it’s best to buy PSA 10s if your budget allows, as lower grades aren’t going to see the demand with so many copies in PSA 10 slabs.
James Wood has his 1st Bowman cards in 2022 products. He appears in several products across the Bowman portfolio that year, with some having vastly different population numbers and price tags.
The 2022 Bowman Prospects Paper card has the lowest buy-in price, with copies recently available in PSA 10 slabs for as low as $20. This is in spite of a very reasonable PSA population of just over 500 copies.
The 2022 Bowman Chrome Prospects card has a much higher PSA population, and a reasonable buy-in price of $45-65 in a PSA 10 slab.
The combination of the Chrome with the reasonable price tag makes this a good “go to” card if you’re looking to buy one reasonably priced Wood 1st Bowman card. There is another card of Wood further in the set, card #BCP-213, which has only been graded 8 times by PSA with one PSA 10. If you can get your hands on that one, it’s a nice alternative.
If you’re looking for a more premium offering, the 2022 Bowman Chrome Prospect Autographs card has a reasonable PSA population and a price tag of around $500 in a PSA 10. The 1st Bowman Chrome Auto is typically one of the most desirable early career cards for a player, and Wood should be no exception.
If you like a little sparkle with your 1st Bowman, the 2022 Bowman Sapphire Edition is a nice option. It offers a PSA population between the paper and chrome versions of the standard prospects offering and a slightly higher price point.
Bowman Draft cards are typically a bit less chased than Chrome Prospects, but check out the population count on the 2022 Bowman Draft Chrome card. If you can find one of these, these feel like a nice card to take a chance on.
James Wood appears on a few other Bowman branded cards in 2022, including 2022 Bowman 1st Edition, all of which are worth a look if you’re looking to build an extensive Wood collection.
| Card | Total PSA Pop | Recent Sale Pop | Recent Sale Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 Bowman Chrome Prospects James Wood #BCP-108 | 2,934 | PSA 10 = 1.979 | PSA 10 = $45-65 |
| 2022 Bowman Chrome Prospects James Wood #BCP-213 | 8 | PSA 10 = 1 | PSA 10 = NA |
| 2022 Bowman Chrome Prospect Autographs James Wood #CPA-JWD | 378 | PSA 10 = 166 | PSA 10 = $500 |
| 2022 Bowman Prospects James Wood #BP-108 | 526 | PSA 10 = 420 | PSA 10 = $20-35 |
| 2022 Bowman 1st Edition James Wood #BPPF-108 | 510 | PSA 10 = 413 | PSA 10 = $50-60 |
| 2022 Bowman Sapphire Edition James Wood #BCP-108 | 1,202 | PSA 10 = 842 | PSA 10 = $90 |
| 2022 Bowman Draft Chrome James Wood #BDC-171 | 15 | PSA 10 = 6 | PSA 10 = $45-65 |
James Wood made his first cardboard appearance a year before being drafted while still in high school. In 2020 Leaf Metal Perfect Game highlighted top high school showcase players.
Across the many parallels, autographs, and variations across the product, Leaf produced 208 different cards of James Wood that year. Many of those are low-print ones, including many 1/1s.
In 2021, Leaf featured the newly drafted Wood in 2021 Leaf Metal Draft, 2021 Leaf Trinity, and 2021 Leaf Valiant. Panini got in on the action including Wood in 2021 Panini Elite Extra Edition and 2021 Panini Prizm Draft Picks. Wood also appeared in 2021 Pro Set Metal products that year.
These early unlicensed cards aren’t likely to hold the same value as his licensed 1st Bowman, but offer some interesting and colorful alternatives, especially with the variety of low print-run options.
James Wood appears on a large number of other pre-rookie prospect cards in 2022, 2023, and 2024. While these don’t hold the investment appeal of the 1st Bowman, they may still be worth picking up, especially the rarer parallels. As noted earlier, we can expect the true rookie cards of James Wood to land in 2025 products.
Investing in prospects is a path that can be fraught with peril. It can also be rewarding and fun. Is James Wood sure to become a future star?
Nobody can guarantee that, but his skill set and minor-league career suggest he’s got as good a chance as any prospect. The fact that he’s a young Phenom on a team that appears to have several young stars developing into a potential future core is an encouraging development.
What’s your take on James Wood and his future potential? What is your favorite prospect card of Wood? And are you looking forward to his rookie cards in 2025? Tell us all about it at card_lines on Twitter.
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