The tale of Roberto Clemente is one of the best in the storied history of the great game of baseball. It is a story of greatness. A story of overcoming adversity. It’s a story of selflessness and tragic loss. It’s a story of a legacy that continues to this day.
You can get a chance to learn about that great story and legacy and hold a piece of it in your hands, every time you hold a Roberto Clemente baseball card.
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But who was Roberto Clemente? What are some of his very best cards? Let’s explore some of our favorite cards of the all-time icon of the game.
Roberto Clemente, born in Puerto Rico, played 18 seasons in the major leagues, all with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He was an amazing player, a fact that sometimes gets lost in the larger story. Clemente was a 15-time All-Star and won 12 Gold Glove Awards.
He is considered one of the best-throwing outfielders in history. He won an MVP award in 1966, four batting titles, and led the Pirates to two World Championships.
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In addition to his play in MLB, Clemente took part in winter league ball in his native Puerto Rico in the Liga de Béisbol Profesional de Puerto Rico.
For his career, he compiled a batting line of .317/.359/.475, good for an OPS of .834 and 130 OPS+. He hit 240 home runs and finished his career with exactly 3,000 hits. Over his career, he compiled an impressive 94.9 WAR.
Clemente recorded his 3,000th career hit on September 30, 1972. He played just one more regular season game that year, playing an inning of defense to tie Honus Wagner’s record for games played as a Pittsburgh Pirate. He played in that year’s NLCS with the Pirates, playing the last 5 of his 26 career postseason games.
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Clemente, who dealt with racial and ethnic inequality, especially early in his career, devoted much of his time to charitable endeavors. When an earthquake hit Managua, the capital city of Nicaragua, in late December, 1972, Clemente began to organize relief efforts. He was on a plane flying relief supplies on New Year’s Eve of 1972 when the plane crashed into the ocean with no survivors.
The National Baseball Hall of Fame waived the 5-year waiting period and held a special election to induct Roberto Clemente into the Hall of Fame in March of 1973. He became the first player from the Caribbean and Latin-America to be inducted.
The Roberto Clemente Award is annually given to the MLB player who “best represents the game of Baseball through extraordinary character, community involvement, philanthropy and positive contributions, both on and off the field”.
According to the Trading Card Database (TCDB.com), Roberto Clemente has appeared on 7,624 cards since his first cardboard appearance almost 70 years ago. His in-career cards span from 1955-1973, a massive portion of the classic post-war card era.
In the years since his death, Clemente has continued to appear on cards across many different product, from small box sets of the 1980’s to parallel-laden ultra-modern sets. With Clemente’s popularity with fans and collectors, this is very unsurprising.
One type of card you won’t see for Clemente is any certified autographs, with his tragic death taking place long before that practice became a thing in the hobby. There are of course some Clemente autographs out there from his playing days, and a handful of cut signature offerings have been produced in the ultra-modern era, but these are tough to find and typically sell for thousands. They are amazing collectibles if autographs are your thing, but take care to confirm the authenticity of the autograph before jumping in.
In addition to the many mainstream issues we’ll mention in this article, Clemente appeared on a massive number of oddball, regional, and other less known issues that are well worth a look. These include cards from Jay’s Publishing, Bazooka, O-Pee-Chee, and many more. Clemente was even the subject of the Donruss Puzzle in 1987.
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Roberto Clemente had his rookie card in 1955 Topps, on card #164. The card is an all-time classic vintage card. The slightly larger size and horizontal format lend themselves very well to the portrait of the young Clemente, with the smaller insert of Clemente at bat.
Even the old-school Pirates logo and facsimile signature seem to balance the card. It’s a awesome card and a great-looking card of the Pirates legend.
PSA has graded only one PSA copy. That copy appears to have last sold way back in 2012. There are only 11 copies in PSA 9. Two 9s sold back in June of 2023 for $792,000 and $960,000, respectively.
PSA 8s are a bit more plentiful, but still tough with only 123 in existence. The last few sales have been in the $66,000-69,000 range.
In lower grades, these are far more plentiful and much more affordable. There are 641 copies out there in PSA 2 slabs, and they sell for between $1,250 and $1,425.
In a PSA 5, of which there are 947, sell for around $3,700. In a PSA 7, of which there are 347, sells for between $13,000-14,000. Even in a PSA 1 or PSA slab, these aren’t particularly plentiful and demand around $900 and $800, respectively.
In any grade, the card is incredibly popular and is very much in demand. But use caution, as it is also one of the most counterfeited cards.
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Card | Total PSA Pop | Recent Sale Pop | Recent Sale Price |
---|---|---|---|
1955 Topps Roberto Clemente #164 RC | 7,052 | PSA 8 = 123 | PSA 8 = $66,000-69,000 |
With over 7,600 cards produced of Clemente over the years, any top 10 list will be subjective, incomplete, and highly debatable. We’re going to do it anyway, celebrating 9 more of our favorites. Have a favorite we don’t mention? An oddball that is worth a shout-out? Let us know at CardLines on Twitter.
The 1956 Topps Roberto Clemente #33 card has a lot going for it. It’s Clemente’s 2nd year Topps card. It has a variation, with both white and rarer gray back versions. And the card is simply gorgeous.
All the great things said above about the 1955 Topps rookie are also true here. 1956 Topps is one of the best-looking Topps sets ever in this writer’s opinion. A portrait of a young Clemente sits aside an image of him making a play in the field.
The gray variation is the tougher one to find, with a population of about 42% of the white variation in terms of total PSA pop. In a PSA 6, the gray version (pop 287) sells for around $1,200, while the white (pop 966) goes for around $850.
There is only 1 PSA 10, a gray back. There are 9 PSA 9 White Backs and 17 PSA 9 Gray Backs.
1957 Topps Roberto Clemente #76 is a card brilliant in its simplicity. A simple white border, a nice portrait, and name, team, and position on the bottom in a simple font, colorful font.
PSA has graded over 6,500 copies, but the highest-grade copies remain tough to find. There is a lone PSA 10 copy, and only 45 PSA 9s. The last sale of a 9 was for a bit over $14,000. In a PSA 6, a copy sells for $425-500.
Of the first of two straight years of very yellow Clemente cards, the 1958 Topps Roberto Clemente #52 sports a nice image of Clemente at the bat in front of a yellow background. Again, the highest grades are tough to find. There are only two PSA 10s and 16 PSA 9s.
In a more plentiful PSA 6, they sell for around $400. The rarer yellow letter variation has only been graded a hair over 1,000 times, with no PSA 10s and 7 PSA 9s. The last PSA copy that sold fetched $3,125.
Also sporting a lot of yellow, the 1959 Topps Roberto Clemente #478. The card features the classic 1959 Topps design with a yellow background and a portrait of Clemente in a circle in the center. Again, the PSA pops of the high grades are low – zero PSA 10s and 55 PSA 9s.
The total PSA count is close to 7,900 graded copies. In medium and lower grades, these start to get more plentiful, meaning a PSA 6 can be had for $200-265.
1960 Topps Roberto Clemente #326 saw a return to a horizontal layout, although at a more standard card size than the 1955 and 1956 cards. It’s another classic vintage design. Again, there are no PSA 10s and only 48 PSA 9s. In a PSA 6 slab, one of these will run you $275 to $300.
Our next card has us jumping ahead five years, to Clemente’s age-30 season. The 1965 Topps Roberto Clemente #160 is another vintage classic. The 1965 Topps design is one of this writer’s all-time favorites, and the 1965 Topps Clemente features a portrait that is so simple, yet complex.
Clemente is smiling, kind of. The look is part intensity, part world-wise. It’s a great-looking card. In the high grades, it’s still tough…there are again no PSA 10s and the PSA 9 count is 63. Yet in a PSA 6, these can be had for $175-225. That’s less than many newer hobby boxes.
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1972 Topps Roberto Clemente #309 is the final card produced during Clemente’s lifetime. The 1972 Topps design is one of the most recognizable and “of its era” designs in the long history of baseball cards.
The photo of Clemente, tossing a ball and looking contemplative, hits differently in light of our loss of Clemente later that year. There are 26 PSA 10s and close to 400 PSA 9s. While there are no recent sales of a PSA 10, in a PSA 9 slab recent sales have been in the $1,100 to $1,200 range. In a much more plentiful PSA 6, they sell for a very reasonable $70-80.
Clemente passed away on December 31, 1972. With 1973 being the first year that Topps produced cards in only one series, Topps wasn’t able to pull Clemente’s card or add anything to the card to mark his passage. The 1973 Topps Roberto Clemente #50, which shows Clemente at bat from a slightly behind and sideways angle, provides us with what would be Clemente’s final stat line, including a total of exactly 3,000 career hits.
The 1973 Topps card has only 8 PSA 10s and 228 PSA 9s. In a PSA 9 slab, they sell for $1,500-1,600. A PSA 6 can be had for $55-85. With more mid-grade, collector-level cards, eye appeal is key to pricing a card, as the range within a single grade can be significant.
As mentioned above, with Clemente’s untimely passing way before the era of certified autographs, signed Clemente items are tough to come by. There have been a few cut signatures released over the last few years, including the 1/1 2022 Topps Cut Signatures Roberto Clemente #CS-RC. The PSslabbed card is selling on eBay for $6,000 at the time of this writing.
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Card | Total PSA Pop | Recent Sale Pop | Recent Sale Price |
---|---|---|---|
1956 Topps Roberto Clemente #33 Gray Back | 2,361 | PSA 6 = 287 | PSA 6 = $1,200 |
1956 Topps Roberto Clemente #33 White Back | 5,556 | PSA 6 = 966 | PSA 6 = $850 |
1957 Topps Roberto Clemente #76 | 6,514 | PSA 6 = 1,271 | PSA 6 = $425-500 |
1958 Topps Roberto Clemente #52 | 4,043 | PSA 6 = 595 | PSA 6 = $400 |
1959 Topps Roberto Clemente #478 | 7,890 | PSA 6 = 1,514 | PSA 6 = $200-265 |
1960 Topps Roberto Clemente #326 | 7,540 | PSA 6 = 1,508 | PSA 6 = $275-300 |
1965 Topps Roberto Clemente #160 | 5,451 | PSA 6 = 956 | PSA 6 = $175-225 |
1972 Topps Roberto Clemente #309 | 7,175 | PSA 6 = 1,130 | PSA 6 = $70-80 |
1973 Topps Roberto Clemente #50 | 8,173 | PSA 6 = 1,445 | PSA 6 = $55-85 |
2022 Topps Cut Signatures Roberto Clemente #CS-RC 1/1 | 1 | PSA A = 1 | PSA A = $6,000 |
The story of Roberto Clemente is proof that the history of baseball is full of better stories than any fiction out there. As one of the all-time great players and people in major league history, Clemente is as popular now as he was when he made his debut almost 70 years ago.
Clemente has appeared on thousands of cards in his career. The 10 in this article should give you a taste of some of the best. They range from true museum pieces to the downright affordable. Do you have a favorite Clemente card? Are you a Clemente collector? Or after reading this article, are you going to start picking up some of his cards? Tell us about it at card_lines on Twitter.
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