The Top 10 Sandy Koufax Baseball Cards

Sandy Koufax is one of the most iconic pitchers of all time. Despite not having thrown a pitch in a big league game in close to 60 years, he still captures the imagination of fans and collectors alike.

Koufax cards remain among the most sought-after of his era. But what are the Sandy Koufax cards worth chasing? Let’s explore the top 10 Sandy Koufax baseball cards!

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Who is Sandy Koufax?

Sandy Koufax is one of the greatest pitchers of all time. He dominated the game in a way seldom if ever, seen before. Yet his dominance was short-lived, and sadly he was cut down in his prime by arm injuries.

Koufax played parts of 12 major league seasons. He finished his career with a 165-87 with a 2.76 ERA, good for an ERA+ of 131. That only tells part of the story, however. He won an MVP award, three Cy Young Awards, and three pitching triple crowns.

He was an All-Star 7 times, and was a 5-time ERA leader. He led the Dodgers to four World Championships, twice winning the WS MVP. He was worth 48.9 WAR in his career.

Koufax debuted in the big leagues at only 19 years old, and through his age 26 season, he was a solid 68-60 with a 3.71 ERA (110 ERA+). In the four years after that, he went a staggering 97-27 with a 1.86 ERA (172 ERA+).

Only 30 years old, Koufax retired after the 1966 season due to elbow pain that had gotten so bad the prior few seasons that he was fearful that he’d be permanently handicapped if he kept pitching.

What could have been has long intrigued fans and collectors alike. As did the dominance. Imagine a healthy Koufax pitching in the “Year of the Pitcher” in 1968. Because of all this, Koufax remains one of the most popular and discussed pitchers to this day. Koufax threw four no-hitters in his career – how many would he have finished with if he’d been able to pitch into his mid-to-late 30s?

Sandy Koufax is the 5^th oldest living member of Baseball’s Hall of Fame (behind Willie Mays, Whitey Herzog, Luis Aparicio, and Bud Selig). Koufax turned 88 on December 30, 2023.

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A guide to Sandy Koufax baseball cards

Sandy Koufax has appeared on 4,716 cards according to the Trading Card Database (TCDB.com). Of those, only 142 were released during his playing days a hair over 3% of the total. Clearly, even in retirement, Koufax has remained popular with collectors. He’s already appeared on 78 cards in 2023, for example.

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The top 10 Sandy Koufax Baseball Cards

With over 4,700 Sandy Koufax cards out there, a top 10 list will be subjective and not comprehensive. We’ll focus on some of our favorites, with a focus on the key vintage cards. We’ll include a few oddballs, regional, and other cards that are not only valuable cards, but add a bit of fun.

10. Koufax Comes Alive: 1963 Topps Sandy Koufax #210

1963 marks the year in which Koufax brought things to a new, Koufaxian level. The 1963 Topps Koufax is a particularly striking vintage card, the kind that if there was an iconic card museum, people would linger around a bit longer than most.

With a fairly low PSA population compared to the other Topps cards on this list, the 1963 Topps card sells well in a PSA 8 slab for around $2,000. There are no PSA 10’s out there, and only 20 PSA 9’s.

9. Peak Koufax: 1965 Topps Sandy Koufax #300

1965 Topps is another iconic vintage Topps design. I once heard it described as “what people who don’t know about baseball cards when you mention baseball cards”. That feels fitting. It was also the height of Koufax’s era of dominance on the mound.

A testament to the popularity of both 1965 Topps and Koufax, these sell for $1,000 to $1,100 in a PSA 8 slab. There are no PSA 10’s out there.

8.  Another Horizontal Gem: 1960 Topps Sandy Koufax #343

The 1960 Topps is another iconic horizontal vintage Topps design. The card moves us into the 1960’s, and typically into a slightly lower price point than the Koufax cards of the mid to late 1950’s.

Another Koufax with only one PSA 10 in existence, 9’s are still hard to come by with only 42 in PSA 9 slabs. PSA 8’s are a bit easier to find, and sell for between $800 and $1,100.

7. It’s got the Meat: 1959 Morrell Meats Sandy Koufax

If you’re like us, you think baseball cards should be included in purchases of everyday items. Breakfast cereal? Sliced bread? Throw a card in there. Packaged meats? Card it! Thankfully, the John Morrell meats company agreed in the late 1950s and early 1960s.

These are tough to find, especially the 1959 versions. PSA has only graded 24 copies of the 1959 Morrell Meats Sandy Koufax. There is one PSA 7.5, and no other copies graded above a PSA 5. Even raw, the last sale of one of these was for $760.

6.  The Yellow One: 1958 Topps Sandy Koufax

The 1958 Topps Koufax has a bright, solid yellow background, one that Topps used again in 1959. The headshot of Koufax shows him looking upwards, perhaps to match his upcoming career trajectory.

The PSA population is not unreasonable for a card that’s been desirable for decades. Again, the population counts skew towards “collector grade”. There are only 26 PSA 9s and only 1 PSA 10. In a PSA 8 slab (pop 313) can be had for $1,100-$1,500.

5.  Classic 3^rd Year Headshot: 1957 Topps Sandy Koufax #302

The 1957 Topps Sandy Koufax is the first Koufax Topps card to be the “standard” size of a modern card. It has a simple but classic design, with a white border and text at the bottom of the card letting the card photo take center stage.

The total PSA population of the 1957 Topps is lower than the 1955 and 1956 Topps versions. Because of this, it sells for more than the 1956 Topps in a similar grade. In a PSA 8 slab, these sell for $3,300-3,700. Again, high-grade versions are scarce, with only 11 PSA 9s and no PSA 10s.

4.  The Rookie Year Stamp: 1955 Golden Stamps Brooklyn Dodgers Sandy Koufax

Released during his rookie season, these stamps were part of a larger sheet and were hand-cut apart. As you’d expect, this isn’t nearly as easy to find, nor as well known, as Koufax’s mainstream rookie card. It’s a great slightly oddball rookie-year card, though, worthy of your attention.

PSA has graded only 188 total copies of the stamp. Of those, 18 copies, only have been graded PSA 9, with the most recent comp price around $525. A mere 3 copies exist in PSA 10 slabs, with no recent comp sales. A PSA recently sold for around $500. And a PSA 7 recently sold for $400….to me. It’s a cool card!

2/3. The horizontal 2^nd year w/ variation: 1956 Topps Sandy Koufax #79

Sandy Koufax’s second-year Topps card has a lot going for it. 1956 Topps was the last year Topps produced a slightly larger than modern base card. The horizontal design is one of the best in Topps history in this writer’s opinion.

And the first 180 cards, including the Koufax, come with two variations…gray back and white back.

The more common white back variation has been graded about two and a half times as many times as the somewhat rarer gray back. The rarer gray back tends to sell for a couple hundred more, although both sell for around $3,000 (give or take a hundred or two) in a PSA 8 slab. Again, high-grade versions are rare…there is only one PSA 10 of each variation.

1. The Rookie Card: 1955 Topps Sandy Koufax #123

Bowman, in its final year in 1955, struck out on Koufax, meaning we don’t get a “Sandy on a woodgrain TV” card. The 1955 Topps card is a beauty, though. The horizontal format and slightly larger form factor pop. The image of a young Sandy, with his name in quotes, is iconic.

The 1955 Topps Koufax RC has been graded over 10,500 times. High-grade copies are hard to come by, however, with only 243 PSA 8s, 25 PSA 9s, and a scant 3 PSA 10s. A PSA 8 example will set you back $25,000-30,000. In a PSA 4 slab, expect to pay $1,100 to $1,200.

The Top 10 Sandy Koufax Baseball Cards

Sandy Koufax oddball cards

We mentioned several oddball sets in our top 10, but we wanted to give a shout-out to the many regional, oddball, and other assorted giveaway cards and postcards that Koufax appeared on during the 1950s and 1960s.

Some of these are downright tough to find and quite expensive, others are a bit easier. But be on the lookout for offerings from Bell Brand, Jay Publishing, Bazooka, Jello, Post cereal, and more in addition to more well-known offerings like Fleer.

Topps also got experimental in the mid-1960s (I hear lots did) and offered Giants, Coins, Peel-Offs, Tattoos, Stand-Ups, Transfers, and Embossed cards.

Sandy Koufax Topps League Leader cards

Here are Cardlines, we love vintage Topps League Leader cards, and so should you. Few pitchers dominated like Sandy Koufax, so he makes plenty of appearances on league leader cards.

This includes three appearances on league leader cards in 1967 Topps, a set in which he does not appear on a regular base card due to his surprise retirement after the 1966 season. During that 1966 season, he led the league in wins, so he appears card #236 along with three other Hall of Fame hurlers.

He also led the league in ERA (card #234) and Strikeouts (card #238). In 1966, he also appeared on three leader cards, including for Wins (#223), ERA (#221), and Strikeouts (#225).

In 1965 Topps, he shared the Strikeout Leaders card with teammate Don Drysdale (#8). 1964 again saw him make three appearances on leader cards. In 1962 Topps, Koufax appears on card #60, Strikeout Leaders. 1961 Topps again sees him join Drysdale and two other pitchers on the card #49 Strikeout Leaders.

League Leader cards featuring Koufax are a great way to add some 1960s Koufax cards to your collection on a budget. Or just an awesome way to add cards of Koufax and other great pitchers of the era together on single cards.

Why You Should Love Vintage Topps Baseball “League Leader” Cards

Final Thoughts on the Top 10 Sandy Koufax Baseball Cards

With over 140 cards produced during his playing career, and thousands more produced after he hung up his cleats, there’s a Koufax card for every budget and collecting style. Whether you are chasing high-end graded rookie or early-career cards, collector-graded vintage, or prefer modern parallels, there’s something for everyone.

What’s your favorite Koufax card?  Tell us about it at card_lines on Twitter.

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