I've been asked a couple times in the past few months what Shohei Ohtani's "best" rookie card is. I find this a difficult thing to answer as the question of "best" is pretty subjective, as is what actually constitutes a rookie card. I've decided to not really answer the question - instead I'm going to present a variety of Ohtani cards from his rookie year of 2013 and allow readers to make their own judgements. (For the most part I'm only listing the "regular" player cards although he had several appearances in subsets in some of BBM's sets that year.)
Ohtani's first card ever was actually an insert in Sports Card Magazine #97 which was released in late January 2013. It was a promo card for the 2013 BBM Rookie Edition set - I lucked into a silver facsimile autograph parallel of it:
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| SCM #206 |
He had two cards in BBM's Rookie Edition set that had the same number - one showed him pitching and the other showed him batting:
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| 2013 BBM Rookie Edition #42 |
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| 2013 BBM Rookie Edition #42 |
His first BBM "flagship" set cards were in the 2013 1st and 2nd Version sets. He had two cards in the 2nd Version set - his regular card and a "Cross Wind" cross set subset card:
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| 2013 BBM 1st Version #183 |
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| 2013 BBM 2nd Version #554 |
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| 2013 BBM 2nd Version "Cross Wind" #CW058 |
He had two cards in the Fighters BBM team set that year, one showing him pitching (
#F02a) and one showing him batting (#F02b). I only have the batting one:
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| 2013 BBM Fighters #F02b |
He appeared in a handful of other BBM sets that year - Icons - Hope (
#14), Classic (#037), Young Fighters (#YF01), Genesis (
#055), Rookie Edition Premium (
#RP19 &
#RP43) and Fighters 10th Season In Hokkaido (#02). Here's the three I have from that list:
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| 2013 BBM Classic #037 |
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| 2013 BBM Young Fighters #YF01 |
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| 2013 BBM Fighers 10th Season In Hokkaido |
He had a number of parallel cards in the sets - I'm not entirely sure what all is available in the different sets as BBM's parallels are somewhat bewildering. I do have a pretty good sense for what's available in terms of autograph and memorabilia cards for him from BBM's 2013 offerings due to this page from
SCM #117:
Assuming that this display is comprehensive, he had autograph cards in the Icons - Hope, 1st and 2nd Version, Fighters, Genesis, Young Fighters, Rookie Edition Premium and Fighters 10th Season In Hokkaido sets. He has memorabilia cards in the 2nd Version, Genesis and Rookie Edition Premium sets.
He didn't have a "regular" player card in any of the 2013 Calbee sets but he appeared in two subsets - the "Exciting Rookie" subset from Series Two and the "All Stars" subset from Series Three:
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| 2013 Calbee #D-07 |
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| 2013 Calbee #AS-22 |
According to
The Trading Card Database's listings, he also had a card in the second Owners League set from Bandai that year (#072).
52 comments:
Hi,
Your Ohtani's first card ever was actually an insert in Sports Card Magazine #97 which was released in late January 2013. It was a promo card for the 2013 BBM Rookie Edition set - I lucked into a silver facsimile autograph parallel ...
Is that a numbered card? If so, how many are there. Thanks
No, it's not serially numbered
You seem like the expert. What card version of the Sports Card Magazine #97 which was released in late January 2013 is the one numbered to 100 ? Thanks
As far as I can tell, none of the parallels for ANY SCM insert card (either signature or kira) were numbered. I haven't seen any in the handful I've actually gotten with the magazine (20+ issues) and I don't see anything for sale on Yahoo! Japan Auctions that appears to be a serially numbered version either. I'm not saying they don't exist but I haven't seen any. Ryan might know more since he gets to actually look at real cards in a store (frequently while looking for old SCM cards for me :-)).
There were serially numbered signature parallels for his Rookie Edition cards - one was up to 100, one was up to 50, one was up to 30 and I'm not sure about the other.
The one up to 100. Holds what type of dollar value?
There's an auction going on on YJA right now that has one selling for 10,000 yen or roughly $100.
Hi.
You're my go to expert on ohtani.
What in Japanese card world is more of a valuable type of card. A rookie parraell numbered to 100 or a gold signature numbered to 100? Thanks
I would guess the Rookie parallel but I don't know for sure.
Hi again,
The 013 BBM Rookie Edition set - the silver autograph # to 100 is considered a parallel also? Is all his cards from this set (silver,gold) a facsimile autograph? Thanks again
Not sure I understand your question - obviously not all the cards have a facsimile autograph since the ones I show here don't have them. I think the only parallel versions are the facsimile autograph ones.
Is the Silver 2013 rookie edition numbered to 100 and the gold version numbered to 50 both considered facsimile parallel versions also?
All the parallels for the 2013 BBM Rookie Edition cards are facsimile signatures. The silver ones are numbered to 100 and the gold ones are numbered to 50. It looks like each of the first round draft pick cards (which would include Ohtani) have yet another facsimile signature parallel but I'm not quite sure of the details - in the ad for the set in SCM #97 they show both blue and red signature versions but all I see in the text is something that makes me think they are numbered to 30. I don't know if there's both a blue and red version for each of those cards or only a blue OR red version.
There's also a facsimile signature parallel for the "Now & Then" subset cards (each card has two players on it so the parallels actually have two signatures on them). Again there's a red and blue version and one of them is numbered to 50 and the other is numbered to 20 but I don't know for sure which one is which.
Just saw that someone has a blue signature version of the "Then & Now" subset card up on Ebay. It's numbered to 20 so I guess the red ones were numbered to 50.
I'm finally going to chime in here. As NPB Card Guy said, I'm highly doubtful there are any numbered SCM parallels out there. I am pretty sure I've seen a numbered parallel for some other promo cards, but not SCM.
Based on the May 2016 SCM (the last one I have that has BBM prices for 2013), the rookie parallel for a first version card (base 800 yen) is 10-20x, thus valuing it at 8000-16,000 yen. Silver is 2-4x (1600-3200 yen), Gold is 8-12x (6400-9600 yen), Holo is 10-20x (8000-16,000 yen), Red is 30-50x, and the 1/1 is also 30-50x. Though I would gather that Ohtani's RC carries a bit of a premium off those last multipliers. (Therefore, the rookie parallel is more valuable than the gold signature parallel in theory.)
As for the 2013 Rookie Edition, his base are worth 800 yen each again (there are two - one as a batter and one as a pitcher). There are silver /100, gold /50, red /30, and sky blue parallels. Then and Now #90 is a 100 yen card, with a red /50 and sky blue /20 parallel. He has no actual autographs in that set.
And as NPB Card Guy showed, Ohtani has an autograph in the Icons - Hope set. That is (as far as I know) his first actual autographed card chronologically, limited to 10 copies, and is valued at 180,000 yen. His regular Fighters team set autograph is also limited to 10 copies but "books" at only 150,000 yen.
35mm premium. Where is this card and current value. I have 2 located st the moment.
I don't know what you mean by "35mm premium".
Sorry it is the 2013 BBM 35mm film card. It has a 35mm color slide built into it like a patch card would. Numbered to 25. I believe the card number is F19.
That card was an insert from the 2013 Rookie Edition Premium set. According to the last issue of SCM with a price guide for BBM (#116 issued in the spring of 2016) that card was listed at 12000 yen or around $120. I don't know what it's going for now - I checked Yahoo! Japan Auctions and didn't see one.
I had erroneously listed this card at 120,000 yen in this post but I've corrected it now.
so $7500 usd is probably a little too much then
Given that the last price guide for BBM cards is now five years old, the $120 price is probably low but $7500 seems a tad high to me, especially since you could get an autographed card on Ebay for less than $1000.
Thank you so much for this post and answering questions. I have seen on Shohei Ohtani Rookie check lists the card: 2014 BBM 1st Version Art Of Auto Shohei Ohtani ROOKIE RC #WB1. Is this an actual rookie card?
I don't know of a 2014 Art Of Auto Ohtani card but he has a 2013 one which would be considered a rookie card. If you look at the scan of the SCM page with his autograph and memorabilia cards in the middle of this post, you can see the 2013 card - it's the middle card in the second row with an English text label saying "Art Of Auto".
Thanks so much for your answer! Yes, I see the 2013 art of the auto that is included in the scan of the SCM page that has a black border (I can't find this card anywhere to purchase). Gold card auctions has an article on Ohtani rookie cards (actually has a link to your blog), but in it, they say the 2014 art of the auto is his rookie (has a white border). Are they wrong? Thanks again
https://goldcardauctions.com/shohei-ohtani-rookie-cards/
https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/fAsAAOSw0GZhE8vV/s-l500.jpg
That's funny that they link to my post about the 2014 1st Version set when I don't mention that autograph card in it other than in passing.
I don't understand why they would refer to the 2014 autograph card as a rookie card. He had something like ten different autographed cards from BBM in his rookie year of 2013. So yeah, I'd say they're wrong.
Weird that they include a 2013 BBM Fighters in their list. Obviously they knew his rookie year was 2013. Their list of his top five Japanese rookie cards is odd also - two of them are from 2014 and aren't rookies, two of them are from the Fighters team set and the other is then "Then & Now" Rookie Edition card with Mitsuo Yoshikawa. Probably not what I would have picked.
I agree. That article left me so confused, but the good thing is that it led me to your blog to get accurate information. I have now gained a new appreciation for Japanese baseball cards with your blog!
I have a few more questions if you have time. What do you think of the 2013 BBM Historic Brilliant Teens Shohei Ohtani cards? Are these considered rookie cards? (they don't have the rookie logos on them)
I left a couple comments on the article, pointing out some inaccuracies (like Ohtani's birth year) and stressing that the 2014 autograph card should not be considered a rookie. I'll be curious to see if he updates the article - it is three months old already so he might not bother.
There's a bit of hairsplitting with that "Brilliant Teenagers" card. It has a cover date of 2014 but was published in late November of 2013. The copyright line on the back of the card says 2013. I don't consider it a rookie card myself but I could see someone making the argument that it was.
I'm glad my blog has helped you out.
Yes,this blog has helped out a lot. Thank you!
I have a few remaining questions if you would be so kind to continue to answer.
What do you think of the 2013 BBM Icons Hope Class Of '94 Gold Foil Shohei Ohtani Fujinami rookie card? I read this is his only die cut rookie card. Do you asign any importance to this card.
Also, the 2013 BBM Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters Stadium Event Special Edition Shohei Ohtani #PR12. Is this card of any significance? (as it was not included in your list).
Finally, what is the importance of having the SCM logo on the 2013 BBM 1st Version #183 as you showed in your SCM Shohei Ohtani blog posting? This is a promo card, and it is not an original? Does this have more or less importance?
Thanks again for sharing your wealth of knowledge!
>What do you think of the 2013 BBM Icons Hope Class Of '94 Gold Foil Shohei Ohtani Fujinami rookie card?
It's a serially numbered die-cut card that is neither a memorabilia card nor an autographed card. So while it's a cool card, I don't know how good of an "investment item" it would be.
>Also, the 2013 BBM Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters Stadium Event Special Edition Shohei Ohtani #PR12
Not completely sure what this card is. Is this the one that combines the batting and pitching photos from his 2013 BBM Fighters team set cards onto one card. If so, I have it listed on this post. I think that's a really cool card myself. It's a promo from BBM that was given away at the Fighter's stadium.
>Finally, what is the importance of having the SCM logo on the 2013 BBM 1st Version #183 as you showed in your SCM Shohei Ohtani blog posting?
Baseball Magazine Sha, the magazine publisher that also publishes BBM baseball cards, used to publish a bimonthly magazine called "Sports Card Magazine" from 1996 until 2017. Each issue had a number of baseball cards included with it. Sometimes these would be promo cards for BBM sets but there would also be original cards. This particular card was a promo version of Ohtani's 1st Version card that was included with issue #98 which was published in March of 2013. There was a promo version of one of his Rookie Edition cards included in issue #97 two months earlier. These cards are rarer than the "regular" versions but whether they're desirable or not depends on how you feel about promo cards.
Yes, exactly, the PR12 is the one that combines the batting and pitching photos from his 2013 BBM Fighters team set cards onto one card. Thank you.
I think this is my last question, what do you think of promo cards compared to the regular versions?
Generally I'm not a big fan of promo cards that are more or less identical to their "regular" card. I just don't see the point. I'm also not a huge fan of most parallel cards either for the same reason. But other people seem to like them and they are certainly less common than the "regular" cards so they can be valuable.
Thank you for sharing your knowledge. I greatly appreciate it. And what a great blog!
Sorry, if I could ask another question after you mentioned that promo cards are less common than regular cards. Do you know what the print runs of Japanese cards are like compared to American cards? For example, BBM vs Topps? Thanks again
I don't know for sure but I think BBM's print run is probably less than Topps since their market size is smaller.
Thank you!
Thank you!
Another quick question: What do you think of the 2013 BBM Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters Shohei Ohtani #F90-F98 puzzle card collection? Is this a desirable set?
Incredible insight, thank you. Also great questions from the gallery. I haven’t been able to find #42 pitching nor batting in gold signature /50. Do you have a pulse on this card you could direct me to? Also, I have a batting silver /100 I believe it will PSA 10… do you have any range of value for that card graded and raw? I’ve seen some listed at 7500, but not sold. And others at 3-5k but not sold. I have seen the SCM auto not numbered psa 10 go for 1000+. Thx for any insight you may be able to offer.
I have a gold 42. I was the one that actually started the post in November of 2016 when i started to purchase the cards through yahoo Japan.
Well that’s cool. I’m on Insta The_Minted_Goat regardless if you are selling. It’s a good contact
Are you willing to sell?
its listed on ebay
Reading my comments on the 35mm 2013 card from 2 years ago. I should have spent the $7500. It recently sold for $22k. Oops.
I have a card that is double sided with one image showing him w/ the bat on one side, on the back it shows him in the pitching stance. They are both exact images, color, graphics as the first two images you show above (2013 BBM Rookie Edition #42). Almost all these cards I see either have one or the other image on the front, but not both on the same card. Is mine a fake? Is it a promo? Would like to know more. Thanks.
I believe that's an "art card" someone put together and not an official BBM release. The BBM promos will always indicate they're a promo with something like "Card Shop Limited Edition", "Stadium Event Special Edition" or "Weekly Baseball Promotion"
Can I buy some of these cards ?
My cards are not for sale but you should be able to find them elsewhere
Where can I buy early Ohtani’s cards while playing league in Japan
I have a page above talking about where to find Japanese cards. I'd recommend looking at Mercari and Yahoo! Japan Auctions. Do not expect to find cheap Ohtani cards though.
Fun fact. i was the first person ever to sell an Ohtani card on ebay
Really? When and what card?
That’s a really good question. I came on here first 2016 and found yahoo Japan auction because of an article. I’ve read on yahoo about the next Japanese Babe Ruth. So I bought a bunch got them graded right away and when I went to Yahoo to list them, there was nothing,so I made the market. And then it was either dateline or 20/20 had a special on him and the ringing noise started to come through my phone from selling .
Went to ebay**
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