Hottest Sports Cards Right Now in 2024 [April Trend Update]

Ryan Barone (@ballcardgenius, Card Expert) is a lifelong member of the hobby. He has been quoted in PSA Magazine, and his content has regularly been mentioned in “Quick Rips” (the Topps RIPPED Newsletter) and across other hobby publications. hello@ballcardgenius.com; Last Time Ago LLC dba Ballcard Genius.

---

Affiliate Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. As I am a part of the eBay Partner Network and other programs, if you follow these links and make a purchase, I’ll receive commission. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. 

The hottest sports cards right now include Victor Wembanyama 2023 Prizm #136, Victor Wembanyama 2023 Prizm Monopoly #81, Victor Wembanyama 2023 Donruss #220, and Elly De La Cruz 2024 Topps #141. This is based off the total number of sales over the last 7 days as reported by Market Movers from cards in their catalog.

Here are the top 25 sports cards and their sales volumes over the last 7 days (as of 4/13/24):

1. Victor Wembanyama 2023 Prizm #136 Base Raw, 504 Sales
2. Victor Wembanyama 2023 Prizm Monopoly #81 Base Raw, 305 Sales
3. Victor Wembanyama 2023 Donruss #220 Base Raw, 295 Sales
4. Elly De La Cruz 2024 Topps #141 Base Raw, 280 Sales
5. Victor Wembanyama 2023 Court Kings #73 Rookies I Raw, 252 Sales
6. CJ Stroud 2023 Prizm #339 Base Raw, 243 Sales
7. Victor Wembanyama 2023 Hoops #277 Base Raw, 153 Sales
8. Victor Wembanyama 2023 Prizm #1 Deep Space Raw, 146 Sales
9. CJ Stroud 2023 Illusions #43 Base Raw, 145 Sales
10. Victor Wembanyama 2023 Hoops #298 Tribute Raw, 142 Sales
11. Victor Wembanyama 2023 Prizm Draft Picks #2 Base Raw, 141 Sales
12. CJ Stroud 2023 Donruss #339 Base Raw, 133 Sales
13. Victor Wembanyama 2023 Prizm #12 Emergent Raw, 131 Sales
14. Victor Wembanyama 2023 Prizm #3 Instant Impact Raw, 129 Sales
15. Victor Wembanyama 2023 Prizm #2 Global Reach Raw, 127 Sales
16. Caitlin Clark 2023 Bowman Chrome University #34 Base Raw, 119 Sales
17. Anthony Richardson 2023 Prizm #343 Base Raw, 117 Sales
18. Connor Bedard 2023 Upper Deck #451 Young Guns Base Raw, 112 Sales
19. Jackson Holliday 2022 Bowman Draft #BD-168 Base (1st) Raw, 109 Sales
20. Jackson Holliday 2022 Bowman Draft #BD-168 Base (1st) PSA 10, 105 Sales
21. Elly De La Cruz 2024 Topps #SMLB-23 Stars of MLB Raw, 104 Sales
22. CJ Stroud 2023 Absolute #102 Base Raw, 102 Sales
23. Jackson Holliday 2022 Bowman Draft #BDC-168 Chrome (1st) Raw, 97 Sales
24. Wyatt Langford 2023 Bowman Draft #BD-106 Base (1st) Raw, 94 Sales
25. Victor Wembanyama 2023 Prizm #136 Base PSA 10, 93 Sales

If you’re new to this hot list, I regularly receive emails and questions about the best cards to buy, hot players, and more. So, I’ve put together regularly-updated lists on the hottest sports cards in general, along with the specific lists below.

Hottest Football Cards
Hottest Basketball Cards
Hottest Baseball Cards
Hottest Hockey Cards (Coming Soon!)

Now, for the quickest and up to date look at what specific cards are selling for, utilize the custom quick search tool below to search for your cards and to view the latest eBay sales:

eBay Search Tool

Enter Player, Card #, and Year: Search Sold Items on eBay

Please note, the information that follows is simply commentary on what cards appear to be hot at the moment. In no way does the mention of a card below serve as a recommendation to buy, nor am I saying these cards will increase in value.

It’s no surprise to see the most exciting young names in each respective sport sit atop the list. Specifically, the 2024 baseball card season just launched, and Elly De La Cruz Topps rookie cards have been the talk of the town. Meanwhile, Wembanyama is one of the most highly-touted NBA rookies in quite some time and is performing at a very high level, while CJ Stroud is leading the 2023 rookie charge on the football front. In fact, the top 15 cards on the list are of these three players!

I will say, it’s weird to see some much CJ Stroud at the top given Brock Purdy just played in the Super Bowl, but maybe it’s a function of Stroud’s prices falling and Purdy’s rising or remaining steady?

One new edition I love seeing—Caitlin Clark, who just recently set the NCAA basketball world on fire with her run with Iowa to the Final Four. Another list newcome is Jackson Holliday, baseball’s #1 prospect who just got called up to the bigs with the Baltimore Orioles. I wouldn’t be surprised one bit if, when Holliday launches his first homerun, shoots up this list.

Read More: Top Selling Baseball Cards of 2023

Now, due to the nature of the sports card world, this is not an inclusive list and can change tomorrow! One of my favorite moments of 2023 was when Davis Schneider 2021 Bowman autos, Shohei Ohtani RCs in general, Jackson Chourio 2022 Bowman Chrome PSA 10s, and others topped some of the popular card charts. Such a wild mix.

Not to mention that people have different definitions of “hottest,” whether that means the total number of cards sold, average selling price, and more.

With the mention of those three cards, it’s a good place to jump into what an cause a card to shoot up the ranks.

I mean, I’ve said it a hundred of times—the card market is fickle, often doesn’t make sense, and could be overhyped on a guy who doesn’t deserve it while completely cold on another who is setting the world on fire.

A lot of it has to do with time of year; some of it has to do with visibility. Actually, there is a lot that goes into it, but for every player, it just depends. There are countless baseball examples, but I just remember sitting there waiting for Yordan Alvarez rookie cards to take off, only to see little movement.

My point is, things can change fast (or never change), can change at the beginning of the season (or at the end), for guys performing at a high level (or not), etc. There might not ever be a rhyme or reason, so try not to go too far down the rabbit hole of trying to find one.

Also, it’s for that reason that this list will be forever changing and will never be right on the money. While Ohtani and others are atop of the list now, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a shake up at any point soon.

In terms of methodology, I’m simply looking at random data from Market Movers or Card Ladder, YouTube, and other sources. These are my interpretations, and I’m drawing my own conclusions. It’s haphazard and dependent on wherever my eyeballs take me.

“Hot” also means different things—is it an increase in value or is it number of cards sold? Also note that I’m looking at all cards types, both raw and graded. So, if I mention a player’s raw card being hot, you might want to consider their graded copy to be hot as well.

All said, let’s have some fun looking at and talking about baseball cards.

Davis Schneider 2021 Bowman (Raw)

Davis Schneider’s rise from an 849th draft pick to a key player for the Blue Jays has not only invigorated the Jays’ lineup but also significantly impacted the value of his baseball cards.

Schneider’s story serves as another reminder of the unpredictability of sports and the potential for unknown players to rise to prominence. It’s also a cautionary tale for those buying at today’s prices, as we have seen time and time again that these phenomenons come back down to earth at some point.

Here are dates and sales prices according to Market Movers, along with some commentary:

August 5th, 2023: The card was listed for $4.84. This low price might have been due to Schneider’s relative obscurity at the time.

August 6th, 2023: A day after his legendary debut, the card’s value jumped to $65.00. Schneider’s performance against the Boston Red Sox, especially his unexpected home run, likely played a role in this price surge.

August 7th, 2023: The card reached its peak price of $210. This spike can be attributed to Schneider’s continued excellence on the field and the buzz surrounding his unexpected rise.

Earlier Listings: Throughout late July and early August, the card was consistently listed between $10 to $71.10. These prices reflect a steady demand for the card, with occasional spikes in interest.

Currently, the lowest BIN price on eBay is $175.

Shohei Ohtani 2018 Bowman #49 (Raw)

While the growth of this card is definitely more subdued than the example above, I’m including here to show just how hot Shohei Ohtani rookie cards are right now.

Meaning, is this specific card the hottest? Not at all. But the fact that it is a Bowman paper RC selling around $50 tells you something. I mean, this is not a rare card, and it stands out on the “hot” charts because there are so many copies being sold (Market Movers says over 600 in the last 30 days).

Sure, Ohtani doesn’t have a “1st Bowman” card which probably gives this one a bump, but still. In early August this one was selling around $30 on average—now the cheapest BIN eBay option is $39.99, with many auctions topping that figure and reaching the aformentioned $50.

Jackson Chourio 2022 Bowman Chrome PSA 10

In an attempt to add variety to this list, I started with a player who came out of nowhere to have an unprecedented debut, followed with perhaps the greatest player in the history of Major League Baseball, and now talking about a prospect who has yet to suit up for a major league team.

Thus, this isn’t even a rookie card, but since we all combine 1st Bowmans into most rookie cards list and conversations anyway, why not.

In early July, this card was selling for around $55 on average, and today it is reaching up to $75-$80. I’ll also remind you that this card has a massive PSA pop already (2,600) so it’s not like it’s rare.

Comparing this to a new young superstar who has performed in the big leagues, the same card for Elly De La Cruz is available for around $150 BIN, and selling for around that same price.

Want more? Subscribe to stay up to date as the market evolves!