What more can be said about 1952 Topps baseball cards that hasn’t been written a thousand times over the years?
I mean, these are the babies that changed the card market forever — they were big, bold, colorful, and based on real photos (though finished with painting-tinting).
The card selection was huge, featuring 407 players that included pretty much every big name of the day, plus the more “common” guys who filled out Major League rosters.
It was a combination that Bowman found hard to combat, and the appearance of the 1952 Topps issue on the hobby scene spelled the beginning of the end for their more established rival.
Today, there is a strong market for every 1952 Topps card, and the presence of legendary rookie cards and tough, tough high numbers has driven prices for pasteboards across every series.
With that in mind, here are the 12 most valuable 1952 Topps baseball cards, as listed for PSA 7 copies in the PSA Sports Market Report Price Guide.
A warning, though — just looking at these prices is likely to make your wallet hurt.
1952 Topps Mickey Mantle (#311)
This is not a Mickey Mantle rookie card, and it’s certainly not *the* Mickey Mantle rookie card.
That honor belongs to the 1951 Bowman issue of The Mick.
But … yeah, that’s all technicality.
The 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle “rookie card” is the big kahuna among post-war cards, neck-and-neck with the T206 Honus Wagner as the most important baseball card of all time.
You’ve heard it all before, but just know that the modern hobby wouldn’t exist — not like it does today — without this legendary hunk of cardboard.
If you can find it in PSA 7, you’ll have to part with a six-figure sum to make it your own.
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1952 Topps Eddie Mathews (#407)
In the early-to-mid 1950s, if someone had told you a member of the Boston or Milwaukee Braves would someday surpass Babe Ruth as the all-time home run king, Eddie Mathews would have been your first thought.
Even though Mathews fell behind teammate Hank Aaron in that quest, the slugger remains one of the game’s greatest third baseman, and a Hall of Famer with more than 500 home runs to his name.
Add to that the fact that Mathews’ rookie card is the last card in the fabled 1952 Topps set — and the condition scarcity that comes with that honor — and you’re looking at a close to $20,000 buy in PSA 7.
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1952 Topps Willie Mays (#261)
Like Mantle, Mays’ true rookie card came at collectors from the confines of the 1951 Bowman set.
Also like Mantle, that doesn’t matter in the real-world glare of high-roller baseball cards.
In that world, the 1952 Topps is Mays’ RC, and it’s about a $10,000 buy in PSA 7.
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1952 Topps Andy Pafko (#1)
Andy Pafko was a solid power source from third base and the outfield for the Chicago Cubs through most of the 1940s.
All that changed when the Cubbies traded him to the Brooklyn Dodgers in June of 1951 — along with Johnny Schmitz, Wayne Terwilliger, and Rube Walker— in exchange for Bruce Edwards, Joe Hatten, Gene Hermanski, and Eddie Miksis.
Well, not all of it changed, because Pafko smacked 18 dingers for the Dodgers in a little more than half a season that summer.
That earned him the #1 card in Topps’ breakout set, and all the condition issues that come with it.
As such, Pafko has been a tough buy in top grades forever, and today he pushes $10,000 in graded NM condition.
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1952 Topps Jackie Robinson (#312)
Was there any more popular player in the game than Jackie Robinson as 1952 dawned?
After all, the man who broke baseball’s color barrier had won the 1947 Rookie of the Year Award, the 1949 National League Most Valuable Player award, and the hearts of millions of fans.
He was also a perennial top-10 MVP candidate and an ambassador for the game everywhere he went.
Little wonder, then, that Robinson’s first-ever Topps card, and a high-number to boot, brings around $7500 in PSA 7.
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