Paul Skenes MLB Debut Patch Auto Sells for $1.11 Million

One of the most anticipated card auctions in recent memory ended Friday morning on Fanatics Collects platform, netting a seven-figure sale for a young collector who pulled the card on Christmas.

Dreaming of a Debut

When Topps introduced the rookie debut patch auto in 2023 Chrome Update, it was an incredible innovation that helped make a lesser desired product more sought after. Placing a patch on a player during their first ever Major League game that would then live in a card was something collectors dreamed of. A true one-of-one.

2024 Chrome Update was hyped by a rookie class that included Paul Skenes, Elly De La Cruz, Wyatt Langford, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the three Jacksons and many more. Only a few of the big chases were pulled after the first month it’s release in October, with a few more coming a month later, but the Skenes one remained causing box prices to soar.

Christmas Miracle

Fast forward to Christmas Day of 2024 when an 11-year-old boy in Los Angeles opened a hobby box to find a redemption for a card that would change his and his family’s lives forever. The family wisely kept it quiet and with the help of local hobbyists were able to get it redeemed and graded with PSA before anyone knew it had been pulled.

After that the family decided to send it to Fanatics Collect for auction. Fanatics, which also owns Topps, had rebranded PWCC after purchasing that company and was looking for it’s first big ticket item. The promotion was met with some resistance from other more established auction houses claiming Fanatics, and therefore Topps, knew it had been redeemed so they had easy access to the owner.

Groundbreaking Sale

I wrote awhile back about how Paul Skenes changed the way the hobby is looking at pitchers and this card selling for what it did only further proves that theory. The young collector will receive roughly $925,000 of the $1.11 million while Fanatics Collect has pledged to donate their share of the sale to the LAPD and Red Cross to aid the fire recovery that ravaged that part of the country.

The card was purchased by DICK’S Sporting Goods and will display the card at their House of Sport store in Pittsburgh, PA which is also the hometown of the company. A huge move to keep such a momentous collectible in the city it belongs in.

It’s an incredible number for not only for a card, but for one belonging to a pitcher. According to CardLadder.com, since the beginning of 2024 only 10 cards have sold for over $1 million. Only two of those have gone for more that the Skenes Debut Patch.

It’s now by far and away the highest selling Debut Patch Auto in the two years of the cards inception. Jackson Holliday’s, which was sold ungraded, drew a $198,000 price tag that is well below what the Pirates Opening Day starter drew. A great sale for not only that young man, but for the entire hobby overall.