MLB Draft: Your team’s newest players probably already have baseball cards
By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor
When the Houston Astros selected 17-year-old left-hander Brady Aiken with the first pick in this year’s MLB Draft on Thursday night, he immediately had a new fan base that probably can’t wait to seek out his cardboard.
The irony? They already can.
Thanks to the proliferation of pre-professional prospecting products and other All-Star inclusions, many players in this year’s draft — 28 of the first 41 players selected — already appear on cardboard and have certified autographs.
Aiken? Thanks to his presence on USA Baseball squads as well as appearances in the Perfect Game All-American Classic and other prep events, he already appears on 72 cards in the Beckett.com database valued (excluding rarities) at nearly $200 total.
No. 2 pick Tyler Kolek of the Miami Marlins? Yep, he’s got cards, too. He’s already on 63 cards — 19 of those autographed. No. 3 pick Carlos Rodon of the Chicago White Sox? He’s an old-timer on cardboard with appearances as far back as 2012 when his USA Baseball time meant you could find him in packs of Donruss Elite Extra Edition, Prime Cuts and plenty more from Panini America. In all, he’s got 60 cards and 27 of those are signed. Because he’s been bandied about as a potential No. 1 guy for a while now, his cards check in at $1,146 or more (the rarer stuff is likely getting pricey now that he has a team).
The trend is nothing new as teens have appeared on USA Baseball sets for much of the last decade and then potentially again as college stars if they take that route. Most card companies — Topps, Upper Deck, Panini America, Leaf Trading Cards — have had the USA deal or secured All-Star event rights in that timeframe.
Here’s a rundown of the cardboard for the first round and the competitive balance picks …
| 2014 MLB Draft — Draft Spot — Player (Team) | Card Total | Total Value (excludes rarities) |
| No. 1 — Brady Aiken (Houston Astros) | 72 | $197 |
| No. 2 — Tyler Kolek (Miami Marlins) | 63 | $N/A |
| No. 3 — Carlos Rodon (Chicago White Sox) | 60 | $1,146 |
| No. 4 — Kyle Schwarber (Chicago Cubs) | 21 | $253 |
| No. 5 — Nick Gordon (Minnesota Twins) | 1 | $N/A |
| No. 6 — Alex Jackson (Seattle Mariners) | 63 | $N/A |
| No. 7 — Aaron Nola (Philadelphia Phillies) | 0 | — |
| No. 8 — Kyle Freeland (Colorado Rockies) | 0 | — |
| No. 9 — Jeff Hoffman (Toronto Blue Jays) | 0 | — |
| No. 10 — Michael Conforto (New York Mets) | 61 | $356 |
| No. 11 — Max Pentecost (Toronto Blue Jays) | 0 | — |
| No. 12 — Kodi Medeiros (Milwaukee Brewers) | 53 | $N/A |
| No. 13 — Trea Turner (San Diego Padres) | 58 | $736 |
| No. 14 — Tyler Beede (San Francisco Giants) | 20 | $130 |
| No. 15 — Sean Newcomb (Los Angeles Angels) | 0 | — |
| No. 16 — Touki Toussaint (Arizona Diamondbacks) | 63 | $N/A |
| No. 17 — Brandon Finnegan (Kansas City Royals) | 20 | $92 |
| No. 18 — Erick Fedde (Washington Nationals) | 18 | $93 |
| No. 19 — Nick Howard (Cincinnati Reds) | 0 | — |
| No. 20 — Casey Gillaspie (Tampa Bay Rays) | 0 | — |
| No. 21 — Brad Zimmer (Cleveland Indians) | 20 | $63 |
| No. 22 — Grant Holmes (Los Angeles Dodgers) | 63 | $N/A |
| No. 23 — Derek Hill (Detroit Tigers) | 44 | $N/A |
| No. 24 — Cole Tucker (Pittsburgh Pirates) | 41 | $53 |
| No. 25 — Matt Chapman (Oakland Athletics) | 20 | $87 |
| No. 26 — Michael Chavis (Boston Red Sox) | 53 | $N/A |
| No. 27 — Luke Weaver (St. Louis Cardinals) | 16 | $100 |
| No. 28 — Foster Griffin (Kansas City Royals) | 1 | $N/A |
| No. 29 — Alex Blandino (Cincinnati Reds) | 0 | — |
| No. 30 — Luis Ortiz (Texas Rangers) | 70 | $111 |
| No. 31 — Justus Sheffield (Cleveland Indians) | 71 | $123 |
| No. 32 — Braxton Davidson (Atlanta Braves) | 63 | $N/A |
| No. 33 — Michael Kopech (Boston Red Sox) | 44 | $N/A |
| No. 34 — Jack Flaherty (St. Louis Cardinals) | 81 | $100 |
| No. 35 — Forrest Wall (Colorado Rockies) | 0 | — |
| No. 36 — Blake Anderson (Miami Marlins) | 0 | — |
| No. 37 — Derek Fisher (Houston Astros) | 0 | — |
| No. 38 — Mike Papi (Cleveland Indians) | 0 | — |
| No. 39 — Connor Joe (Pittsburgh Pirates) | 0 | — |
| No. 40 — Chase Vallot (Kansas City Royals) | 53 | $N/A |
| No. 41 — Jacob Gatewood (Milwaukee Brewers) | 1 | $N/A |
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Curious about whether following draft picks already have cards? Click here and search for the player’s name.
Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball and Beckett Sports Card Monthly magazines. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.
Nothing to get excited about until they all have a 1st Bowman auto card.