Carl Yastrzemski Baseball Cards

Carl Yastrzemski (born 1939) was an MLB player from 1961 to 1983. He spent the entirety of his career with the Boston Red Sox. Yastrzemski often went by Yaz, and he titled his autobiography by the nickname.

Finishing his career with a .285 batting average, 3,419 hits, 452 home runs, and 1,844 runs batted in, Yaz was a whopping 18 time All Star, the 1967 AL MVP and Triple Crown award winner, a seven time Gold Glove award winner, and a three time AL batting champion. Yaz was a shoe in for the Hall of Fame. He was inducted in 1989 on the first ballot with 94.63% of the vote. Additionally, the Boston Red Sox retired his jersey and inducted him into their Hall of Fame.

Born in Southampton, New York, Yaz was raised in a bilingual Polish family. He grew up playing baseball in the sandlot with his family and friends, and Yaz held that his father was a better athlete than he. Yaz graduated from Bridgehampton School in 1957, and he left for Notre Dame on a basketball scholarship. As a standout athlete, Yaz gained attraction from MLB scouts, and he signed with the Red Sox system in 1959. Though he pursued baseball full time from there, Yaz would eventually finish his degree in 1966 at the request of his parents.

Yaz moved through the minor league system smoothly, and by 1961, he was called up to the majors. Yaz was brought on to the Red Sox under incredible pressure because he was the prospect that was supposed to fill the shoes of Ted Williams. Not only did Yaz survive the pressure, but he met the truly unfair expectations. Though he did not shine in his first two seasons, Yaz showed promise, and his breakout season was in 1963 where he finished the season sixth in AL MVP voting with a .321 batting average. Yaz took off from there.

His best season was undoubtedly in 1967. First, Yaz won the AL Triple Crown, in which he led the respective league with a .326 batting average, 44 home runs, and 121 RBIs. The batting Triple Crown would not be won again until 2012 with Miguel Cabrera. Additionally, he won the AL MVP almost unanimously (he missed one vote).

The Red Sox had a significant season in 1967 as well, which always solidifies a standout individual performance. After all, a standout individual performance devoid of team success makes for much emptier accomplishments throughout professional team sports. The 1967 Red Sox is known as the “Impossible Dream” because the Red Sox came back from a ninth place standing to win the AL pennant on the last game of the season. With the pennant on the line in the last two games of the season, Yaz went 7 for 8 with 6 RBIs. The Red Sox would go on to lose the World Series in Games Seven.

The Red Sox and Yaz continued to do well, including more All Star Games, batting titles, and a World Series appearance (and loss) in 1975. Due to his superior play, Yaz continued to make the Red Sox squad until 1983 when he retired at the age of 44. With 23 seasons on the same team, Yaz holds the record, tied with Brooks Robinson of the Baltimore Orioles.

It was ridiculous, irrational, and illogical for Red Sox fans to hold a mere prospect to the standard of Ted Williams. Remarkably, everybody agrees that Yaz met that standard through a remarkable career. In addition to the various sporting hall of fames, Yaz is on nearly every All Time list of baseball players. He is one of the most popular Red Sox players in history.

Yaz played during a great era of baseball card collecting. This article will take you through some great Topps sets.

1960 Topps Carl Yastrzemski Rookie Card

Yaz sits at #148 in this set of 572 cards. Each card is of standard measurements (2 ½” x 3 ½”). In addition to Yaz, keys to the set include Ernie Banks, Willie Mays, Bob Gibson, Willie McCovey, and Mickey Mantle.

The set is known for several horizontal cards. Many of these cards are considered attractive. Yaz’s rookie card is one of those horizontal cards.

As with every card on this list, there are many copies of these cards available today. For reference, PSA has nearly 300,000 cards from this set registered, and almost 8,000 of those cards are Yaz copies.

A PSA Gem Mint 10 copy sold for $83,813 in May of 2012. Gem Mint copies of a Yaz rookie will always be rare and extremely expensive.

The price of a Mint copy stays high. In January and March of 2021, Mint copies sold for over $34,000.

On a budget of $1,000, a PSA 7 is possible, but a collector may have to drop in quality further because prices have been on the rise since the beginning of Covid-19.

1961 Topps Carl Yastrzemski

There are 587 cards in this set, and each card measures 2 ½” x 3 ½”. Yaz’s card sits at #287 on another card titled “Star Rookie”. This card technically covers his first full rookie season, but the card is not considered his most desirable or true rookie, and the prices and population reflect that.

The keys remain largely the same, along with the rookie cards of Billy Williams, Juan Marichal, and Ron Santo.

There are over 300,000 copies of cards from this set registered with PSA, and Yaz’s card is over 3,000 copies.

Gem Mint copies have sold for $12,000 since 2017 and 2020, and Mint copies will sell for a few thousand. With a budget of $1,000, a PSA 8 is possible.

1962 Topps Carl Yastrzemski

The 1962 Topps had 598 cards, each measuring 2 ½” x 3 ½”. Yaz sits at #425.

There are over 230,000 cards from this set registered with PSA, and Yaz copies make up over 1,800 of those cards.

Given his popularity and fame, especially with Red Sox fans, Yaz stays expensive. Mint cards have regularly sold for over $4,000 for the last few years, but you should be safe at a PSA 8 on a budget of $1,000.

1963 Topps Carl Yastrzemski

There are 576 cards in the 1963 Topps, and you can find Yaz at #115. Pete Rose, Tony Olivia, Rusty Staub, and Willie Stargell are the key rookies.

There are over 200,000 cards from this set registered with PSA, and around 2,000 of those cards are Yaz copies.

By 1963, the drop in the price of Yaz cards starts to happen. While Mint copies can still reach $3,000, PSA 8’s sold for around $300 in early 2021.

1964 Topps Carl Yastrzemski

The 1964 Topps had 587 cards, and each measures 2 ½” x 3 ½”. Yaz is at #210 on the set.

There are over 200,000 cards registered on PSA from this set, and over 1500 of those are Yaz copies.

Mint copies stay aggressively high for this card. In March and April of 2021, Mint copies sold for $1,800, $2,800, and $2,663, which is a noticeable increase in price from a year earlier.

The price cuts of Yaz’s ongoing career are found in the lower grades. For example, a PSA 8 will regularly sell for $200.

Conclusion

Yaz had a long and illustrious career. There are many great Topps sets that cover Yaz until he retires, and some of them cover highlights like 1967. In general, cards will decrease in value the longer you move along his career, and his first few years will always be some of his best cardboard representations.

Yaz is one of the great players of his time, one of the greatest Red Sox in baseball history, and he was a marvel of longevity as a highly respected baseball player. Hopefully, you find the card that does its best to commemorate his career.