You’ll need these details:
- Enter the year. Look at the back for the copyright date, or the last year of stats.
- Enter the brand. For example: Topps, Upper Deck, Bowman, etc.
- Enter the card number. Found on the back of the card.
- Enter the player’s name. Optional, sometimes the card number is enough.
For example 1989 Upper Deck #1 Ken Griffey Jr
Using Mavin to see what a baseball card are worth
Mavin returns cards just like yours that have recently sold. The “worth” is the average of all the results returned… so if you get too many search results not like yours, make sure to refine your results by entering more card details, or pick a few comparable items by using the checkboxes to pick your “comps”. This gives you a much more accurate estimate of what your baseball card is worth.
What to do Next
Once you’ve searched through your cards and found the valuable ones, you have several options:
If your baseball cards are worth a lot of money… You could hold onto the cards and “collect” them, as most collectors do, and hope they appreciate in value over time. It may be a good investment to get them professionally graded by PSA or BGS, this will dramatically increase their value.
You could sell your baseball cards to a local card shop, knowing full well what they’re worth (because you searched for them on Mavin right?). Keep in mind dealers will buy them from you at wholesale prices… they have to make a profit after all, and selling a large collection takes a considerable amount of time and resources… so don’t expect (or demand) to get 100% of what you’d get online.
Selling your baseball cards online will yeild the highest prices. But it can be time consuming: taking pictures, writing descriptions, responding to customers, packing, shipping, returns… it can be a lot of work. If you have the time and patience, selling them online is a great way to make money. Read our guide to selling on eBay.
If your baseball cards are worthless… your cards don’t have to be valuable to still be enjoyed. There’s probably a friend, a kid you know, or even a stranger who would love to have them. Give them away to someone who will enjoy them! Or sell them for a fraction of what you originally paid for them by dumping them on Craigslist.