One-of-a-kind card featuring jersey
patch of Pirates star Paul Skenes is heading to auction
[March 07, 2025]
By WILL GRAVES
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Paul Skenes has been in the major leagues for less
than a year.
A piece of the Pittsburgh Pirates ace — well, OK, a piece of the
jersey that Skenes donned during his first start last May — could be
ready to join some elite company.
A one-of-a-kind autographed baseball card featuring a patch of the
No. 30 jersey Skenes donned during his big league debut is heading
to auction on Thursday. The card's journey over the last few months
has generated the kind of buzz typically reserved for iconic
collectibles featuring Hall of Famers Honus Wagner, Mickey Mantle
and Ken Griffey Jr.
The Skenes card the added advantage those cards did not: It happened
to come along in an age when social media can amplify everything.
“The coverage on this just in my opinion is so much bigger,”
Fanatics Collect CEO Nick Bell said. “I really can’t remember one
similar to it to be frank. It’s pretty exceptional.”
Fanatics Collect, which is running the two-week auction that closes
on March 20, isn't estimating (at least publicly anyway) what the
card might fetch, though Bell expects “a very significant sale.”
A combination of the 22-year-old Skenes' burgeoning stardom, the
considerable reach of his girlfriend, LSU gymnast/influencer Livvy
Dunne and a head-turning offer the Pirates made in hopes of securing
the card — including season tickets behind home plate at PNC Park
for 30 years — has made it the rare collectible that's generated
interest from collectors and noncollectors alike.
“The amount of interest we’ve got in this card right now is kind of
pretty unprecedented, honestly,” Bell said.
The card was claimed by an 11-year-old in the Los Angeles area in a
pack he received as part of a Christmas present. He declined the
Pirates' offer and instead turned over the card to Fanatics Collect,
which has given it the “white glove” service for the last two
months.
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Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Paul Skenes (30) delivers during
the first inning of a spring training baseball game against the
Baltimore Orioles, Saturday, March 1, 2025, in Sarasota, Fla. (AP
Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Skenes, who briefly reunited with the card at the
Super Bowl, said he's surprised at the attention it's received.
“I never would have imagined how much hype there was around it,
which is cool," he said.
Then again, hype seems to follow the reigning National League
Rookie of the Year around. Bell attributed it Skenes' X factor.
“He’s obviously kind of broken through into the world of popular
culture with his relationship with Livvy, etc.,” Bell said. “And I
think the story behind this card itself is just incredible.”
Demand for anything Skenes-related has been high since his senior
year at LSU in 2023. A 2023 card featuring Skenes fetched $63,000
last August.
There is no reserve on the card, meaning you probably can put in a
$20 bid if you want. Just don't expect it to stick.
“It just really has captured the imagination,” Bell said. “And I
think it goes from being a truly innovative product. You have a
great athlete with a huge career ahead of them and an incredible
story to go along with it.”
Fanatics Collect plans to donate any of its proceeds from the
eventual sale to the LA Fire Relief Fund.
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