Top Wander Franco Rookie Cards and Prospects to Collect
As one of the top prospects in baseball for a few years, Wander Franco cards need no introduction. Now that the Wander Franco rookie cards are in motion, fans can see if the young phenom matches/exceeds the hype.
Born in the Dominican Republic, Wander Franco signed with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2017. Among the top young stars in the game by 2019, collectors have been counting down the days ever since. His MLB debut finally came on June 22, 2021.
Naturally, after multiple years as a top prospect, there are already plenty of Wander Franco cards out there. The guide below highlights a few of the key choices.
Other than Topps/Bowman and Panini, another place to look is Leaf, which offers hard-signed autographs from 2018.
You can also take a gander at his most popular card auctions on eBay to see what is getting the most attention right now.
Top Wander Franco Rookie Cards
Bolded sets go directly to detailed product profiles and checklists. Shop for cards or check completed values using the eBay links.
2022 Topps Series 1 Wander Franco RC #215
With the rookie cup and rookie card logo in tow, the first official Wander Franco rookie card arrived in 2022 Topps Series 1 Baseball.
In addition to a mix of parallels that can produce big values, Franco has a short print (SP) and super short print (SSP) image variation in the product.
There are also a few different autographs.
2022 Topps Heritage Wander Franco RC #347
Another top set for Wander Franco collectors is 2022 Topps Heritage. The retro-styled release honors the 1973 design.
Joining his base rookie, Franco is part of five different base variations, including Image, Team & Name Color Swap, Player Icon Color Swap, Error, and Throwback.
His Real One Autograph, which is hard-signed, comes as a redemption.
2021 Bowman's Best Wander Franco #50
This is the card that caused some chaos in the collecting world. At face value, 2021 Bowman's Best is home to yet another prospect card for Franco. However, because the Topps set featured Franco in the base set numbering, rather than as part of a prospect-specific insert, some consider it the true Wander Franco rookie card, essentially making all his 2022 RC logo cards into second-year cards.
As with most things in the hobby, collectors will decide in the long run whether this is the sole rookie for Franco, considered an equal to his 2022 rookies, viewed as an XRC, or ultimately just lumped in with his other prospects covered below.
Top Wander Franco Prospect Cards
Bolded sets go directly to detailed product profiles and checklists. Shop for cards or check completed values using the eBay links.
2018 Panini Elite Extra Edition Wander Franco #67 #/999
Although the 2019 Bowman cards are the clear favorites, Panini's 2018 Elite Extra Edition Baseball gives collectors an earlier choice with a base card (#/999) and an on-card autograph.
2019 Bowman Chome Prospect Wander Franco #BCP-100
The coveted "1st Bowman" card for Wander Franco in 2019 Bowman Baseball is a great starter option with plenty of room to expand depending on the budget. While the base card is accessible to most, gem-mint grades push that up as do the various Refractor parallels.
2019 Bowman Chome Prospect Autograph Wander Franco #CPA-WF
Also found in 2019 Bowman Baseball is Franco's best overall Bowman card. These on-card autographs can get a bit pricier and, like the base card, come in many different Refractor versions.
2019 Bowman Mega Box Chrome Prospect Wander Franco #BCP-100
If you like the base card but want a more unique design, look to 2019 Bowman Mega Box. The Retail-exclusive set has the popular "Mojo" finish along with some limited parallels.
For a challenge, track down the elusive base image variation.
Franco also has a Mojo base autograph and variation autograph card to chase.
2019 Bowman Sterling Prospect Wander Franco #BPR-31
Much cheaper in comparison, 2019 Bowman Sterling offers a more refined design for the base prospect card.
His on-card autograph is another popular choice, but be aware that it was issued as a redemption.
2019 Bowman's Best of 2019 Autographs Wander Franco #B19-WF
Also popular as an alternative to the main CPA autograph, the Best of 2019 Autographs series in 2019 Bowman's Best features Wander in another hard-signed chromium set.
2021 Topps Now Wander Franco CALL-UP #402 (PR=61,305)
If you want something from his MLB debut, there is only 2021 Topps Now until his official rookies appear in 2022.
Franco's first card honors his first hit on June 22, which happened to be a home run. It sold over 60,000 cards in Topps' print-to-order format.
There are also limited autograph base relics, numbered to 99 or less, that were initially priced at $399.99 (and up).
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