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To those of us who watched Ozzie Smith play in the 1980s, it's a no-brainer. He was the best defensive shortstop and possibly player we had ever seen. But to some baseball experts, “The Wizard of Oz” is overrated. He did not achieve many offensive milestones in his career, hitting over .300 only once, scoring over 100 runs once, hitting only 28 home runs for his career, and a career average of .262 at a time of reasonably high batting averages. And advanced stats don’t help his cause all that much, either. His OPS+ (the best metric for overall offensive value) shows that he was an above-average hitter for only four seasons of his 19-year career.
But much of this needs to be clarified about the role of shortstop in the late 1970s and 1980s. At that time, the position was seen as defensive, with any production from the plate coming as a nice bonus. It was before players like Derek Jeter, Nomar Garciappara, and Alex Rodriguez changed the role. And no one. No one could fill the defensive duties of a shortstop like Ozzie Smith.
What made him so darn good? He had so much range Ozzie could reach half the hits that would generally be a second baseman or the Baseman's job to the field. His hand-eye coordination was unparalleled, his throwing arm elite and he did everything with so much flair. And he had a smile to die for, which he flashed after the best plays. And we all loved him for it. He still holds the all-time record for most golden gloves won by a shortstop, with an incredible 13. And he beat them all straight. So, there is no doubt that the 15-time MLB All-Star was considered the most elite shortstop of his generation.
And the memories are what matter most from a sports collector's perspective, isn’t the theoretical argument over how good a player was. It is how fans and collectors remember them. That is why it matters less that Pete Rose is not in the Hall of Fame and more that every fan knows who he is and appreciates his contribution. And Ozzie’s ridiculous circus plays brought incredible joy to generations of sports fans. Even younger fans love to watch his highlight reels, some of which have hundreds of thousands of views on YouTube.
Collecting Ozzie Smith Cards
Because of his beloved status, Ozzie Smith cards have great stature in the hobby. Especially, of course, his rookie cards. But ultimately, most of them, except for those inaugural cards, are base cards from right before and during the junk wax era. Therefore, they have a low value. Even the rookies are plentiful in terms of population count. But as we will see, condition issues sometimes raise the value.
While baseball card fans adore Smith, collecting him is an act of love. You will not lose money from Ozzie Smith cards. The rookies will appreciate in value over time. But you will get significant profits elsewhere.
Collecting Ozzie Smith Rookie Cards
Today it is almost impossible to keep up with all the rookie cards for your favorite player. Publications like this will list the top ten to twenty of their rookies to separate the wheat from the chaff. But throughout most of history, players had a handful of rookie cards. Sometimes, just one. For "The Wizard of Oz," there are only three cards. And one is just a variation of the other. But there is plenty to parse on these Ozzie Smith rookie cards. So, let's get to it.
1979 Topps Ozzie Smith Rookie Card #116
A PSA 10 sold for $222,000.
For me, it's the outrageously cool sideburns. For other people, it's the subtle gold chain. Another great thing about this card is Smith’s expression. He has the wry look we expect from a grizzled veteran, not a precocious rookie. But Ozzie was never an average player.
The card is now easily THE most beloved and sought out in the 1979 Topps Baseball release. However, at the time, it was not so. Due to his weak bat, Smith wasn’t considered a top prospect. Fans were far more excited to pull a Bob Horner, the 1979 National League Rookie of the Year. It took a while until that changed.
One thing worth noting about this card is how it has lept in value in recent years. At least in the high grades categories. 2017 a PSA 10, a 1979 Topps Ozzie Smith Rookie Card #116, sold for around $30,000. Which was a very high price for those days. But by 2021, it was going for over $200,000. What changed? Aside from the COVID-19 bump, there is far more of an appreciation of the importance of population count in the hobby.
And indeed, that is the key to the value of this Ozzie Smith rookie card. Getting a good grade for this one takes a lot of work. I have two copies of this one; both are incredibly off-centered, as are most. The 1979 Topps cards could have been better for edges and cleanliness. However, it was the centering that was the issue here. The sad part is this is more of an Ozzie issue than anything else. While centering is not great for many other cards in 1979 Topps, “The Wizard of Oz” cards are an outlier.
The Centering Problems With The 1979 Topps Ozzie Smith Rookie Card #116
How bad is the problem? Let's look at the numbers. There are 10,369 PSA-graded copies of the Ozzie Topps rookie card. Of them, only 401(!) grade at over a PSA 8. They break down as 396 PSA 9s and a mere 5 PSA 10s. And that is why those gem mints cost so much. Everyone of a certain age loves Ozzie, and there are so few PSA 10s of his main rookie card.
The gaps in grading often have a massive influence on value. But in the case of this card, it is pretty extreme. As we saw, a PSA 10 can go for over $200,000. Meanwhile, a PSA 9 is valuable but in a different stratosphere. You can pick one up for about $3,000. And the dropoff to a PSA 8 is as sharp as you might think. They go for $200 nowadays. And if you look at the price charts for the more average grades, the results are fascinating. Prices have gone down steadily. At one point, PSA 8s were going for over $500. But today, people are more savvy about population counts. And the lesson here is if you have lower-grade copies of the 1979 Topps Ozzie Smith Rookie Card #116, they are more likely to lose value than gain any. Even PSA 9s have lost some value, with the highest sale ever amounting to $7,000 in 2021, and now fetching less than half that.
Unless you have a PSA 10, and possibly a 9, the value of these cards is unlikely to go up. So, proceed with caution. Or collect just for fun.
1979 O-Pee-Chee Ozzie Smith Rookie Card #52
A PSA 10 sold for $81,180.
What is the difference between the 1979 Topps Ozzie Smith Rookie Card #116 and the 1979 O-Pee-Chee Ozzie Smith Rookie Card #52? Well, primarily that, one says Topps on the front, and the other says O-Pee-Chee. It is for expert analysis like this that you come to our website. And there is also French on the back of the card, alongside the English. A touch I love on these Canadian cards.
The O-Pee-Chee checklist is traditionally about half as long as its American equivalent. After all, there aren’t as many baseball fans in the Great White North. And, of course, it's too cold to go out and get that many packs. So, we are lucky that Ozzie Smith made it into the release, and thus O-Pee-Chee provided us with another opportunity to get high-grade Ozzie cards. And for a significantly lower price as well.
But these cards are currently underrated. The centering and condition problems that plagued 1979 Topps did not pass over to the 1979 O-Pee-Chee Baseball card set. And there are fewer of these cards, to begin with. While there are 10,369 graded versions of the former, PSA has only graded 613 copies of the latter. And only 2 amongst them are PSA 10s, and a mere 38 are PSA 9s. So, the value of a PSA 10 went from $5,365 in 2015 to over $80,000 in 2021. Over the same period, the going price for a PSA 9 has increased exponentially from $519 to $2,154. And there may be more scope for growth here than in the American release.
The numbers are lower, and more people will realize there is no reason to pay less for O-Pee-Chee than Topps. Quite the opposite when you look at the numbers. Therefore, a PSA 9 1979 O-Pee-Chee Ozzie Smith Rookie Card #52 may be the best investment for cards of “The Wizard of Oz.”
1978 Family Fun Centers San Diego Padres Ozzie Smtih Rookie Card #29
A PSA 10 sold for $1,722.
What is the point of doing an overview of rookie cards if there is no oddball release? Apparently, Family Fun Centers was a place to take your kids for burgers and some games. Something like an old-school Dave & Busters (which was established four years after these cards came out). In 1978 they released a set of cards for two local teams: the California Angels and the San Diego Padres.
The design for the 1978 Family Fun Center baseball cards has a mahogany wood-style set of borders. Do they look familiar? Those of you with sharp eyes will notice that the design for these cards is eerily similar to the 1987 Topps Baseball release. And since it came an entire decade earlier, it may have inspired that better-known release.
The 1978 Family Fun Centers San Diego Padres Ozzie Smtih Rookie Card #29 card backs had more going on than usual. They not only had stats and a bio. There was also a faux autograph and a cute black and white headshot. This is California, after all, so they may look like they are auditioning for Grease.
Final Word Of The Collector's Guide to Ozzie Smith Rookie Cards
There isn’t a great selection of Ozzie Smith rookie cards. Only two and a half, really. But that adds to their special status. And as we have seen, population counts for each of these are limited, at least in the high grades. In the case of the primary rookie card, the scarcity of PSA 10s has even invested in PSA 9s kind of pointless. So, your best bet is the other two cards, both of which are currently underappreciated. As people become more aware of the importance of population counts, the lower-grade cards are losing value.
But ultimately, Ozzie Smith cards differ from where the biggest money is. We collect them as a testament to one of any generation's most unique and beloved players.
Aside from the charm of this off-the-beaten-track release, it has one other massive advantage. It is the first Ozzie Smith card ever released. Although, as you can see from the back, “The Wizard of Oz” looks exactly the same as he would when he retired. It's like he was born 35 and then never aged.
What about their value? These babies aren’t priceless or anything. But their value has also gone up considerably in recent years. In 2016 a PSA 10 sold for a bit over $500. But the most recent sale totaled $1,722. And there is more scope for growth here. There are a mere 84 graded copies of the 1978 Family Fun Centers San Diego Padres Ozzie Smtih Rookie Card #3. And only 18 of them are PSA 9s, and 6 are PSA 10s. This, by the way, shows us that Family Fun Center was making better-produced cards than Topps at the time. Sorry, but the numbers don’t lie. So, with such low population counts, these cards will be worth more in a few years. But as usual, only the PSA 9s and 10s.
