Highly-prized Paul Skenes rookie card sells for more than star pitcher's salary

A one-of-one trading paper sold for large bucks aboriginal Friday greeting aft an auction for it went astir 3 hours longer than scheduled.

The Paul Skenes 1/1 Rookie Debut Patch Autograph card, which was pulled by an 11-year-old successful the Los Angeles country connected Christmas morning, sold for $1.1 cardinal astatine the Fanatics Collect March Premier Auction.

Skenes, who was named the NL Rookie of the Year successful 2024 and finished 3rd successful the NL Cy Young Award voting, volition marque conscionable $875,000 this year.

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Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes, #30, reacts connected the tract earlier a crippled against the Cincinnati Reds astatine PNC Park. (Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports)

The paper was featured successful the 2024 Topps Chrome Update set, and it prompted a hefty connection from Skenes' Pittsburgh Pirates.

A brace of premium Pirates play tickets for 3 decades, an accidental to play a softball crippled connected the field, a conscionable and greet with Skenes and autographed jerseys were among offerings from the team.

Skenes' girlfriend, LSU gymnast Livvy Dunne, sweetened up the connection by offering whoever pulled the paper a crippled successful her idiosyncratic suite - an 11-year-old boy's dream.

However, the lad and the household refused it all, opting to enactment it up for auction done Fanatics.

The signed paper features the MLB debut spot Skenes wore successful his precise archetypal MLB crippled connected May 11 past year, erstwhile helium topped retired astatine 102 mph and struck retired 7 successful 4 innings of work.

Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Paul Skenes, #30, pitches against the New York Yankees during the archetypal inning astatine Yankee Stadium. (Brad Penner-Imagn Images)

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That was conscionable a preview for Skenes, who pitched to a 1.96 ERA implicit 23 starts this season, the lowest for immoderate rookie with astatine slightest 20 starts dating backmost to 1920, per ESPN. It was besides the lowest epoch successful shot this play among pitchers with astatine slightest 130 innings thrown. 

The merchantability perfectly demolished the erstwhile Rookie Debut Card acceptable record; Anthony Volpe's paper sold for lone $150,000 past year, meaning Skenes' paper was astir 10-times much than Volpe's.

Entering Thursday, bids had reached $900,000 and 64 full bids were placed, but it is not yet known who bought it.

Paul Skenes, #30 of the Pittsburgh Pirates, delivers a transportation successful the 3rd inning during the crippled against the New York Mets astatine PNC Park connected July 5, 2024 successful Pittsburgh. (Justin Berl/Getty Images)

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All Fanatics Collect proceeds from the paper volition beryllium donated to L.A. Fire Relief funds, with the remainder going to the family, who volition enactment a bully information of it into their kids' assemblage funds.

Fox News' Scott Thompson and Chantz Martin contributed to this post.

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