It’s 2026, and if you look at the MLB leaderboards, you might do a double-take. Sitting at the very top of the strikeout list isn’t a guy making late-night talk show appearances or starring in national ad campaigns. It’s Milwaukee’s flamethrower, Jacob Misiorowski.
Despite a 3-2 record, Misiorowski is absolutely carving up lineups with an MLB-leading 80 strikeouts. Meanwhile, in Pittsburgh, Paul Skenes is also dealing. He boasts a 6-2 record, a microscopic .64 WHIP (the best in baseball), and a highly respectable 56 punchouts.
On the mound, they are two elite arms at the start of their careers putting on an absolute clinic. But in the sports card hobby? They are operating in entirely different stratospheres.
Let’s dive into why the market values these two aces so differently, and what it tells us about the elusive “It Factor.”
The 1st Bowman Discrepancy
In the hobby, a player’s 1st Bowman Chrome Autograph is the ultimate bellwether for their market. When we compare Misiorowski and Skenes, the numbers fundamentally break the basic laws of supply and demand:
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Paul Skenes 1st Bowman Auto (PSA 10): Currently selling for over $2,000 (up over 100% from this time last year). The PSA 10 pop count? A massive 800+.
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Jacob Misiorowski 1st Bowman Auto (PSA 10): Currently selling for around $575. The PSA 10 pop count? A remarkably low 79.
Read that again. Misiorowski’s premiere prospect card is ten times rarer in a PSA 10 grade than Skenes’, yet it sells for about a quarter of the price.
The Generational Grails
When we look at the absolute ceiling of their markets—the 1-of-1 grails—the gap turns into a canyon.
Jacob Misiorowski’s most expensive card ever sold is his 2022 Bowman Chrome Draft Superfractor 1/1 Auto in a PSA 10. It hammered for an impressive $52,800. For a pitching prospect, that is a monstrous number that signifies immense hobby respect.
But Skenes is playing a different game.
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His 2023 Bowman Chrome Draft Superfractor 1/1 Auto sold at Goldin for $123,220.
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His 2024 Topps Chrome Update MLB Debut Patch Auto 1/1 (PSA 10) famously shattered records on Fanatics Collect, selling for $1,110,000.
The “It Factor” Premium
So, how do we explain this to someone who doesn’t eat, sleep and breather sports cards? If you’ve been following baseball over the last few years, the answer is equal parts on-field dominance and off-field magnetism.
Paul Skenes has slipped into pop culture in a way that most baseball players never do. His narrative could have been built in a lab: a dominant College World Series run, a lightning-fast call-up to the majors, a historic MLB Debut Patch bounty, and yes, his highly public relationship with mega-influencer and former LSU gymnast Livvy Dunne. Skenes, when he does anything, it’s mainstream news.
He is one of the players that transcends the sport. Jacob Misiorowski, despite his elite, MLB-leading strikeout stuff, just hasn’t captured that mainstream lightning in a bottle.
Sometimes, the market simply decides a player has the “It Factor,” and that invisible aura is worth more than any on-field metric. We saw the exact same thing with Elly De La Cruz. Before Elly had refined his plate discipline, his cards were outselling established, MVP-caliber veterans simply because he was electric to watch. Skenes has that same starpower.
The Takeaway: Priced for Perfection
The hobby is currently pricing Paul Skenes as if it is a foregone conclusion that he will go down as one of the greatest pitchers to ever live. A $2,000 base PSA 10 and a $1.1 million 1-of-1 patch means the “Hall of Fame tax” is already baked into his prices. He has incredibly big shoes to fill just to maintain his current market value.
Jacob Misiorowski, on the other hand, is being priced exactly how a high-upside, elite young pitcher should be priced. There is no pop-culture premium attached to his cardboard.
If Skenes stumbles, his market has a long way to fall. But if Misiorowski keeps striking out 80 batters a month? He has a massive runway to grow.
