Three Top Breakout Pitchers and How it Impacts Their Card Market
Which young pitchers have broken out of their shell in 2025 and started looking like breakout stars this season? There are a ton of names to watch but the list can be broken down into three guys.
Let's get this out of the way early. You won't find Paul Skenes on this list. That's not indictment of Skenes and/or his play, he's a beast, it's more of a qualification issue when it comes to the word "breakout". Paul Skenes isn't breaking out this season by dominating, he's doing what he did all season last year by being one of the best pitchers in the game. So, the 22-year old in Pittsburgh is out of the running.
So, let's take a name at the three young pitchers that have started this season on a tear and will likely continue to do so.
2025 Top 3 Young Breakout Pitchers
1. Hunter Greene (CIN)
It's been a wild career for hunter Greene to this point, but it appears as though the 25-year old flamethrower in Cincinnati has officially figured it out and become one of the best young arms in baseball in the process.
Greene was drafted second overall in 2017 and the bright lights were on him immediately. He made his official MLB debut in 2022, appearing in 24 games, but location issues meant he saw mixed results. The same was true in 2023 but something seemed to click in 2024 when he posted a 9-5 record with a 2.75 ERA and 1.018 WHIP over 150.1IP. This season, Greene has picked up right where he left off.
So far in three starts, Greene has pitched 20.2 innings and allowed just three runs, good for a 1.31 ERA and a 1.91 FIP.in those 20.2 innings, Greene has struck out 23 batters while walking only 3.
Despite such a strong start for Greene, prices on his Topps Chrome rookie cards and 1st Bowmans are holding strong and haven't moved much. Right now, you can get flagship rookie products from Greene for about $5-10 raw and $40-$50 when graded a PSA 10, according to the most recent listings on eBay.
However, I wouldn't expect that trend to continue. If Greene flexes his power and continues to mow down hitters, we're going to see a meteoric rise for a former No. 2 overall pick.
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2. Spencer Schwellenbach (ATL)
Spencer Schwellenbach, the former second-round pick by the Atlanta Braves in the 2021 MLB Draft, is set for his first full season in the majors in 2025. Just two starts into the season, things could not be going better for Spencer Schwellenbach.
Sure, the Braves have been a major disappointment, but that's not for a lack of production from the 24-year old righty.
In two starts, Schwellenbach has pitched 14 innings, striking out 14 batters and registering an insane 0.286 WHIP. On top of that, he's yet to allow an earned run.
In March, Michael Terry pinpointed Schwellenbach as a buy-low opportunity, writing "The market feels steady but unspectacular so far when it comes to the Atlanta right-hander". The same remains true to this day.
Schwellenbach's most expensive card listed on eBay is his 2021 Bowman Chrome Draft Red Refractor auto out of five (seen above). But, in general the market for him is lower than other big-name rookies like Dylan Crews, Jasson Dominguez and James Wood.
That is to be expected a bit with a pitcher, but the 24-year old shows no signs of slowing down. Funny enough, his next scheduled starts comes on Thursday against the No. 3 player on this list.
3. Jesus Luzardo (PHI)
We're really stretching the limits of the whole "young" theme here, but it's undeniable that former top prospect Jesus Luzardo is in the middle of a breakout start to the season for the Philadelphia Phillies. For collectors who bought into the Luzardo hype when he was an Oakland A's prospect, what we've seen this year is what was always imagined as his ceiling.
Unfortunately for Luzardo, he struggled early in his career and was traded to Miami for Starling Marte in 2021. This past offseason, Luzardo was again on the move, but this time he was going to a contender in Philadelphia. It's been just two starts, but the early returns on that move are definitely something to keep an eye on.
Luzardo has struck out 19 batters in 12 innings pithced so far this season on his way to a 1.50 ERA and 0.92 WHIP. I wouldn't necessarily be buying into the hype off that alone, but his last start was a seven-inning, two-hit masterpiece against the best offense in baseball, the Los Angeles Dodgers, where he struck out eight batters and didn't allow a run.
There was a time when Luzardo was thought of as one of the top rookie cards you could get in the Topps Chrome 2020 product. the hunt was always for hitters like Luis Robert and Kyle Lewis, but Luzardo was a big part of the product. Now, you can get Luzardo's rookie cards for relativley inexpensive prices.
His Topps Chrome 2020 Prism Refractor shown above sold this past weekend for $12.24. Meanwhile, the base variation is going for anywhere from $8-$10 graded as a PSA 10, according to Card Ladder's most recent data.
Brian has been covering sports and collecting cards for more than a decade. Following both the NFL and MLB draft has become a passion both professionally and personally, so expect lots of prospecting news coming your way. As a loyal Philadelphia sports fan, most of his collection is either athletes on his favorite teams or ones that grew up in the area.