The Infamous 2006 Topps Alex Gordon Rookie Card 20 Years Later

Alex Gordon has one of the most famous rookie cards that was never supposed to exist. Drafted in 2006, Topps printed and distributed a rookie card of Gordon that year, only to realize they were breaking their own criteria, and halted production. To qualify for a rookie card, Topps says you need to be on the 25-man roster and have played at least one MLB game.

Since some cards had finished production, and others in the middle of production, before the error was caught, Topps decided to modify the card, and in turn made one of the most popular error cards in the hobby's history.

The Cut Out Version

Alex Gordon — eBay | https://ebay.us/m/dr8pIt

As the title on the BGS slab label indicates, this version features the card with a big chunk of the center cut out. The cut out contains his name, face, and background biography. It's an interesting move by Topps but not unheard of. Topps also used this method to cut a chunk of the infamous Billy Ripken card, alerting collectors of the expletive written on the bat knob of Ripken's bat.

Grading this card, especially with BGS and their subgrades is interesting. All grading companies grade the edges. And any blemishes, depending on the severity, lowers the overall grade. Usually a collector only needs to worry about four edges. But with this cut out, you need to examine closely eight edges, with the extra four essentially being created by the cutout.

It's not known how many of these cards were released. According to eBay sold listings, this card sold on December 15, 2025 for $188.88 with just one bid.

The Blank Foil Version

This one is also pretty self descriptive. Known as the 'Blank Foil,' this version features the card intact, with only his name, position and team name printed by Topps. This card, according to Card Ladder, yields the most value of the two. While there weren't many cut out versions high on the sales list, this one is his highest selling card.

According to Card Ladder, this card sold for $10,000 on July 1, 2022, right at the height of the COVID card market boom. Card Ladder says it was sold as a best offer on eBay.

Full Card Version

There were some full, regular versions of this card that made it into packs. These versions look like your regular, ordinary card. Not cut out, no blank out, just a regular base rookie card. However, a PSA 10 version of this regularly hits four figures. According to Card Ladder, the highest record sale with them was on July 29, 2025 and went for $4,250 from an eBay best offer listing.

This card has a PSA 10 pop count of just 34, which plays a big part in the resale value. Currently on eBay there are no PSA 10s listed. A PSA 8 is currently listed on eBay for $1,750.

2010 Reprint

In 2010 Topps decided to honor the card by creating a reprint and rebranding the back with "The Cards Your Mom Threw Out." The front features the same as his regular, 2006 Topps card. But the back features a different design, with a brief description of the card and the history of it.

Raw versions of this card typically does not exceed $20, according to eBay sold listings.

The 2007 Alex Gordon Rookie

When he finally met the criteria for Topps to print and release a rookie card, Gordon got one. It was in the 2007 Topps set, and Gordon is a rare player that has cards from two different years that features the RC logo.

This card goes for the typical price of a base, non-auto card. Listings on eBay show this card going for as much as $10 and as low as $1.50.