Jackie Robinson Autograph Rookie Card Sells for Record $1.86 Million
A signed Jackie Robinson rookie card has sold for $1.86 million, setting a new record for the most expensive Jackie Robinson card ever sold.
Fanatics Collect announced the sale of the 1948 Leaf Jackie Robinson rookie autograph card after the auction closed. According to Fanatics Collect, the $1,860,000 result surpassed the previous Jackie Robinson card record of $960,000.
The card is a 1948 Leaf Jackie Robinson #79 rookie card, graded PSA 1 PR, with a PSA/DNA 8 autograph. The autograph appears vertically along the side of the card, giving the low-grade rookie a major additional feature beyond the card itself.
The 1948 Leaf Jackie Robinson is one of the most important baseball cards in the hobby because it is widely treated as Robinson’s true rookie card. PSA’s CardFacts page describes it as the only true rookie card of baseball’s first African-American representative and hero to all. The card was issued after Robinson broke Major League Baseball’s color barrier with the Brooklyn Dodgers.
The Fanatics Collect listing framed the card as baseball card history because it combines Robinson’s rookie card with his autograph. That combination is especially powerful for collectors because Robinson’s rookie card is already one of the signature postwar baseball cards, while an authenticated autograph directly on the card makes this example a unique high-end piece.
The card’s technical grade is low at PSA 1, but the autograph is the centerpiece. Fanatics Collect listed the card with a PSA/DNA 8 autograph grade, and PSA’s certification database identifies the card as a 1948 Leaf #79 Jackie Robinson with an autograph grade.
That helps explain why the final price moved far beyond what a standard low-grade 1948 Leaf Robinson rookie would typically bring. This was not just a PSA 1 rookie. It was a signed rookie card of one of baseball’s most historically important players, authenticated and sold through a major auction platform.
The $1.86 million result also makes the card one of the standout sports-card sales of 2026 so far. Fanatics Collect said the sale set a new Jackie Robinson card record, more than doubling the previous mark of $960,000.