ARLINGTON, Texas — Wyatt Langford made his Major League Baseball debut on Thursday night for the Texas Rangers. And that means a very tiny part of his jersey will likely be worth a lot of money here in the next year or so.
No, we're not talking about that Energy Transfer jersey sponsor patch the Rangers rolled out this week (though that one will be worth plenty to the club's coffers).
We're talking about the tiny "MLB Debut" patch on Langford's left sleeve, just above the Rangers' World Series champions patch.
What is that, you ask?
Last year, Topps, the longtime flagship baseball card company, debuted a new twist on the traditional rookie card: The MLB Debut patch card.
The patch card is a "1-of-1" -- in card collecting parlance, that means only one is in existence -- featuring the MLB Debut patch worn in a player's first game in the majors. So, the patch Langford was wearing Thursday night will eventually end up on a 1-of-1 rookie card in a Topps produce sometime over the next year.
In Langford's case, the patch was removed after the game, authenticated and secured through Major League Baseball's authenticated program, according to Fanatics, which owns Topps. Also, Langford, who singled and drove in a run on a sac fly in his debut, will sign the card for the patch after the game, Fanatics said.
Topps will then randomly place the signed patch card in a pack later this year.
The MLB Debut patch cards have routinely sold for over $1,000 on eBay -- and that's for rookies who are largely unknown. Langford just happens to be the most highly-hyped rookie entering baseball this season and a favorite to win the American League Rookie of the Year award.
And Langford's early cards have already sold for a bunch; his 2023 Bowman Draft superfractor 1-of-1 autograph card reportedly went for around $50,000 earlier this year.
Yes, $50,000 before he ever played a game in the majors.
