Is YU Darvish [Throwback] #497 worth grading?

Baseball · Baseball Cards 2015 Topps Heritage · full price guide →

Grading rarely pays for this card

Grade 9.5 copies of YU Darvish [Throwback] #497 sell for $275, only $0.00 above the $305 raw price — less than an economy-tier grading fee. A PSA 9 ($250) sells for less than raw, so anything short of a 10 loses money. Keep it raw unless you are grading for the slab itself.

Raw (NM): $305
Grade 9.5: $275
PSA 9: $250
Gem premium: 0.9×
As of: Sep 3, 2026

Break-even by outcome and fee

YU Darvish [Throwback] #497: net result of grading versus selling raw, by outcome and fee tier
If it comes back…	Sells for	Economy / bulk (~$25.00)	Standard (~$50.00)	Express (~$150)
Gem — Grade 9.5	$275	−$55.00	−$80.00	−$180
PSA 9	$250	−$80.00	−$105	−$205

Net = sale price − $305 raw value − fee. Fee tiers are illustrative; plug your grader's current price into the calculator below.

Expected value — how often does it need to gem?

YU Darvish [Throwback] #497: expected value of submitting by gem probability
Chance it gems	Expected sale	Expected net (standard fee)
25%	$256	−$98.75
50%	$263	−$92.50
75%	$269	−$86.25

At the standard fee this submission does not break even at any realistic gem rate unless the miss lands above the 9 price.

Full grade ladder

Raw conditions & history →

YU Darvish [Throwback] #497 graded prices by company and grade
Grade	Graded
9.5	$275
9	$250

Run your own numbers

Should I pay this?

Asking priceGrading fee

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