Is Cal Ripken Jr. #169 worth grading?
Baseball · Baseball Cards 1985 Donruss · full price guide →
Strong grading candidate — 178× premium in PSA 10
A PSA 10 Cal Ripken Jr. #169 sells for $180 against $1.01 raw: a $179 spread, 178× the ungraded price. A PSA 9 ($19.46) only about breaks even after fees, so the case rests on gemming. Centering is the usual reason a clean copy misses the 10 — measure it before you submit.
- Raw (NM)
- $1.01
- PSA 10
- $180
- PSA 9
- $19.46
- Gem premium
- 178×
- As of
- Sep 4, 2026
Break-even by outcome and fee
| If it comes back… | Sells for | Economy / bulk (~$25.00) | Standard (~$50.00) | Express (~$150) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gem — PSA 10 | $180 | +$154 | +$129 | +$28.98 |
| PSA 9 | $19.46 | −$6.55 | −$31.55 | −$132 |
| PSA 8 | $14.45 | −$11.56 | −$36.56 | −$137 |
Net = sale price − $1.01 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?
| Chance it gems | Expected sale | Expected net (standard fee) |
|---|---|---|
| 25% | $59.59 | +$8.58 |
| 50% | $99.73 | +$48.72 |
| 75% | $140 | +$88.85 |
Break-even gem rate at the standard fee: about 20%. Centering is the usual reason a clean copy misses — measure it before you decide.
Which grader pays the most — and what a 10 takes
All centering standards →| Grader | 10 sells for | vs best | Front centering for a 10 | Back |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BGS 10 | $234 | best | 55/45 | 70/30 |
| PSA 10 | $180 | −$54.01 | 55/45 | 75/25 |
| CGC 10 | $108 | −$126 | 55/45 | 75/25 |
| SGC 10 | $97.61 | −$136 | 55/45 | 75/25 |
Tolerances are each company's published centering standard for its top grade; surface, corners and edges must also be clean. Centering is the one you can measure yourself before you pay.
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Grading Cal Ripken Jr. #169 — FAQ
Is Cal Ripken Jr. #169 worth grading?
A PSA 10 Cal Ripken Jr. #169 sells for $180 against $1.01 raw: a $179 spread, 178× the ungraded price. A PSA 9 ($19.46) only about breaks even after fees, so the case rests on gemming. Centering is the usual reason a clean copy misses the 10 — measure it before you submit.
How much is a PSA 10 Cal Ripken Jr. #169 worth compared with raw?
A PSA 10 Cal Ripken Jr. #169 (Baseball Cards 1985 Donruss) sells for about $180 versus $1.01 for a raw near-mint copy — a 178× premium as of Sep 4, 2026.
Which grading company is best for Cal Ripken Jr. #169?
By resale value, BGS 10 leads at $234, ahead of PSA 10 at $180. Fees and turnaround differ, so the best-paying label is not always the best net.
What centering does Cal Ripken Jr. #169 need for a BGS 10?
BGS publishes 55/45 front and 70/30 back centering as the tolerance for a 10 (Gem Mint). Off-center copies are capped below the top grade regardless of surface — measure yours before paying the fee.
What gem rate makes grading Cal Ripken Jr. #169 break even?
At a standard ~$50 fee, submitting Cal Ripken Jr. #169 breaks even when it gems about 20% of the time (a miss assumed to sell at the PSA 9 price of $19.46).
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