$Billy Wagner [Refractor] #74 (Baseball Cards 1996 Topps Chrome) — is it worth grading?$

Is Billy Wagner [Refractor] #74 worth grading?

Baseball · Baseball Cards 1996 Topps Chrome · full price guide →

Worth grading — even a PSA 9 beats raw

A Grade 9.5 Billy Wagner [Refractor] #74 sells for $238 against $47.93 raw: a $190 spread, 5.0× the ungraded price. Even a PSA 9 ($217) clears the raw price after an economy-tier ~$25 fee, so a near-miss still comes out ahead. Centering is the usual reason a clean copy misses the 10 — measure it before you submit.

Raw (NM): $47.93
Grade 9.5: $238
PSA 9: $217
Gem premium: 5.0×
As of: Sep 3, 2026

Break-even by outcome and fee

Billy Wagner [Refractor] #74: 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	$238	+$165	+$140	+$40.07
PSA 9	$217	+$144	+$119	+$18.80
PSA 8	$49.40	−$23.53	−$48.53	−$149

Net = sale price − $47.93 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?

Billy Wagner [Refractor] #74: expected value of submitting by gem probability
Chance it gems	Expected sale	Expected net (standard fee)
25%	$222	+$124
50%	$227	+$129
75%	$233	+$135

Even a miss (a 9) beats selling raw after the standard fee — the gem rate only decides how much you win by.

Full grade ladder

Raw conditions & history →

Billy Wagner [Refractor] #74 graded prices by company and grade
Grade	Graded
9.5	$238
9	$217
8	$49.40

Run your own numbers

Should I pay this?

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