Is Billy Wagner [Refractor] #102 worth grading?

Baseball · Baseball Cards 1997 Finest Embossed · full price guide →

Worth grading — even a PSA 9 beats raw

A Grade 9.5 Billy Wagner [Refractor] #102 sells for $62.00 against $29.00 raw: a $33.00 spread, 2.1× the ungraded price. Even a PSA 9 ($56.24) 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): $29.00
Grade 9.5: $62.00
PSA 9: $56.24
Gem premium: 2.1×
As of: Sep 4, 2026

Break-even by outcome and fee

Billy Wagner [Refractor] #102: 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	$62.00	+$8.00	−$17.00	−$117
PSA 9	$56.24	+$2.24	−$22.76	−$123

Net = sale price − $29.00 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] #102: expected value of submitting by gem probability
Chance it gems	Expected sale	Expected net (standard fee)
25%	$57.68	−$21.32
50%	$59.12	−$19.88
75%	$60.56	−$18.44

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 →

Billy Wagner [Refractor] #102 graded prices by company and grade
Grade	Graded
9.5	$62.00
9	$56.24

Run your own numbers

Should I pay this?

Asking priceGrading fee

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