Is Albert Pujols [Gold] #5 worth grading?

Baseball · Baseball Cards 2009 SP Authentic · full price guide →

Worth grading — even a PSA 9 beats raw

A Grade 9.5 Albert Pujols [Gold] #5 sells for $41.00 against $6.54 raw: a $34.46 spread, 6.3× the ungraded price. Even a PSA 9 ($37.00) 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): $6.54
Grade 9.5: $41.00
PSA 9: $37.00
Gem premium: 6.3×
As of: Sep 4, 2026

Break-even by outcome and fee

Albert Pujols [Gold] #5: 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	$41.00	+$9.46	−$15.54	−$116
PSA 9	$37.00	+$5.46	−$19.54	−$120
PSA 8	$15.43	−$16.11	−$41.11	−$141

Net = sale price − $6.54 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?

Albert Pujols [Gold] #5: expected value of submitting by gem probability
Chance it gems	Expected sale	Expected net (standard fee)
25%	$38.00	−$18.54
50%	$39.00	−$17.54
75%	$40.00	−$16.54

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 →

Albert Pujols [Gold] #5 graded prices by company and grade
Grade	Graded
9.5	$41.00
9	$37.00
8	$15.43
7	$7.50

Run your own numbers

Should I pay this?

Asking priceGrading fee

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