As an Amazon Associate and eBay Partner, baseball.cards earns from qualifying purchases — the checkout price on the marketplace is the one that counts. Full disclosure

Team Guide · AL West

Athletics

One of the eight charter AL franchises, the Athletics have played in Philadelphia (1901-1954), Kansas City (1955-1967), and Oakland (1968-2024), and are currently transitioning to Sacramento and eventually Las Vegas. The card catalog spans Jimmie Foxx, Connie Mack, Catfish Hunter, Reggie Jackson, Rickey Henderson, the Bash Brothers, and the Moneyball era.

Shop Athletics cards: Team lots Vintage Rookies Graded slabs
City
Oakland
League
AL West
Founded
1901

A 124-Year Franchise in Transition

The Athletics are one of the eight charter American League franchises, founded in 1901 as the Philadelphia Athletics under manager and eventual owner Connie Mack. The franchise moved to Kansas City in 1955, then to Oakland in 1968, and is currently in a transitional phase — playing home games in Sacramento from 2025 forward while a new Las Vegas stadium is under construction. The team is officially branded “Athletics” without a city designation during this period.

The Athletics have won nine World Series titles — five in Philadelphia (1910, 1911, 1913, 1929, 1930), none in Kansas City, and four in Oakland (1972, 1973, 1974, 1989). Those nine titles and 15 pennants are the second-most in the American League, behind only the Yankees (Athletics, Wikipedia). For collectors, the A’s offer unusually deep pre-war content (Jimmie Foxx, Mickey Cochrane, Lefty Grove), a strong 1970s Oakland three-peat catalog, the Bash Brothers era with Canseco and McGwire, the Moneyball-era Hudson / Mulder / Zito teams, and a current rebuild roster transitioning out of Oakland.

This page walks through Athletics cards by era, including the significant Philadelphia pre-war period, and covers PC-building strategies across budgets.

Athletics Vintage Era (pre-1970, including Philadelphia and Kansas City)

  • 1933 Goudey Jimmie Foxx (#29 and #154, per the 1933 Goudey checklist) — Foxx appears twice in the set, and PSA 8+ copies of either are scarce and command the steepest premiums.
  • 1956 Topps Kansas City Athletics Team (#236) — the franchise’s first Topps team card after the move.
  • 1964 Topps Ken Harrelson — pre-Red Sox Harrelson.
  • 1965 Topps Kansas City Athletics Team (#151).
  • 1965 Topps Catfish Hunter (#526) — his rookie. PSA 9 is the grade that carries the premium.
  • 1969 Topps Reggie Jackson (#260) — his rookie (1969 Topps checklist), and the top Oakland-era card. PSA 8+ is the grade collectors target.

Athletics Modern Era (1970-2000)

  • 1980 Topps Rickey Henderson (#482) — his rookie (1980 Topps checklist). PSA 9 copies are readily available; PSA 10 is significantly scarcer and priced accordingly.
  • 1985 Topps Mark McGwire (#401, USA Baseball Team) — his official rookie. PSA 10 copies are the target.
  • 1986 Donruss Rated Rookie Jose Canseco (#39) — his rookie, widely collected. PSA 10 copies are affordable.

Athletics Contemporary Era (2001-2026)

  • 2011 Bowman Draft Picks & Prospects Sonny Gray Chrome Prospect Auto (#BCAP-SGR) — Athletics ace of the mid-2010s.
  • 2018 Bowman Draft Lawrence Butler (#BD-4) — post-2024 breakout, high demand.
  • 2020 Bowman Draft Tyler Soderstrom Chrome Draft Auto (#CDA-TS) — current Athletics core catcher-outfielder.
  • 2023 Bowman Draft Jacob Wilson Chrome Draft Auto (#CDA-JWI) — shortstop and active chase.
  • 2024 Bowman Draft Nick Kurtz 1st Bowman Auto — first-round first baseman, most recent flagship A’s prospect.

The players below have their own deep-dive guides on Baseball Cards. Each player page covers the full card catalog, key rookies, parallels to chase, and buying tips.

How to Build an Athletics PC

Starter collection: Current-year Bowman and Topps Chrome hobby boxes cover the current rebuild prospects. Add a PSA 9 1986 Donruss Canseco, a PSA 9 1985 Topps McGwire, and a raw 1980 Topps Rickey Henderson — a focused build of 60-80 Athletics cards including multiple Hall of Fame rookies.

Mid-tier collection: Target a PSA 9 1980 Topps Rickey Henderson, a PSA 9 1969 Topps Reggie Jackson, and PSA 10 copies of the 1985 Topps McGwire and 1986 Donruss Canseco. Sealed Bowman Draft hobby boxes add ongoing prospect coverage.

High-end collection: A PSA 7+ 1933 Goudey Jimmie Foxx, a PSA 9 Reggie Jackson 1969 Topps rookie, and a PSA 10 Rickey Henderson 1980 Topps rookie are the three-card franchise anchor. For deeper vintage, the second 1933 Goudey Foxx (#154 or #29) rounds out the Philadelphia-era PC.

Best Products for Athletics Fans

Current-year Bowman, Bowman Draft, Topps Chrome, and Topps Series 1 hobby boxes all feature Athletics players. The franchise’s deep pre-war catalog means sealed 1980s wax that delivered the Henderson, McGwire, and Canseco rookies remains historically relevant even when expensive. Amazon-listed sealed boxes supply the current and junk-wax catalog at affordable price points.

Athletics Team Cards

Topps base sets carried team cards from 1956 on. The Kansas City Athletics team cards in 1956 Topps (#236) and 1965 Topps (#151) are the vintage targets for team builders.

Athletics cards trade daily on eBay. Team lots are the fastest way to build a Athletics stack.

Athletics lots on eBay

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the most valuable Athletics card?
The 1933 Goudey Jimmie Foxx cards (#29 and #154) are the highest-ceiling Philadelphia Athletics cards, and PSA 8+ copies are scarce enough to sit well clear of the mid-grade tier. Reggie Jackson's 1969 Topps rookie (#260) is the top Oakland-era card. Rickey Henderson's 1980 Topps rookie (#482) and Mark McGwire's 1985 Topps USA Baseball Team rookie (#401) are the flagship modern Athletics cards.
Which modern Athletics cards should collectors chase?
Rickey Henderson's 1980 Topps rookie in PSA 9 is the cornerstone modern A's card. Jose Canseco's 1986 Donruss Rated Rookie and Mark McGwire's 1985 Topps USA Baseball Team rookie anchor the Bash Brothers era. For contemporary cards, Lawrence Butler's 2018 Bowman Draft card, Jacob Wilson's 2023 Bowman Draft Chrome autograph, and Tyler Soderstrom's 2020 Bowman Draft Chrome autograph are active targets.
How does the franchise relocation affect card values?
The 2024 move from Oakland to Sacramento (as a temporary home) and the eventual move to Las Vegas creates historical demarcation — Oakland Athletics cards (1968-2024) are now a finite population. Collectors have shown increased interest in Oakland-uniform cards of current players like Butler and Wilson since the relocation announcement, though long-term price effects remain uncertain.
Where can I find vintage Athletics team cards?
Topps base sets carried team cards starting in 1956. Kansas City Athletics team cards appear in 1956 Topps (#236) and 1965 Topps (#151). Current-year Bowman and Topps Chrome hobby boxes deliver Athletics players proportional to roster share.