Ichiro is one of the most valuable signatures in baseball. It’s a proven fact that his international throngs of fans have deep pockets, and will pay through the nose to get his cards in their collection. Similar situations have happened with players like Hideo Nomo and Hideki Matsui, but nothing compared to what has been going on with a player who could be a hall of famer. Nomo was an international headline, but never had success even in the same zip code as Ichiro.

Now that Ichiro has been out of the hobby for signatures over the last few years, Leaf jumped at the opportunity to sign him to one of the most lucrative autograph contracts in the history of cards. His autographs will be in Leaf’s products for a long time ahead, and will have no issue helping Brian Grey get people on board for buying boxes. The first redemptions have started to hit with the release of Leaf Draft Baseball, and as you can see, the prices are higher than any one expected an unlicensed card to be at. As has never been seen in a long time, this is the power of rarity at work.

Ichiro Patch Auto Redemption – Ending Today

Ichiro Patch Auto Redemption – Ends Sunday

Ichiro Patch Auto Redemption – ENDED

Ichiro Patch Auto Redemption – BIN/BO

Even if Ichiro were to have a career ending injury tomorrow, and never play another game in his career, the value of these cards will never drop. Japanese fans are rabid collectors, and never forget the man that paved the way for close to 20 other ball players over the last few years. He is truly a giant of many talents and fans, and this is a great thing to happen to baseball cards. As his signatures become more available, its going to be interesting to see how the market fluctuates. I have a feeling these cards will go up, not down.