An Ohtani Rookie Auto Numbered to Five Just Sold for $2.44 Million. That Is a Record, and It Is Not a 1-of-1.
One of five 2018 Bowman Chrome Shohei Ohtani Red Refractor Autographs sold for $2,440,000 Saturday night at Goldin, a record for the card and a seven-figure result for a parallel with four siblings. Here is the full Goldin 100 leaderboard, from the $1.46 million Exquisite Jordan to the $500,200 Jaxson Dart redemption.
A Card Numbered to Five Just Sold Like a 1-of-1
On Saturday night, September 19, one of the five 2018 Bowman Chrome Shohei Ohtani Red Refractor Autographs sold for $2,440,000 in Goldin's Summer Goldin 100 auction. That price includes Goldin's 22 percent buyer's premium and came after 42 bids. Sports Collectors Daily called it a record for the card, and it is not close: no other 2018 Ohtani Red Refractor has ever sold publicly for a seven-figure number.
The copy that sold is serial-numbered 2/5, graded BGS 9.5 Gem Mint with all subgrades at 9.5 or 10, and carries a Beckett 9 autograph grade. That makes it the highest-quality example of the five known red parallels, which is the whole reason it separated from its siblings on price.
Why This Sale Matters More Than the Number
Most of the record sales you have read about this year were 1-of-1s: Logoman patches, SuperFractors, Debut Patch autos. This card is different. There are five of them. A $2.44 million result for a card with four siblings tells you the market is now pricing condition and provenance inside a short print run, not just uniqueness. The other four Red Refractors did not suddenly become $2 million cards, but every one of them just got a new ceiling to point at.
It also confirms that Ohtani's 2018 Bowman Chrome autograph is functioning as a true modern grail, the way the 2003-04 Exquisite LeBron rookie patch autos do for basketball. Those Exquisite cards were in the same auction, which makes for a useful comparison.
The Rest of the Goldin 100 Leaderboard
Only two lots finished above the Ohtani card, and both were trading card game items: the CGC 9 1998 Pikachu Illustrator at $2,806,271 and a PSA 10 1993 Alpha Black Lotus at $2,208,200. We covered both of those in yesterday's roundup. On the sports side, the big results were:
- 2003-04 Upper Deck Exquisite Michael Jordan Number Pieces patch auto /23 (PSA 8, PSA/DNA 10 auto): $1,464,000 on 48 bids.
- 2003-04 Exquisite LeBron James Emblems of Endorsement rookie patch auto /15 (BGS 8.5, Beckett 10 auto): $732,000.
- 2026 Panini Prizm World Cup Lamine Yamal Black Prizm 1/1 (PSA 10): $702,855.
- 2025 Topps Chrome Shohei Ohtani SuperFractor 1/1 (PSA 10): $701,500, which Sports Collectors Daily called "somewhat surprising" for a current-year base SuperFractor.
- 1958 Editora Aquarela Pele rookie (PSA 8): $671,000, the auction's top vintage sports card and one of three at that grade.
- Kevin Garnett photo-matched 2008 NBA Finals Game 6 Celtics jersey: $701,500, matching the Ohtani SuperFractor to the dollar.
- 2003-04 Exquisite LeBron James Rookie Patch Auto /99 (PSA Authentic): $488,000.
- Jaxson Dart 2025 Topps Chrome Rookie PREM1ERE Patch Auto 1/1 (unused redemption): $500,200, sold less than a week after his 23-of-29, three-touchdown Week 1 win over Dallas. A PSA 10 Dart Topps Chrome SuperFractor added $197,640.
Jordan Ephemera Is Its Own Market Now
Beyond the cards, a recently discovered Type I photograph from Nike's first Air Jordan campaign, shot by Chuck Kuhn in November 1984 and signed and inscribed by Jordan, brought $528,937 after 52 bids. A CGC 9.8 copy of the December 10, 1984 Sports Illustrated with Jordan's first professional cover sold for $378,200, the most ever paid for a graded magazine. If you own vintage Jordan paper of any kind, this is the auction to comp against.
What Collectors Can Actually Take From This
You are not buying a Red Refractor Ohtani. But the same auction also produced $320,860 for a PSA 8 Dylan Harper Bowman Chrome SuperFractor auto and $305,000 for a PSA 10 Wembanyama Topps Chrome image variation SuperFractor numbered 1/1. The pattern is consistent: colored parallels of the right player's true rookie-year autograph, in the highest available grade, are where the money is concentrating. On a collector budget, that argues for buying one better copy of a card you believe in rather than three average ones.
It also means grading matters more, not less. The Ohtani card that sold is the best of five. The next one that surfaces will be judged against it.
Want to see what high-end modern cards actually trade for in person before you chase one online? Use The Card Shop Finder to find a local shop that carries graded inventory and can walk you through comps.