Mike Schmidt Collection

Same front as the ‘84 version but with a different back.

The Topps 3D sets from 1985 and 1986 are big, weird, and undeniably cool. They're also too thick to fit inside a PSA holder, which means they don't appear in PSA's registry checklists. That bothered me. Not because I wanted them graded, but because I couldn't understand why a collectible's worthiness should be determined by whether it can fit inside a slab. The hobby has found room for buttons, magnets, stamps, coins, postcards, discs, and all manner of oddball issues. Yet these officially licensed Topps 3D cards are excluded for one simple reason: they're physically too thick. The more I thought about it, the more it made me question why I was maintaining a registry at all. A checklist should be about the player and the item. It should answer the question, "Does this belong in a Mike Schmidt collection?" It shouldn't answer the question, "Can this be encapsulated in a particular piece of plastic?" That realization was one of the reasons I built this site. I have nothing against grading. PSA has authenticated and protected many pieces in my collection. But I eventually decided that I didn't want someone else's checklist determining what mattered. If an item belongs in the story of Mike Schmidt's career, I want it represented here whether it can be graded, slabbed, cataloged, or not. In a strange way, the Topps 3D cards helped me rediscover what I enjoyed about collecting in the first place. They're not on a registry. They don't earn any points. They don't fill a slot. They're just really neat. And honestly, I think I'm happier, and certainly a little richer, for collecting what interests me instead of chasing a checklist.

One of these was listed on eBay for $5,800 in August, 2026. Good for the seller if he gets something near that. Rare as it may be, I think it's overpriced by about $5k.

There’s no mention of this card in any database that I’m aware of, but I know it exists because I know someone who has it. I once asked the guy what he’d consider selling it for. He didn’t reply, which is more polite than laughing in my face I suppose. At last check, he was selling another rare Schmidt for $3k. The fact that he hasn’t listed this mini red back tells me he probably wouldn’t let it go for less than that, but I’m betting the price tag would be much higher.

#WhiteWhale