Six ROYs, One Booklet: 2023 Topps Sterling Sale

When a single card brings together six modern MVP-level superstars, collectors tend to pay attention.

On December 19, 2025, a 2023 Topps Sterling "Sterling Sets Autographed Rookies Of The Year" Book Card #SSABC-PTHJAO featuring Buster Posey, Mike Trout, Bryce Harper, Aaron Judge, Ronald Acuña Jr., and Shohei Ohtani sold at Goldin for $12,200. Numbered just 4/5 and carrying six on-card autographs, this piece sits at the intersection of star power, scarcity, and modern hobby design.

Because this is a very low‑print multi‑auto booklet from a recent high‑end release, public sales are sparse. Available auction and marketplace data show extremely limited transaction history for this exact card and parallel. That’s typical for ultra‑short‑printed booklets (often called “SPs” or “short prints”), especially when they combine multiple elite names. In this kind of thin market, any sale helps re‑anchor price expectations.

Card overview

Let’s break down what this card is and why it matters.

• Year: 2023
• Product: Topps Sterling (a premium, low‑print baseball product)
• Subset: Sterling Sets – Autographed Rookies Of The Year Book Card
• Card number: #SSABC-PTHJAO
• Players featured:
  • Buster Posey (2010 NL Rookie of the Year, retired, 3× World Series champion)
  • Mike Trout (2012 AL Rookie of the Year, 3× MVP)
  • Bryce Harper (2012 NL Rookie of the Year, 2× MVP)
  • Aaron Judge (2017 AL Rookie of the Year, single‑season AL HR record)
  • Ronald Acuña Jr. (2018 NL Rookie of the Year, 40–70 season star)
  • Shohei Ohtani (2018 AL Rookie of the Year, 2‑way phenomenon, multiple MVPs)
• Serial numbering: #4/5 (only five copies of this version exist)
• Autographs: Six on‑card autos (players signed directly on the card surface, not on stickers)
• Format: Book card (opens like a booklet, typically with a multi‑panel layout)

No major grading company (PSA, BGS, SGC, CGC) grade was specified with this sale. Raw, high‑end booklets are common because thick, multi‑panel cards can be difficult to keep in top condition and more complex to grade.

Why this booklet matters to collectors

This card lives at a few important intersections in the modern hobby:

1. Rookie of the Year theme, across an era

Every player on this card won Rookie of the Year (ROY), and most went on to become MVP‑level faces of the sport. That ROY theme turns the card into a compact story about the past decade‑plus of baseball:

• Posey as the early‑2010s cornerstone and postseason hero.
• Trout and Harper as the hyped, franchise‑defining superstars of the 2010s.
• Judge and Acuña as power and speed headliners, each reshaping what a single season line can look like.
• Ohtani as a once‑in‑a‑century 2‑way player.

From a collector’s perspective, that clustering of accolades on a single piece is part of the appeal. Instead of betting on one player’s long‑term relevance, the card spreads narrative risk across several of the most decorated names of the era.

2. Modern ultra‑premium design

Topps Sterling sits in the “ultra modern, ultra premium” segment:

• Very limited cases and boxes.
• Heavy emphasis on autographs, patches, and booklets.
• Low serial numbering and themed inserts.

In this lane, collectors often focus less on base rookie cards and more on:

• Multi‑signatures (multi‑auto cards where two or more players sign the same piece).
• Booklets with large, visually impactful layouts.
• Short prints (SPs) and low‑serial parallels (like cards numbered to 5 or less).

A six‑signature ROY history lesson checks all those boxes.

3. Star power concentration

Individually, Trout, Harper, Judge, Acuña, and Ohtani each drive their own strong followings. Ohtani in particular has been at the center of hobby attention thanks to:

• Multiple MVP awards.
• Huge free‑agency headlines.
• Expanding global fan interest.

When a single card features Ohtani plus four other active or recently active hobby anchors and a beloved retired catcher in Posey, it becomes more of a “portfolio card” than a typical single‑player issue.

Market context and comps

Because this card is serial‑numbered to 5 and is a booklet, direct comps (short for “comparables” – similar items that have sold recently) are limited. Here’s what the available data and hobby patterns suggest:

• Exact card, same parallel (#/5): Public sales are scarce. It’s common for a handful of copies to land in long‑term collections quickly, which reduces visible resale activity.
• Other 2023 Topps Sterling multi‑auto ROY or award‑themed booklets: These generally show strong but irregular results, often closing well above standard single‑player autographs when they feature big‑name combinations.
• Related Ohtani / Trout / Judge multi‑auto booklets in other high‑end sets: Recent sales tend to range widely, heavily influenced by:
  • Serial number (e.g., /3 vs /10 vs /25).
  • Whether the autos are on‑card.
  • Which combination of stars appears.

Placed against that backdrop, a $12,200 hammer for this 6‑auto /5 booklet is directionally in line with what collectors might expect for a modern, star‑loaded, award‑themed multi‑auto in a premium product—neither obviously discount nor clearly record‑shattering based on the limited public sales data.

Because there are so few comparables, this Goldin sale effectively becomes one of the key reference points for the card and, to some extent, for similar modern ROY‑themed multi‑autos.

How this sale fits into the broader hobby

A few broader trends this card touches:

Multi‑auto and booklet demand

• Multi‑autograph cards compress a lot of value into one piece. You get multiple signatures without having to chase separate singles.
• Booklets (cards that open like a small book) have grown into their own niche: they’re harder to store and display, but they often feel like centerpiece items in a collection or PC (short for “personal collection”).

This sale underscores that there’s still healthy demand for thoughtfully themed, star‑studded booklets—even as more products and inserts enter the market each year.

Ultra modern scarcity

This is an ultra modern card (from 2023), but it behaves more like an older, scarce insert than a mass‑produced base card:

• Print run is hard‑capped at 5.
• All copies are likely to be tightly held once they find their way into the right collections.
• Graded population reports (or “pop reports” – counts of how many copies have been graded) are likely to stay thin, especially if many remain ungraded.

In that kind of environment, each sale becomes less about constant price discovery and more about sporadic price checks.

Player narratives and hobby sentiment

This card’s players are tied to many of the storylines that fuel collector interest:

• Long‑term career value: Trout, Harper, and Ohtani in particular draw Hall of Fame speculation and long‑range collecting.
• Record chasing: Judge and Acuña push the envelope on power and power‑speed combos.
• Legacy and nostalgia: Posey anchors the card with a completed, championship‑heavy career.

Any significant hobby or on‑field news for one or more of these players—awards, records, major postseason runs—can shift collector sentiment toward multi‑player pieces that tie them together.

Takeaways for collectors and small sellers

For collectors considering similar cards:

• Know your lane: Booklets and multi‑autos aren’t for everyone. They shine as display pieces or PC centerpieces more than as quick‑flip inventory.
• Condition awareness: Thick booklets are prone to edge, corner, and surface wear. If you buy raw, inspect them closely and store them in appropriate magnetic holders or booklet cases.
• Comps will be thin: With only five copies, you likely won’t find weekly or even monthly comps. Think in ranges and in relation to similar award‑themed or star‑cluster booklets rather than precise dollar predictions.

For small sellers:

• Auction timing and venue matter: A piece like this benefits from a platform like Goldin, which already has a strong audience for high‑end, modern baseball and Ohtani‑driven lots.
• Storytelling helps: When listing multi‑autos, clearly communicate the theme—here, “Rookies of the Year” across an era—and call out each player’s key achievements in plain language.

Where this 6‑auto ROY booklet sits now

The December 19, 2025 Goldin result at $12,200 doesn’t set a widely publicized record, but it does:

• Reinforce demand for Six‑star, on‑card, low‑serial ROY‑themed booklets in premium products.
• Provide one of the few clear price markers for this specific 2023 Topps Sterling Autographed Rookies Of The Year Book Card #SSABC-PTHJAO, numbered 4/5.
• Highlight how concentrated star power and thoughtful theming can keep ultra modern cards relevant even in a crowded release calendar.

For collectors who enjoy narrative‑driven pieces—and who like the idea of compressing an entire era’s Rookie of the Year story into a single item—this booklet is a clean, data‑backed example of what the modern high‑end baseball market is willing to pay.

As always, treat sales like this as reference points, not forecasts. The hobby can move with player health, performance, and broader market cycles. But as of its December 19, 2025 sale at Goldin, this six‑signature ROY book stands as one of the more notable multi‑auto showcases from 2023 Topps Sterling.