1933 Goudey Lou Gehrig #160 Value & Price Guide

Lou Gehrig played 2,130 consecutive games. He hit .340 for his career. He won six World Series titles, two American League MVP awards, and a Triple Crown. And then, at age 36, he stood at a microphone in Yankee Stadium on July 4, 1939, and told 61,808 people he was the luckiest man on the face of the earth, even as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis was shutting down his body. He died two years later. His 1933 Goudey card #160 captures him before any of that sadness, in his prime, wearing the Yankees pinstripes, looking like the strongest man in baseball. Because he was.

The 1933 Goudey set is the foundation of pre-war baseball card collecting. It's the first major bubble gum card set, featuring 240 cards of the biggest names in the game. Babe Ruth appears four times. Gehrig appears twice, on cards #92 and #160. Of the two, #160 is generally the more sought-after, featuring a close-up portrait of Gehrig that shows his face clearly.

Quick Value Summary

• Item: 1933 Goudey Lou Gehrig #160

• Year: 1933

• Category: Sports Cards (Baseball)

• Condition Range:

  • PSA 1 (Poor): $1,500 - $3,000
  • PSA 2 (Good): $3,000 - $5,500
  • PSA 3 (Very Good): $5,000 - $9,000
  • PSA 4 (VG-EX): $8,000 - $14,000
  • PSA 5 (Excellent): $12,000 - $22,000
  • PSA 6 (EX-MT): $20,000 - $40,000
  • PSA 7 (Near Mint): $40,000 - $80,000
  • PSA 8+ (Near Mint-Mint): $100,000 - $250,000+

• Record Sale: A PSA 8.5 sold for over $200,000

• Rarity: Scarce in high grades. Approximately 1,800+ PSA-graded copies across all grades

The Story

The Goudey Gum Company of Boston launched their baseball card set in 1933, right in the depths of the Great Depression. A penny bought a stick of gum and one card. Kids bought them by the handful, traded them in schoolyards, flipped them against walls, and rubber-banded them into stacks. The cards were never meant to last. They were an incentive to sell chewing gum.

Gehrig was in his eighth full season with the Yankees when these cards hit the market. He would hit .334 that year with 32 home runs and 139 RBI. His consecutive games streak was already past 1,000. He was the steady, quiet counterpart to the flashy Babe Ruth, showing up every single day and producing numbers that would have made him the biggest star in the sport if Ruth hadn't been standing next to him.

Card #160 shows Gehrig from the shoulders up, looking slightly to his right, wearing his Yankees cap. The background is a solid orange-red. His name and "NEW YORK YANKEES" appear at the bottom. The back features a brief biography and an advertisement for Goudey Gum. It's a simple card by modern standards, but the combination of the player, the era, and the scarcity of high-grade survivors makes it one of the most valuable pre-war cards in existence.

How to Identify It

• Card Number: #160, printed on the back

• Front Design: Portrait of Gehrig in Yankees cap against colored background. "Lou Gehrig" and team name printed at bottom

• Back Design: Card number, player biography, and Goudey Gum Company advertisement. Text reads "Big League Chewing Gum"

• Dimensions: Approximately 2-3/8" x 2-7/8"

• Set: Part of the 240-card 1933 Goudey set

Common Confusions:

• Gehrig also appears in the 1933 Goudey set as card #92, which shows a full-body pose. Both cards are valuable, but #160 typically trades at a slight premium

• The 1934 Goudey set also includes Gehrig. Different set, different values

• Reprints exist, including authorized reprints from the 1980s and later. Genuine originals have period-appropriate cardstock and printing characteristics

Value by Condition

PSA 1 (Poor) - $1,500 to $3,000 The card is heavily worn, may have creases, staining, or missing small pieces. The image of Gehrig is recognizable but the card shows the wear of nearly a century. At this grade, you're buying the history and the player, not the condition.

PSA 2-3 (Good to Very Good) - $3,000 to $9,000 Moderate to significant wear. Corners are rounded, edges show wear, and there may be light creases. The card is complete and the image is clear. This is the range where most affordable Gehrig cards sit.

PSA 4 (VG-EX) - $8,000 to $14,000 The card shows moderate wear but retains decent eye appeal. Corners are slightly rounded, edges show minor wear. No major creases. This is a solid collector-grade example.

PSA 5 (Excellent) - $12,000 to $22,000 Minor wear visible but the card looks good. Colors are strong. Corners show only light rounding. This grade offers a nice balance of condition and affordability.

PSA 6 (EX-MT) - $20,000 to $40,000 The card starts to look genuinely nice. Sharp-ish corners, clean surfaces, strong colors. Values jump significantly here because the card enters display-quality territory.

PSA 7 (Near Mint) - $40,000 to $80,000 Only slight wear on corners and edges. Card looks crisp and vibrant. These are rare for 93-year-old cards that were made to sell gum to kids during the Depression.

PSA 8+ (Near Mint-Mint) - $100,000 to $250,000+ Exceptional preservation. Near-perfect corners, clean surfaces, strong centering. A PSA 8 or better 1933 Goudey Gehrig is a trophy card. Very few survive at this level.

Authentication and Fakes

• Reprints: The most common issue. Multiple authorized and unauthorized reprints have been produced over the decades. Genuine originals have specific cardstock thickness, print quality, and aging characteristics

• Trimming: Some cards have been trimmed to improve corner and edge appearance. Trimmed cards measure slightly smaller than standard dimensions. PSA and SGC detect this during grading

• Color Alteration: Some sellers enhance faded colors through chemical treatment or digital manipulation (for photographs). Examine the card in person under neutral lighting

• Professional Grading Required: Buy only PSA, SGC, or BGS certified examples for any purchase above $1,000

Where to Sell

• Heritage Auctions: The leading auction house for pre-war baseball cards. They handle the most significant Goudey material

• PWCC / Fanatics Collect: Strong platform for graded vintage cards

• Robert Edward Auctions: Specialized in vintage sports memorabilia and cards

• eBay: Active market for all grades, with strong comparable sales data

Estimated Selling Costs:

• PSA grading (if raw): $50-$100+ depending on declared value

• Auction commission: 10%-15%

• eBay fees: approximately 13%

• Insured shipping: $10-$30 for graded cards

Not sure about the condition of yours? Upload a photo to Curio Comp for a quick AI-powered estimate.

Explore More

The 1933 Goudey Lou Gehrig #160 is a penny card from the Depression that's now worth a house. It shows baseball's Iron Horse in his prime, before the diagnosis, before the speech, before the legend became a tragedy. For collectors, it's the quiet center of the most important pre-war baseball card set ever made. Browse all Sports Cards items ->

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