The one-dollar 2026 Bowman card we should all be buying
Remember last year, when your pal J. R. Fickle tipped you off to future Yankees ace Cam Schlittler — with the caveat that he had no real cards… but would soon?
And then he basically was awesome before his first card came out, leveling the playing field for all those non-Mail Day readers? Let’s try this again. Bowman Draft isn’t the most attractive set for investing in cards — being described casually as “Bowman paper” doesn’t exactly ooze cardboard sexiness.
But there is a pitcher in the Dodgers system who has his first card in the upcoming set and NOBODY is on him, despite the double-banger of having fantastic stats and — potentially — the most compelling story of the season. Patrick Copen is a 6’6”, 220 lb, 22 year-old starter for the Tulsa Drillers , LA’s Double-A affiliate. He currently has a 3.
31 ERA, 1. 26 WHIP, and 46 strikeouts in 33 ⅔ innings. He was the Texas League Pitcher of the Month in April .
He is an elite strikeout machine — last year he struck out 152 batters in 117 ⅔ IP. And he was permanently blinded in one eye two seasons ago. In 2024, Copen was hit in the face by a line drive.