Bryce Harper, Under Armour, PSA team up for new shoe debut

In what might go down as the crossover event of the summer, collectibles and sports card grader PSA has teamed up with clothing juggernaut Under Armour and Philadelphia Phillies star Bryce Harper to begin their foray into the clothing game.

Under Armour has teamed up with PSA to launch a limited edition GEM MINT Harper 9 cleat in collaboration with Harper, a UA athlete. Shoe collectors are already familiar with collecting clothing, but this is the first time PSA will be using its grading label—one of the best-known icons in sports and collectibles—to cross over into fashion. The exclusive turf shoe will feature holographic details and an official PSA grading label on the heel.

In an exclusive interview, I spoke with Ryan Greene, the Director of Communications and Social Media with PSA. He noted that it was the first time that PSA branding would be present and visible on a Major League Baseball diamond.

“UA has been a fantastic partner to work with on this. They approached us in late 2023 about working with Bryce. To see this come to life after all this time is really incredible.

Harper was seen donning the mint-green turf shoes during infield practice prior to Monday night’s series opener against the visiting New York Yankees. Under Armour showed the design to Harper after initial designs were set, and he was “really excited about it” to say the least. Harper was seen talking about the turf shoes to a beat reporter with a big smile on his face.

The design itself is inspired by PSA’s top rating when grading cards – Gem Mint, or PSA 10, is given when a card is considered virtually perfect. The color scheme is inspired by mint, having almost a mint chocolate chip ice cream shade to it. It will feature holographic shoe details to connect back to the card collecting roots of the partnership.

All pairs include a Bryce Harper x PSA Harper 9 custom slabbed schematic card that’s authenticated and PSA holdered. Even better, there are 20 random pairs who’s card will be signed by Bryce Harper himself. A limited run of the shoes will be available online only on Thursday, August 1.

Card collecting is on the rise, once again, with players like the Phillies’ own Matt Strahm being heavily involved on his YouTube channel. Greene talked about the influence that the players themselves in the hobby’s resurgence:

“When you can connect the collecting hobby with the athlete themselves, it has a strong impact not only for the collectors – but for the sports fan that maybe isn’t a collector themselves. We have a lot of players that collect and submit their cards to us for grading on a regular basis”

This is not the first new idea PSA has rolled out this MLB season. Earlier this year, they partnered with some younger players – Bobby Witt Jr. and Corbin Carroll – to hold their own cards in their pockets during games – those cards were then signed and authenticated. Not surprising those players would get involved, as Greene told me “athletes collecting their own cards is common. (Mike) Trout, Witt Jr., and Carroll among others will send us variations of themselves. The community within the sport is growing at a steady rate.”

As of now, this is the only clothing collaboration you can expect on a MLB field, but PSA is open to any and all opportunities to bring unique experiences and collectibles to fans. Keep an eye on Bryce’s feet, and get yourself a strong internet connection to grab you a pair when they drop on Thursday.