Squirtle

Squirtle is card 68 of 83 in Team Rocket, released in April 2000, a Common. It is a Basic Water-type with 50 HP.

As a Basic Pokémon, Squirtle needs no prior evolution to put into play, which made it a practical card in the era's decks.

Illustrated by Atsuko Nishida. Nishida is the original designer of Pikachu and many Gen 1 Pokémon, and her card work has a soft, rounded warmth that suits the friendlier creatures.

The Pokédex entry printed on Squirtle reads: "Cute Pokémon that charms people with its innocent eyes. Loves swimming all day long."

The water starter. A bipedal blue turtle with a brown shell. Tactically the most defensive of the three starters in the games. Steady raw market driven by completionists. The Base Set Squirtle in PSA 10 has appreciated quietly without the headlines of its evolved forms.

Squirtle is a Common, so raw copies trade for very little and most of the print run survives. The only real value is in pristine, high-grade copies, where even a Common can reach low triple digits in 1st Edition PSA 10. See the live price above for the current figure by grade.

Team Rocket shipped in 1st Edition and Unlimited, with no Shadowless print. The 1st Edition Squirtle carries the Edition 1 stamp under the artwork and trades above the Unlimited copy in matching grade. The set is also home to Dark Raichu, the first Secret Rare ever printed.

Squirtle is the most forgiving tier to grade in the set. Centering on the framed border is the usual cap, and the soft Wizards-era cardstock picks up edge whitening easily, but high print runs keep clean copies affordable.

Raw copies of Squirtle are inexpensive enough that grading rarely pays unless you have a clearly pack-fresh example. For set completion, a clean sleeved Squirtle is the practical move.