My Personal Top 10 List of the Best Baseball Cards in the 1980s

My Personal Top 10 List of the Best Baseball Cards in the 1980s:

1 - Rickey Henderson – 1980 Topps

2 - Cal Ripken Jr. – 1982 Topps Traded

3 - Roger Clemens – 1984 Fleer Update

4 - Kirby Puckett – 1984 Fleer Update

5 - Don Mattingly – 1984 Donruss

6 - Jose Canseco – 1986 Donruss

7 - Billy Ripken – 1989 Fleer

8 - Ken Griffey Jr. – 1989 Upper Deck

9 - Darryl Strawberry – 1983 Topps Traded

10 - Dwight Gooden – 1984 Fleer Update

 

Rickey Henderson’s rookie card was from the final Topps set produced before Donruss, Fleer and other card companies arrived on the scene beginning in 1981. Collectors and fans may not have much that much love for Rickey Henderson (due in no small part to his personal image) but his rookie card stands for the last vestiges of a hobby not diluted by the production of several rookie cards for each player.

Cal Ripken Jr.'s 1982 Topps Traded card is not a true rookie. However, it is perceived to be his fourth rookie card. Very limited production of this card emphasizes the value of it. This card has held its value for decades in large part because of the popularity of Cal Ripken Jr. It also represented a solo shot of Cal Ripken Jr. rather than the trio of rookies on one card common to Topps rookie cards in that era.

Roger Clemens’ Fleer Update card and Kirby Puckett’s Fleer Update card are virtually synonymous as far as hobby importance. The 1984 Fleer Update set is the most valuable and desired set/subset in the entire 1980s. The Roger Clemens Fleer Update card came out a year before all of his standard issue cards and it helped further introduce the “XRC” moniker in the industry.

Kirby Puckett’s Fleer Update almost always lagged a bit behind the Roger Clemens rookie in terms of desirability and value but it seemed to range in the $150-400 range (depending on condition and if it was graded) through the years. To date, it to has maintained its overall value in large measure because of the relative scarcity of Fleer Update in 1984 and the talent and popularity of the late Kirby Puckett.

Don Mattingly’s 1984 Donruss stands out. He had two other rookie cards – Topps and Fleer. But the Donruss version based on relative scarcity seemed to be a more interesting draw for hobbyists especially during the 1980s and early 1990s. At its height, the 1984 Donruss peaked around $100. It went down from there but it remains a popular card especially if highly graded.

Jose Canseco’s 1986 Donruss ushered in a different era as card companies stretched product out with mass production in ever increasing quantities. Regardless, Jose Canseco’s rookie represents a period of time where the A’s were everything and collectors could not get enough of the Bash Brothers. That magic never endured past the early 1990s but Jose Canseco’s rookie is the standard from this era.

Billy Ripken’s 1989 Fleer can be credited with sparking a roaring blaze in relation to error cards. Whether his bat's wording was an accident or not, that bat caused controversy. Fleer made several attempts to remedy the error and when it finally got it right, the craze who already entrenched itself firmly within the hobby. For those who hate error card crazes, Billy Ripken is not a popular figure.

Ken Griffey Jr.’s 1989 Upper Deck card is THE defining card of the 1980s. Upper Deck came out with what was at that time a revolutionary concept. Each card was holographically-enhanced. Each Upper Deck card had a clean white border and a modern feel to it that the other card companies did not have. The Griffey Jr. card in graded condition with a high mark of 9 or 10 remains extremely expensive and valuable.

Darryl Strawberry’s 1983 Topps Traded XRC card did have the XRC moniker before the Clemens and Puckett cards. It indeed was a big hit in the 1980s and early 1990s while Strawberry's career flourished. The desire for the card decreased substantially through the 1990s with the decline of Strawberry. For nostalgia buffs, the 1983 Strawberry remains a favorite regardless.

Dwight Gooden's 1984 Fleer Update is sometimes the forgotten card of that set. But it held its own in the 1980s and for a time was more valuable than either the Puckett or Clements XRC cards. Dwight Gooden’s popularity and the card values of his other many cards dropped through the 1990s as he only had flashes of brilliance following his years with the Mets.