It may sound ridiculous now, but the start of the 1987 baseball card collecting season was marked by a frenzy of scarcity.

Now, this doesn’t and never did apply to the 1987 Topps woodies that are so iconic these days. I remember going to a flea market in late December of 1986 and already being able to buy 5000-count boxes of ’87 Topps cards that dealers had chucked into their discard piles after extracting the stars.

But by Valentine’s Day of 1987, all of the new cards should have been on retail shelves across the America … they weren’t.

Again, Topps was everywhere, but depending on where you were, Fleer and Donruss were almost non-existent.

Word spread fast, too, and any boxes of Fleer or Donruss that did make their way to local shows sold for ever-escalating premiums. Packs that retailed at 35 cents quickly moved past 50 cents, then a dollar, and two, on their way to three bucks or more.

The interesting thing was that this scarcity seemed to be regional — in central Indiana, we had some pockets of Donruss wax but Fleer was like the Loch Ness monster: often discussed but seldom seen. The situation was reversed in other areas of the country.

These circumstances led to the first large-scale networking that I remember happening within the hobby. The ads in Sports Collectors Digest were sprinkled with collectors and dealers offering up their excess Donruss wax for an equal quantity of Fleer product, and vice versa.

This deal-making helped to level out the market a tad, but there were still plenty of collectors scrambling for Donruss or Fleer cards, or both, by the time the season began.

And even well into the summer, those cards carried a significant premium over their Topps counterparts.

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Power Surge

Of course, the summer of 1987 was also notable because it marked the return of serious, widespread power to the game for the first time in decades.

Towering home runs were flying out of ballparks at a record pace, and old-school fans cried foul: the balls were juiced, the mound was lower, the umpires were rigging at-bats, batters were too muscular.

Plenty of explanations were proffered for the power surge, but the upshot was that fans loved the renewed fireworks. We always do, right?

And card collectors, especially, embraced the new generation of sluggers, even if some of them were old favorites like Andre Dawson, by then toiling for the Chicago Cubs in friendly Wrigley Field.

But the one guy who really captured our imaginations was Mark McGwire of the Oakland A’s.

Just a year after teammate Jose Canseco had nearly toppled the rookie home run record — Jose finished with 37 to Wally Berger‘s 38 for the 1930 Boston Braves — McGwire entered the All-Star break with 33 dingers.

This young giant might not just eclipse Berger’s mark but also seemed to have a bead on Roger Maris‘ single-season home run record of 61.

The marriage of baseball card scarcity and monstrous young power was pure gold.

Now, we already had a McGwire card to chase in the form of his 1985 Topps Olympics card, but it had its detractors. For one thing, it wasn’t very attractive — it didn’t even show him in his A’s uniform.

For another, it was a Topps card, which at the time gave it the stigma as being of lower quality, from a production standpoint, than Fleer or Donruss products.

Despite those drawbacks, that 1985 McGwire took off and priced many younger collectors out of the Big Mac market.

But those hobbyists could turn their attentions to current-year product because both Topps and Donruss had included him in their base sets.

The Topps card sold well and rose in value, but it suffered from the perceived higher quality of the Donruss issue in general and from the fact that it was McGwire’s second Topps card. Fleer whiffed completely and would have to wait until their Update set after the season to join the Big Mac party.

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A Clear Winner

So collectors turned to the 1987 Donruss Mark McGwire Rated Rookies card in droves.

As McGwire kept slamming balls into the Oakland night, we soaked up any and all available Donruss wax like a Mojave sponge dropped into the Great Salt Lake.

The cost of ownership for that hunk of cardboard rose to $5 and then to $7, $10, and more. By the time McGwire ended the season with 49 homers and the American League Rookie of the Year award, it looked like the card would go up in value forever.

Subsequent years saw Big Mac bounce up and down in production and popularity until he put it all together with the St. Loius Cardinals in the late 1990s, including setting a new single-season mark with 70 home runs in 1998.

By then, we knew that none of the 1987 products were as limited as we had thought they were, but McGwire’s late march through the record books and past career homers gave his rookie cards new life.

Things aren’t always as they seem, of course, and much of the sparkle has been rubbed off Big Mac’s accomplishments by the taint of the Steroid Era.

Today, you can buy his 1987 Donruss rookie card for a couple bucks a pop in solid ungraded condition.

But for anyone who lived through the McGwire-and-Donruss boom the first time around, we know there is more to the card. The mere sight of Big Mac in his batting stance in front of hundreds of empty stadium seats, with the Rated Rookies logo and the swatches of baseballs embedded in black border, punctuated by the bright red alarm bar at the bottom of the card makes our breath catch.

Because we remember it all.

And, for all it meant and all it still means, we know this is the best card issued in 1987.

(Read all about this 30-day challenge — and jump in on the fun — right here.)

You might also enjoy our complete rundown of Mark McGwire rookie cards.

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A (probably) incomplete listing of his pasteboards from that year include:

• 1983 Fleer #81
• 1983 Fleer Star Stickers #26
• 1983 Donruss #90
• 1983 Donruss Action All-Stars #38
• 1983 Topps #200
• 1983 Topps #201 – Super Veteran
• 1983 Topps #386 – All-Star
• 1983 Topps #651 California Angels Team Leaders
• 1983 Topps Glossy Send-Ins #29
• 1983 Topps Stickers #39

Before that summer, I was only vaguely aware of Carew — or any other player — but these cards made me feel like I knew who he was, at least a little.

The Donruss and Topps base issues told me this was a man serious about fielding his position, even though his lithe body and in-the-dirt crouch made me think he was a second baseman.

I would later find out that he did, indeed, man the middle of the infield during his most productive years.

The base Fleer card, Topps Glossy, and Donruss All-Star inset told me that he was a focused batsman.

And, holy cow, the Topps Angels Team Leaders card and the backs of all his base cards, showed me the result of that focus. It didn’t take me long to realize that the cardboard I held in my chubby little hands depicted a living legend who could bang out 200 hits a season like he was mowing the lawn.

But Carew’s Topps All-Star card told me it didn’t all come easy.

There he is, rounding the bin toward 40 years old, wrapped up in a foil-lined sweatsuit with his Angels jersey overtop and armed with both his fielding cap and his batting helmet. This was a man clearly ready to battle age and pitchers with equal ferocity as he mounted his assault on 3000 hits and a Cooperstown plaque.

Through it all, there was an ease in his posture and a flame in his eyes that told me he loved what he was doing, that he didn’t want to be anywhere else.

And, every once in a while, as on that All-Star card or in profile as the Angels’ batting leader from 1982, Carew would flash his big, happy grin. 

“Can you believe I get to play baseball for a living?” he seemed to be asking the photographer.

To my 11-year-old eyes, nothing seemed more natural. Judging by the backs of his baseball cards, Rod Carew had been playing baseball forever.

And judging by the fronts of his baseball cards, Rod Carew would go on playing baseball forever.

Of course, we’re all human, even our Wax Pack Gods.

Sometimes, forever doesn’t last nearly as long as we thought it would, or as we had hoped.

Rod Carew only played two more seasons after that barrage of 1983 cards, and he never did hit .300 again.

He did collect his 3000th Big League hit in 1985, though.

He played his final game four days after his 40th birthday.

Carew was voted into the Hall of Fame in 1991, and more or less disappeared from public life until his recent health problems reminded us of how great he was and how human we all are.

We stop being great in our chosen fields. We get old. Sometimes, we get sick.

But for a generation of collectors, Rod Carew will always be out there in the field, turning the gears on the baseball fountain of youth under the California sun.

Just like he is in our cardboard dreams.

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How is a Wade Boggs baseball card like a 15th-century refrigerator drawing?

Well …

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to observe some of the world’s great masters in their “natural habitats” — the places where they prepared for and carried out their legendary work?

I mean …

Imagine being able to sneak into Einstein’s chalkboardatorium and observing the master from under a desk …

Or spying on Nikola Tesla from behind a lab bench as he goes all Frankenstein with his magical, flashing arcs …

Or sneaking into a pew to watch Michelangelo finish off the Sistine Chapel …

Or, if you’re a baseball fan, witnessing one the world’s greatest hitters hone his craft in preparation for the on-field battles to come.

Witnessing History from the Backend

One of the beautiful things about baseball — and there are so many! — is that, not only can we go to the ballpark to watch our heroes play, but we can also go there to watch them get ready to play.

If you’re lucky enough to take in a Major League batting practice, then you’re in good company — Einstein’s homework partner, Tesla’s lab partner, Michelangelo’s mother who undoubtedly scolded him daily to stop drawing on the walls and use paper or papyrus or whatever they hung on their fridges back then.

(Yes, she died when he was six, but I’ll bet he was already artsing up the joint by that point.)

They all witnessed the masters practicing their craft, and so have you.

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But not everyone can make it to a Big League park, and almost none of us can make it to a Big League park often enough to slake our thirst for the diamond.

We need a refresher.

We need something permanent to remind us what the game is all about and what our conquering athletes go through to keep their skill sharp and vanquish the enemy from their green cathedrals.

OK, yes, that’s a bit dramatic … but this is baseball we’re talking about here, darn it.

And when it came to hitting a baseball, Wade Boggs belonged to a select group of players who analyzed and squinted and adjusted and planned and tuned every possible aspect of the batting game until it screamed for mercy.

You know, guys like Ty Cobb, Ted Williams, and Tony Gwynn.

They were talented.

They were tough.

They had hawk-like eyesight.

But maybe more than anything else, they had superhuman tenacity.

Not just when they stood in the batter’s box against the best pitchers of their era, though these hitters fought tooth-and-nail to make every plate appearance a productive one.

Most Major Leaguer can hang (pretty) tough for the few minutes it takes to face a pitcher, though.

Where these Hall of Famers really gained their edge was outside the lines — reading scouting reports about the pitchers and teams they’d face, refining their swings, working out, watching video.

And standing in the cage, putting all that together.

Immortalizing the Process

While thousands, maybe millions, of people had the opportunity to see Cobb, Williams, Gwynn, Boggs and other historically great hitters take their hacks in batting practice, many millions more never did or will.

But we always have our baseball cards, and card companies through the decades have delighted us with little swatches of cardboard showing Big Leaguers prepping for games with a netted background (see our batting-cages-on-cards post here).

In 1983, no hitter in baseball was more prepared for his battles with pitchers than Wade Boggs.

After six full seasons in the minor leagues, Boggs had finally made the Boston Red Sox roster in 1982 and batted a whopping .349 over 104 games split mostly between first and third base.

No one really noticed that gaudy figure, though, because Boggs had too few at-bats to qualify for the batting race, which was a three-man scrum between Willie Wilson (.332), Robin Yount (.331 and the AL MVP award), and Al Oliver (.331).

Plus, Boggs only connected for five home runs, not exactly the kind of stuff to send fans or collectors into a froth.

The lack of publicity and hype didn’t slow down Boggs, and he spent the winter and the next spring and every day that summer doing what he always did — preparing.

Practicing.

Hitting the cage.

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Boggs’ obsession paid off in 1983 as he came out of “nowhere” to lead the Majors in batting average with an astounding .361.

Now fans and collectors everywhere took notice, despite the fact that Boggs once again hit just five homers.

That didn’t matter when you were the new Ted Williams, when you were the most disciplined hitter in a generation, when you might be the next guy to hit .400.

We all wanted to know Boggs’ secrets, and reporters peppered him for information about how he was able to do that.

In the midst of all the hoopla that comes watching greatness unfold on the diamond, the card companies were busy preparing for their 1984 issues.

Boggs would be featured prominently in all of them, of course — he was a bona fide superstar, for goodness sake.

But each manufacturer took a different approach when it came time to select photos for those 1984 sets.

Fleer went with a gloved Boggs taking a throw during warm-ups or between innings.

Topps chose a hacking, in-game batting scene that is classic Boggs.

And Donruss?

Well, Donruss decided to give us a peek under the covers, a glimpse through the cracked door of Boggs’ workshop.

Because, there on 1984 Donruss card #151, Wade Anthony Boggs stands with his arms cocked, his head straight ahead, and his eyes locked in on an unseen pitcher.

Behind him, batting cage netting protects onlookers from the foul balls that Boggs probably won’t generate anyway.

Welcome to the Wade Boggs Laboratory of Hitting, where hard work was transformed into baseball magic.

Thanks to your baseball cards, you can visit anytime you want.

1984 Donruss Wade Boggs (#151) Value:

PSA 10: $95-110

PSA 9: $20-30

raw: $1-5

(Check out our other player card posts here.)

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The perception of scarcity plagued these cards for years, but by the mid 1990s, we knew the truth — there were plenty to go around, and then some.

But, while 1987 Donruss never climbed through the stratosphere from a value standpoint, that doesn’t mean they’re worthless.

In fact, just about every ’87 Donruss has something going for it, and we’ve had fun with several of them over the years.

And, even with the overproduction of a set heading into the Junk Wax Era, a handful of these black-bordered classics still trade for decent prices on a regular basis.

What follows, then, is a list of the most valuable 1987 Donruss baseball cards in PSA 9 condition, as culled from actual recent sales as listed in PSA’s Auction Prices Realized tool.

Let’s dig in!

(Note: The sections below contain affiliate links to eBay and Amazon listings for the cards being discussed. Check out our full series of posts on the history of Donruss baseball cards.)

25) 1987 Donruss Barry Larkin Rookie Card (#492)

Barry Larkin came to the Cincinnati Reds among a flurry of young players who were going to lead Cincy to a string of World Series titles …

Eric Davis …

Kal Daniels …

Tom Browning …

Kurt Stillwell/Jeff Treadway …

Paul O’Neill …

And on and on.

They would bring glory back to the Riverfront and ride into Cooperstown together.

That never really panned out, but Lark sure did, collecting more than 2300 hits in a 19-year career spent entirely with the Reds.

Oh, and the 1995 NL MVP award.

Oh, and the Reds won the 1990 Fall Classic with Larkin at shortstop.

Oh, and Larkin made the Hall of Fame cut in 2012.

So, what does a 1987 Donruss rookie card with that kind of pedigree behind it bring these days?

Well…

Value: $8-12

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24) 1987 Donruss David Cone Rookie Card (#502)

Aside from being a rookie card in a pretty snazzy set just as rookie card mania *really* started to heat up, this Cone card didn’t really inspire a ton of collector interest when it was issued.

That began to change a couple years down the road, after a trade to the Mets and a 20-3 record in 1988 revealed the young strikeout artist to be a Cy Young candidate.

And, though, Cone’s greatness came at us in fits and starts over the years, the fact remains that he was one of the top starters of his generation with an outside shot to still make the Hall of Fame cut.

If he ever does, his RCs will see a resurgence.

Value: $8-12

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23) 1987 Donruss Reggie Jackson (#210)

In December of 1986, Reggie Jackson signed a free agent contract with the Oakland A’s.

Proud owner of 548 career home runs and the well-deserved title of Mr. October, Reggie had nothing left to prove.

Still, winding down his career with Oakland provided Jackson a fitting homecoming for his farewell tour, and gave collectors another round of cards to pull from our wax packs.

Value: $8-12

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22) 1987 Donruss Kirby Puckett (#149)

If Puckett got collectors excited with his 31 HR/96 RBI/.328 breakout in 1986 – and he did – then he had us absolutely giddy by the end of 1987.

In that storied season, Puck was the sparkplug firing the Twins’ incredible run to a World Series title and forever reserved his parking spot in dealer cases across the land.

Value: $10-12

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21) 1987 Donruss Will Clark Rookie Card (#66)

One of the more vocal critics of the dudes who rollicked through the so-called “Steroid Era” was Will Clark.

You might call it sour grapes, but the truth is that Will the Thrill put up some pretty hefty numbers of his own early in his career with the San Francisco Giants.

How hefty?

Try 35 home runs in 1987, plus 29 in 1988 and 23 in 1989, with bells and whistles that included lots of walks, climbing RBI totals, and one of the most beautiful lefty swings of his era.

Those were big tallies in Candlestick Park in the 1980s, and then Clark’s power started to decline.

He stuck around until 2000, long enough to see oldsters like McGwire and Barry Bonds start to actually pick up their homer pace as they aged.

And Clark was quick to point out their shenigans.

In the end, Clark pounded out 284 home runs among his 2176 hits — a great career, but shy of the big-bopper stats we’ve come to expect from Hall of Fame first basemen.

Value: $10-15

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20) 1987 Donruss Pete Rose (#186)

Pete Rose sort of falls into the same bucket as Nolan Ryan — if Pete’s in a set, he’s probably going to be among the most valuable cards.

Whether this is true despite the controversy around his sports betting and lifetime suspension from baseball, or because of it, is open for debate.

What’s not up in the air is that Pete Rose remains one of the most talked-about athletes of all-time, and thousands of collectors still clamor for his cardboard.

Value: $10-15

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19) 1987 Donruss Jose Canseco (#97)

Jose Canseco entered the 1986 season with all sorts of hype swirling around him, thanks to a stellar minor league showing and five home runs during a 29-game cup of coffee to end the 1985 season.

The young slugger more than lived up to those lofty expectations, though, bashing 33 homers and driving in 117 runs for the A’s to overtake wunderkind Wally Joyner and nab AL Rookie of the Year honors.

Needless to say, Canseco’s cards were among the hottest in the 1987 sets, even though he had rookie cards in the 1986 Fleer and 1986 Donruss issues.

And, though Jose’s bright star eventually fizzled in the heat of the steroid scandal (and some ridiculousness on his own part), he maintains enough hobby swagger to appear on lists like this one.

Value: $10-15

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18) 1987 Donruss Eric Davis (#265)

After struggling to stick in the majors in 1984 and 1985, Eric Davis burst onto the Cincinnati summer like a bowl of radioactive chili during the summer of 1986.

In just 132 games, Davis hit 27 home runs and stole 80 bases to leave Reds fans fantasizing about what the slender young man might do over the course of a full season.

And, all these years later, we’re still wondering the same thing – only once did Davis play in more games than he had in that breakout season, and, even then, he mustered just 135 appearances in 1988.

Still, Davis was a monster when he WAS on the field, even copping a trio of Gold Gloves for his work in centerfield.

For all the great things he accomplished on a baseball diamond, and for all the grandiose “what ifs” that his name conjers, Eric the Red maintains a strong hobby following even today.

Value: $10-15

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17) 1987 Donruss Jose Canseco Diamond King (#6)

There were few players who lit up the hobby during the ‘80s like Canseco did, and he was for sure the hottest name around coming into 1987 (with the possible exception of Don Mattingly in some circles).

So, if you were a baseball card company still trying to get your footing and chip away at the market leader, wouldn’t YOU want to capitalize on that hype wave any way you could?

I sure would.

And Donruss wanted the same.

For Big D, part of “any way you could” included the stellar paintings of Dick Perez, so *of course* they made Jose one of their Diamond Kings.

This one still feels special today, even after the slugger’s fall from grace.

Value: $10-15

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16) 1987 Donruss Wade Boggs (#252)

Boggs won his third batting title in four seasons in 1986, hitting a fairly outrageous .357 while also drawing a majors-leading 105 walks.

In 1987, Chicken Man joined the power brigade, smashing a career-high 24 dingers and driving in 89 runs while still managing to raise his average to .363 to cop yet another crown.

So, yeah, Wade Boggs was popular with collectors … still is! You’ll regularly find cards from his prime – like this black-bordered beauty – on lists like this one.

Value: $10-15

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15) 1987 Donruss George Brett (#54)

After leading the Royals to a World Series title in 1985, George Brett found himself worse for the wear of that 155-game season topped off by a long October.

To wit, he managed just 124 and 115 appearances in 1986 and 1987, respectively, and his batting average “slipped” to .290 both years.

Not of that mattered a bit to collectors, though, as Mullet had long since established himself as a hobby icon, and even then-new cards like his 1987 Donruss were popular pulls.

Still are.

Value: $10-15

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14) 1987 Donruss Mike Schmidt (#139)

After a few years of being merely a great, All-Star-type player following his back-to-back MVP seasons in 1980 and 1981, 36-year-old Mike Schmidt cranked up his game again in 1986.

That summer, he led the National League with 37 home runs and 119 RBI, and that fall, he collected his third MVP award.

He’d follow up with 35 taters in 1987, more than enough to keep his cards in the “nice pull” category season long … and for decades on end.

Value: $10-15

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13) 1987 Donruss Ryne Sandberg (#77)

Sandberg copped the 1984 NL MVP award for his role in leading the Cubs to their first division title, immediately establishing himself as a hobby darling.

The next few years weren’t quite as bright for the future Hall of Famer, as his offensive production slid more toward league-average than superstar even as he maintained his status as a perennial All-Star and Gold Glove second basemen.

The combination – and the promise of more – was enough to keep his cards simmering along until the Cubs started winning again in the late 1980s.

Then, when Ryno led the NL with 40 homers in 1990, his legend was forever cemented.

Value: $10-15

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12) 1987 Donruss Mark McGwire Rated Rookie (#46)

Nobody knew anything about androstenedione in 1987, and very few fans knew anything at all about steroids.

If you ever saw “PED,” chances are it was just a misspelling for everyone’s favorite funky candy, PEZ.

What we did know in that long-ago summer was that Mark McGwire could hit the stuffing out of a baseball.

All told, he went deep 49 times in 1987 to set the rookie record that stood until Aaron Judge undid it in 2017. Along the way, Big Mac’s cards rose to the top of the hobby Hot List, and this Donruss Rated Rookie beauty trailed only McGwire’s 1985 Topps Team USA issue in value and popularity.

Value: $15-20

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11) 1987 Donruss Roberto Clemente Puzzle Card (#612)

Donruss cards didn’t come with bubble gum — they came with puzzle cards.

As in, each wax pack had three pieces of a puzzle, and if you collected enough pieces, you could put the whole thing together to see a Perez-Steele rendering of a baseball great.

And they don’t come a whole lot greater than 1987’s subject, Roberto Clemente, whose legend and hobby sway seem to grow with each passing year.

But you didn’t have to collect all the puzzle pieces to get a gander of the full Clemente painting in 1987 — all you had to do was score card #612.

Value: $15-20

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10) 1987 Donruss Tony Gwynn (#64)

When is a .329 batting average a disappointment?

Hardly ever, really, but you can be sure Tony Gwynn and his fans were hoping for more in 1986, when that BA lost out on a hitting crown to Tim Raines (.334).

Never fear, though, because Mr. Padre hit .370 in ‘87, good enough for the second of eight National League batting titles, and more than enough to ensure his cards would forever appear on lists like this one.

Value: $15-20

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9) 1987 Donruss Tom Seaver (#375)

The first time collectors caught sight of the Red Sox version of Tom Seaver in a wax pack, we were already looking at a career capper … even if we didn’t know it yet.

Indeed, Seaver pitched in the minors for his baseball-home Mets early in the summer of 1987 before calling it a career in June.

And, suddenly, not only was this Donruss card super strange looking, plunking down an all-time great in a very unfamiliar uniform, but it was also a bona fide cardboard hunk of history.

Value: $15-20

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8) 1987 Donruss Benito Santiago Rated Rookie (#31)

Plenty of Donruss’s Rated Rookies picks fell completely flat over the years, which isn’t at all surprising given the difficulty of predicting baseball futures and that Donruss was trying to peg twenty winners each year.

In 1987, though, they hit on all cylinders when it came to Benito Santiago, who went on to win the National League Rookie of the Year award that season and spent several years as one of the very best catchers in the majors.

Value: $15-20

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7) 1987 Donruss Don Mattingly (#52)

This was primetime Mattingly, and there was no hotter name in the game or the hobby than Donnie Baseball when this card debuted.

After winning a surprise batting title in 1984, Mattingly copped American League MVP honors in 1985 and was arguably even better in 1986. The summer of 1987 proved to be yet another banner season for the Yankees captain as he marched inexorably toward the Hall of Fame.

Of course, back troubles led to a steep decline phase that sapped his Cooperstown candidacy, but Mattingly’s legacy in the hobby was already well secured.

Value: $15-25

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6) 1987 Donruss Cal Ripken (#89)

The 1987 Donruss Cal Ripken is not a blazing rookie card.

It’s not from an “important” year, such as an MVP campaign, or the year Ripken broke Lou Gehrig‘s consecutive games-played streak.

All this card is, is a mid-career card of a gosh-darn living legend and one of the greatest players of all-time.

Value: $20-25

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5) 1987 Donruss Barry Bonds Rookie Card (#361)

Yeah, you knew Barry Bonds would make this list, right?

Look, you’ve heard it all before, but Bonds did stuff in the 2000s that were pretty much unfathomable … and still are.

Right, I know — PEDs. But (and you’ve heard this before, too), Bonds was a Hall of Famer before he ever took aim on Roger Maris, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Babe Ruth, and, ultimately, Hank Aaron.

Bonds’ first Donruss card was in The Rookies from 1986, but this one is his base RC.

Value: $20-25

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4) 1987 Donruss Rickey Henderson (#228)

Henderson was already the premier speedburner and leadoff hitter in the game by the mid-1980s, but he added a power element to his game once he settled into the Yankees lineup.

And that’s where we find the Man of Steal on this card, fresh off a new career high in home runs (28, a total he matched in 1990, yet still a threat to swipe 100 bases in any given season.

No wonder this card – and pretty much every other Rickey – stands near the top of the value heap.

Value: $20-25

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3) 1987 Donruss Nolan Ryan (#138)

If you’ve ready any of my other articles on card values, then you’ve heard this before, but …

When Nolan Ryan appears in a baseball card set issued pretty much any time from 1968 through the mid-1990s, you can bet he’s going to make the list of most valuable cards in that set.

This 1987 Donruss card, issue during Ryan’s last year with the Houston Astros, is no exception.

Though he turned 40 that year and plenty of folks had written him off, The Ryan Express had plenty of gas left in his tank.

Value: $20-30

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2) 1987 Donruss Greg Maddux Rated Rookie (#36)

Greg Maddux look like Ferris Bueller with a mascara mustache, or maybe your local pizza delivery boy, on his 1987 Donruss Rated Rookie card.

But even then, the future Hall of Famer was starting to make waves in the hobby.

For starters, he was a Rated Rookie, and that was enough to get us thinking hard about a guy back in those days.

For another thing, Maddux had just landed a spot in the Chicago Cubs rotation and was a year out from turning in his first big season — 18-8, 3.18 ERA, an All-Star selection for the 1988 Cubs club that played the first night games at Wrigley Field.

After that, of course, it was pretty much a straight shot into Cooperstown for The Professor.

Value: $25-30

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1) 1987 Donruss Bo Jackson Rated Rookie (#35)

In the mid to late 1980s, there were few hotter athletes in the hobby than Bo Jackson.

Sure, in 1987, we had big-time sluggers like Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco lighting up the boards, all-around greats like Don Mattingly and Ryne Sandberg wowing us with their excellence, and fireballers like Roger Clemens and Nolan Ryan blowing our doors off.

But Bo Jackson could do, like, anything on the diamond. And on the gridiron.

Ultimately, a football injury curtailed his career in both sports, but Bo’s cards remain popular items among collectors who remember how exciting it was to watch a guy we thought just might make the Hall of Fame … twice!

Value: $30-40

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This post is part of a series — check out our full list of posts about valuable Donruss baseball cards!

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Well, if you said, “yes” — hmmm, you just might be alone in that opinion.

The good news in that case would be that you won’t have much trouble laying your hands on plenty of these beauties. Because, truth is, 1989 Donruss was produced in HUGE quantities that make them pretty easy to find even 30+ years later.

But that doesn’t mean every 1989 Donruss baseball card is worthless. In fact, the cards below can fetch decent prices on eBay, provided you’re aiming for copies in top-notch graded condition.

Without further adieu, then, here is the rundown of the most valuable 1989 Donruss baseball cards, based on actual sales prices for PSA 9 specimens.

(Note: The following sections contain affiliate links to Amazon and eBay listings for the cards being discussed. Check out our full series of posts on the history of Donruss baseball cards.)

26) 1989 Donruss Robin Yount (#55)

Robin Yount sort of slid into the background among his fellow superstars after the glow of his 1982 MVP campaign wore off.

That all changed in the summer of 1989, though, when Yount – having moved from shortstop to centerfield – once again put up a monster season that eventually landed him more MVP hardware.

It was enough to get his cardboard moving again as collectors realized that this man was headed toward 3000 career hits … and the Hall of Fame.

Value: $5-10

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25) 1989 Donruss Bo Jackson (#208)

Bo Jackson could do pretty much whatever he wanted on the baseball diamond once he set his mind to it.

So Donruss went with him … sneaking around for a bunt attempt.

Not extremely awe-inspiring or majestic, but different, at least.

Value: $8-10

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24) 1989 Donruss Kirby Puckett (#182)

After helping the Twins to a World Series title in 1987, Kirby Puckett upped his personal game in 1988, batting .356 with 24 home runs and 121 RBI.

Suffice it to say, Puck was one of the most popular cards in the 1989 sets, and he nailed down that honor by winning his only American League batting crown that summer.

It was just one more step on his path to the Hall of Fame and hobby immortality.

Value: $8-10

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23) 1989 Donruss Roberto Alomar (#246)

The son of a former major leaguer and the brother of a top catching prospect, Roberto Alomar entered the 1989 season fresh off a solid rookie season and with plenty of hype surrounding him.

He’d eventually pretty much live up to expectations, crafting a Hall of Fame career and ensuring that his cards maintain a strong collector base for decades to come.

Value: $8-10

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22) 1989 Donruss Mark McGwire (#95)

You don’t hit 49 home runs as a rookie without causing quite a stir among collectors.

But Big Mac didn’t just *stir* the hobby – he toppled the whole darn applecart on the strength of his Ruthian home runs and sun-hot rookie cards from 1985 and 1987.

And, even though his power took a step back in 1988, his cards were still huge deals when the 1989 sets debuted.

They still are, regardless of the PED stain that seems likely to keep him out of the Hall of Fame forever.

Value: $8-12

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21) 1989 Donruss Jose Canseco (#91)

Canseco saw a big hunk of his limelight sucked up by rookie teammate Mark McGwire in 1987, but he didn’t let that get him down.

Instead, Jose went out and recorded the first 40-40 season ever in 1988, copping AL MVP honors in the process and leading the A’s to a championship.

To say his cards were on fire is an understatement of “coffee is good” proportions … and some of that halo remains all these years later.

Value: $8-12

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20) 1989 Donruss Edgar Martinez (#645)

After much hand-wringing, hemming and hawing, and staring at his name on the ballot for 10 years, the BBWAA finally elected Edgar Martinez to the Hall of Fame in 2019.

Thirty years earlier, Martinez made his base Donruss debut with this card that shows him in the field. That’s significant because the knock on Edgar has always been that he was a designated hitter almost his entire career, diminishing his .312 average, 2247 hits, and 309 HR in at least some eyes.

Enough folks believe in Martinez’s greatness, though, to keep his base Donruss debut in the upper echelons of the set.

Value: $8-12

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19) 1989 Donruss Randy Johnson Rookie Card (#42)

Once upon a time, Randy Johnson was a mystery — a raw talent who scraped the sky when he pitched. A firebrand who could scorch the air with his fastball but had trouble finding the strike zone on a consistent basis.

Things started to gel for The Big Unit, though, when the Montreal Expos sent him along with Gene Harris and Brian Holman to the Seattle Mariners in 1989 in exchange for Mike Campbell and Mark Langston.

Twenty years, 300 wins, 4800 strikeouts, five Cy Young Awards, and one comic All-Star incident with John Kruk later, and Johnson was a legend.

Certainly among the top handful of lefthanders ever, Johnson was a cinch for Hall of Fame election when his name came up in 2015, and his 1989 Donruss rookie card was a cinch to appear near the top of this list.

Value: $10-15

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18) 1989 Donruss Curt Schilling Rookie Card (#635)

Love him or hate him, it’s hard to deny the stats that Curt Schilling put up during his Major League career — 20 years, 216-146 record, 3.46 ERA, plus an 11-2, 2.23 ERA in the postseason. Oh, and he was a key member of that 2004 Boston Red Sox team that broke the Curse of the Bambino.

If you’re more of a Sabermetrics sort, Schilling checks in with an ERA+ of 127 and 79.6 WAR, which lands him 27th all-time among starting pitchers according to JAWS.

All of that has Schilling looking like an eventual Hall of Famer, having collected 60.9% of the vote in his seventh shot at Cooperstown in 2019.

And all of that makes this 1989 Donruss rookie card a popular piece, despite grumbling about Schilling’s attitude, his post-career shenanigans, and the flood of ’89s that still wash over the hobby.

Value: $10-15

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17) 1989 Donruss Craig Biggio Rookie Card (#561)

It may look a little funny to see Craig Biggio in the tools of excellence here on his 1989 Donruss rookie card, but he started his professional baseball life as a catcher before transitioning to second base and the outfield.

In fact, Biggio garnered Silver Slugger and All-Star honors behind the plate before making a position move in 1992. But anything the Houston Astros lost by swapping in Ed Taubensee for Biggio was made up in spades by adding years to Biggio’s Hall of Fame career.

Teaming with Jeff Bagwell and (I guess) Derek Bell to form Houston’s Killer Bs, Biggio ended up with 3060 hits, 291 home runs, 414 stolen bases, and a Cooperstown plaque.

And, of course, one of the most valuable cards in the 1989 Donruss set.

Value: $10-15

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16) 1989 Donruss John Smoltz Rookie Card (#642)

John Smoltz took an unusual route to Cooperstown, but that doesn’t really matter — he still got there.

One of the original members of the Atlanta Braves‘ vaunted rotation of the 1990s, Smoltz didn’t find the full-blown success of teammates like Tom Glavine, Steve Avery, or Greg Maddux right away, but he finally nabbed his own Cy Young Award in 1996, at age 29.

By 2000, though, the flamethrower had blown out his elbow and required Tommy John surgery, then came back in 2001 — as a reliever.

After three+ seasons as a lock-down closer Smoltz returned to the Braves rotation before finishing out his career with the Boston Red Sox and St. Louis Cardinals, one season each.

In the end, Smoltz ended with the unusual but stellar line of 213-155, 3.33 ERA, 154 saves, and 3084 strikeouts … an amazing Hall of Fame resume that bumps his rookie card toward the top of its set, value-wise.

Value: $10-15

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15) 1989 Donruss Gary Sheffield Rookie Card (#31)

Once upon a time, Gary Sheffield was the most talented young player in the game, with a pedigree as Dwight Gooden‘s nephew that virtually guaranteed success in the Major Leagues.

Then came his season(s) of discontent, when Sheffield was unhappy with the Milwaukee Brewers. And Gooden started to slide, performance-wise, too — suddenly, Sheffield wasn’t so can’t-miss.

But a funny thing happened on the way to the scrapheap …

First, Sheffield was traded to the San Diego Padres, along with Geoff Kellogg, in exchange for Ricky Bones, Matt Mieske, and Jose Valentin, in 1992.

Then, it was off to the expansion Florida Marlins in 1993, part of the deal that brought Trevor Hoffman to the Friars.

In San Diego, and then in Miami, Sheffield found the stroke he was supposed to have, and he became an MVP candidate.

Never one to be warm and fuzzy with teammates or locals, Sheffield sort of bounced around for the next decade+ after he helped the Marlins win a World Series in 1997 — Los Angeles Dodgers, Atlanta Braves, New York Yankees, Detroit Tigers, New York Mets.

Along the way, Sheffield put up Hall of Fame numbers that included 2689 hits, 509 home runs, 1676 RBI, 253 stolen bases, and 60.5 career WAR.

He has found the Cooperstown voting a hard row to hoe, but Sheffield still holds enough hobby sway to make this list.

Value: $10-15

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14) 1989 Donruss Don Mattingly (#74)

It’s true that Don Mattingly’s best baseball days (as a player) were behind him by 1989, but he did manage to play a full season that summer and rebound in his offensive performance a bit from what was considered a down year in 1988.

It’s also true that Mattingly was the face of the hobby in the 1980s, and the boom could not have happened, at least to the extent it did, without his emergence in 1984 — and the fact that you could pull his Topps, Fleer, and Donruss cards from fresh packs even as he battled with Yankees teammate Dave Winfield for the American League batting crown.

Mattingly falls short of Hall of Fame standards by most reckonings, but his baseball cards still feel special even 30 years on. This one is no exception.

Value: $10-15

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13) 1989 Donruss Barry Bonds (#92)

By 1989, Barry Bonds had established himself as a star for the Pittsburgh Pirates, but his well-rounded skill set wasn’t flashy enough to really light his cards on fire.

Not when his cardboard was fighting for shelf space with bashers like Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, and plenty of others.

Of course, it turned out that the scouting reports were right – Bonds could do pretty much anything he wanted to on the diamond, and he ended up actually doing most of it.

Eventually, his cards pretty much caught up to his talent, and even today, after all the bad blood and the fall from grace, early-career entries like this 1989 Donruss Bonds still hold plenty of sway in the hobby.

Value: $10-15

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12) 1989 Donruss Mike Schmidt (#193)

Although Mike Schmidt looks as powerful and generally spectacular as ever on his 1989 Donruss card, this issue would quickly turn into a cardboard eulogy.

That’s because the greatest third baseman of all time hung up his spikes for good in late May of 1989, about a third of the way through the season.

For Schmitty fans (guilty as charged), every wax pack brought a sense of dread the rest of the summer as the specter of the Phil’s great loomed just beyond the next Ed Hearn or Jose Oquendo.

Value: $10-15

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11) 1989 Donruss Rickey Henderson (#245)

Rickey Henderson returned to the Oakland A’s for the 1989 season, which makes this Donruss card one of the last to feature him with the Yankees.

And, even though Donruss missed out on showing Hednerson in the fabled pinstripes, this is still one of the most popular cards in the set.

Value: $10-15

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10) 1989 Donruss Wade Boggs (#68)

Wade Boggs fell off a cliff in 1989.

I mean, after four straight American League batting titles from 1985 through 1988 and batting *at least* .357 in each of those seasons, the Chicken Man fell aaallll the way to .330 in 1989.

Of course, that’s still an otherworldly number among mere mortals, and Boggs was still a plenty popular pull from wax packs across the land that summer.

Still is today, thanks to those 3010 lifetime hits, .328 career batting average, and that nifty Hall of Fame plaque of his.

Value: $10-15

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9) 1989 Donruss Greg Maddux (#373)

Maddux posted his first winning record in 1988 (18-8), a fact that hardly registered with collectors thanks to his toiling for the fourth-place Cubs, and to the paltry records he put up in his first two campaigns.

When The Professor followed up with 19 victories and helped bring a division title to the northside, though, his profile started to climb … and it never looked back.

Today, Greg Maddux cards are hobby royalty pretty much across the board, a status befitting the pasteboards featuring one of the handful of greatest pitchers of the last 50 years.

Value: $10-15

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8) 1989 Donruss Tony Gwynn (#128)

After a jaw-dropping .370 batting average in 1987, Tony Gwynn slid all the way to .313 in 1988 … and still won a batting title.

He’d win another (.336) in 1989, on his way to eight total crowns, 3000+ hits, and a place in history as a Padres legend and a Hall of Famer.

Not surprising, then, that this mid-career card – like pretty much all of Mr. Padre’s cards – makes the cut on our list.

Value: $10-15

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7) 1989 Donruss Don Mattingly Diamond King (#26)

Everything that goes for the base Mattingly card above goes for his Diamond King, too. This was Mattingly’s second DK (1985 was the other), and it’s another Dick Perez masterpiece.

We couldn’t get enough of Mattingly in the 80s, though, so no one was complaining about an extra Donnie Baseball card, and this one still brings interest on eBay and in other venues.

Value: $10-15

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6) 1989 Donruss Ozzie Smith (#63)

You could make an argument that Ozzie Smith was, in many ways, the face of baseball in the 1980s.

Here you had a guy who redefined defensive play at a position already known for fielding prowess, and a key member of perennial contenders and frequent champs (of one sort or another) in St. Louis.

Ozzie even upped his offensive game as the decade proceeded, leaving no doubt that he’d eventually take his rightful place in Cooperstown.

So, all in all, how could the last Donruss card of the Wizard from the decade he helped define *not* make our list??

Value: $10-15

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5) 1989 Donruss Nolan Ryan (#154)

If Nolan Ryan appears in a baseball card set, that Ryan card has a 99.9999999999% chance* of being one of the most valuable cards in the set. (*possibly a slight exaggeration)

This particular card has the added bonus of being the last regular Donruss issue to show him as a member of the Astros. It’s a great action shot, too.

What’s not to love? And collectors still do.

Value: $15-20

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4) 1989 Donruss Cal Ripken Jr. (#51)

The Orioles of the late 1980s were terrible, and that taint extended even to their franchise icon.

Were Cal Ripken’s tanking numbers from 1987 through 1990 responsible for Baltimore’s struggles, or did the bad teams around him drag down Iron Cal?

It’s a classic oriole-and-egg conundrum that turned out not to matter too much by the time Ripken put up one of his greatest all-around seasons in 1991.

With his second MVP award in-tow, Ripken could get back to the business of chasing down Lou Gehrig, and collectors could smile on his late-80s cards again, happy to airbrush the bad seasons from our memory and focus on the beauty of Junk Wax Cal.

Value: $15-20

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3) 1989 Donruss George Brett (#204)

After two years at .290, Brett had pushed his batting average back above .300 (.306) in 1988.

That surge might have helped the popularity of his 1989 Donruss card out of the pack, but the truth is, none of Brett’s cardboard needed much help by that point.

The man was a legend, a status he reinforced with a third batting title, at age 37, in 1990 … and his 3000th hit in 1992 … and a Hall of Fame plaque in 1999.

Value: $15-20

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2) 1989 Donruss John Kruk Rookie Card (#86)

John Kruk wasn’t just Randy Johnson’s comic crutch in interleague play.

Indeed, for most of his 10-year Big League career, Kruk was a constant threat to hit .300, and he crafted his exit to make sure he landed exactly on that number.

Along the way, through stops with the Padres, Philadelphia Phillies, and Chicago White Sox, Kruk also showed some power finishing with 100 home runs among his 1170 hits. He was also a key member of that 1993 Phils crew that made it all the way to the World Series, only to be dispatched by Joe Carter‘s historic Game 6 homer.

Still a popular analyst, Kruk is also a college baseball coach who maintains a high enough profile to keep his cards on lists like this one.

Value: $15-20

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1) 1989 Donruss Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie Card (#33)

Any time you see the words “Ken Griffey”, “Jr.”, and “Rookie Card” in a card description, you can be sure it’s going to sit at the top of the value heap for whichever set it’s in. The 1989 Donruss Junior rookie is certainly no exception.

The only question surrounding Griffey when he retired was whether he would be the first-ever unanimous Hall of Famer. The fact that he didn’t quite clear that bar (even though Mariano Rivera did in 2019) doesn’t diminish Griffey’s hobby cachet one whit.

This card may not be Upper Deck #1, but it’s still an iconic hunk of Junk Wax cardboard.

Value: $25-30

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And not just Fleer — other companies could also apply for MLB and MLBPA licenses, then join the fray.

That’s exactly what Donruss did, pumping out a 605-card set that is among the flimsiest, most error-ridden issues ever produced, but it was a welcome addition for hobbyists hungry for more cardboard.

Four decades later, the set is still a mess, but graded copies of its most important cards can bring decent prices.

Here, then, are the ten most valuable 1981 Donruss baseball cards, as ranked by the PSA Sports Market Report Price Guide.

(Check out our full series of posts on the history of Donruss baseball cards.)

1981 Donruss Rickey Henderson (#119)

Donruss didn’t make a Henderson rookie card at all in 1980 — guess they just didn’t do their homework on that one.

Oh, right. Right

There was no Donruss set in 1980, since they didn’t start making baseball cards until 1981. Given that, then, this Rickey qualifies as a sort of rookie card once removed. It’s a First Donruss Card, for sure.

And, really, is it any surprise that the FDS of the greatest leadoff hitter and sparkplug of all time sits at the top of this value list?

Nah. Expect to pay deep into the double digits to land the Rickey Henderson FDC.

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1981 Donruss Nolan Ryan (#260)

You know the drill with the Ryan Express …

If there is a baseball card set, and that baseball card set includes a Nolan Ryan card, then that Nolan Ryan card will be among the most valuable cards in the set.

Like, always.

That’s the case here, where Ryan falls in right behind Rickey and right in line with the first big true rookie card Donruss ever pushed out …

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1981 Donruss Tim Raines Rookie (#538)

Yep, that rookie card belongs to none other than Tim Raines, the guy who always gets second billing to Henderson when it comes to all the things they both did so well — run, get on base, run, pop some occasional power, steal bases, take walks, run.

This card is better than Raines’ Topps card because it shows him alone and not leading off for Roberto Ramos and Bobby Pate. Though, it’s worse than the Topps card, too, because this one is a Donruss card and that other one is a Topps card.

The 1981 Donruss Tim Raines RC is definitely better than the 1981 Fleer Tim Raines RC, though, since that other one doesn’t exist.

Bottom line — if you wanted a solo Raines rookie card during the summer of 1981 when the players were on strike, you had to go for Donruss.

That’s why it’s about as valuable as the Nolan Ryan card.

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1981 Donruss Tom Seaver (#425)

Tom Seaver was one of the greatest righthanded pitchers to ever stand astride a big league mound, and he’s in just about everybody’s top 10 when it comes to naming the best pitchers of any kind.

This card shows a great action shot of Tom Terrific delivering a pitch in a Cincinnati Reds road uniform. And, while he did most of his big stuff with the New York Mets, he did plenty of great things with the Reds, too.

Enough great things overall, in fact, to land him in fourth place here, solidly in double-digit territory for PSA 9 copies of his 1981 Donruss card.

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1981 Donruss Mike Schmidt (#11)

Mike Schmidt was on top of the world as 1981 dawned, having copped his first National League MVP award in 1980 and having helped his Philadelphia Phillies to their first World Series championship since Ben Franklin was roaming center field and Lib Bell was their manager (Lib, it has been said, always asked for advice from his coaches but would chime in when it was time to make a final decision.)

To celebrate, Donruss stuck Schmitty in a Steve Austin running suit, tossed him in Dick Perez’s basement, and snapped a quick glamour shot.

Solid choices all around, leading to a $10+ price tag today.

(And, OK, OK, Donruss did make another Schmidt card in 1981, the MVP special at #591 — just about as valuable but not quite as much fun to make fun of.)

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1981 Donruss Willie Stargell (#132)

Pops was a year and change removed from his heroics with the “We Are Family” Pittsburgh Pirates when Donruss issued their first card(s) of the future Hall of Famer.

Their very first card of Willie, at #12, is a nice looking fielding shot at Wrigley Field.

This one, though, gives us the back story, capturing Stargell grabbing a few minutes in the sauna after a day … uh … on the road? … um … driving the Donruss truck, maybe?

Whatever’s happening here, Pops will set you back $10 or more in PSA 9.

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1981 Donruss Reggie Jackson (#468)

Reggie was still the straw that stirred the drink in New York as 1981 dawned, even though he was three-plus seasons removed from his three-homers-in-a-game 1977 World Series heroics.

As if mimicking life, Donruss loaded up their inaugural set with three Jackson cards. They’re all good, solid representations of the game’s then-reigning Hot Dog Supreme, but this one does show more of the Yankees pinstripes than any of the others.

It’s a double-digit buy in PSA 9.

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1981 Donruss George Brett (#100)

Like Schmidt, Brett was a superstar third baseman who had risen about as high as a baseball player could in 1980 — .390 batting average that came with a serious run at .400, an American League MVP award, and a Kansas City Royals team that finished runner-up to Schmidt’s Phils in the World Series.

Like Schmidt, Brett scored a base and “MVP” card in the 1981 Donruss set, though they featured the same image in each case. Brett did make another appearance, though, alongside Rod Carew on card #537, “Best Hitters.”

Unlike Mike, George didn’t get to sit down in any of his Donruss cards, likely a consequence of his inability to do so at the time.

This Brett card will set you back $10+, which is enough to nick your budget for necessary items like, say, a tube of Preparation H.

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1981 Donruss Johnny Bench (#182)

The Big Red Machine was just a memory by the time Donruss entered the playing field in 1981, but Cincinnati had made it to the NLCS in 1979, and they would post the best record in all of baseball that first summer that featured three baseball card manufacturers.

Of course, Cincy wouldn’t even make the playoffs in ’81, thanks to the inane “split-season” format MLB adopted to cope with the players’ strike.

What the Reds did have, though, was the greatest all-around catcher of all time, rounding out his playing days. Bench lasted just two more years after that rough-and-tumble summer, but you have to consider this his First Donruss Card … right?

Right … except he also appears on card #62.

Either way, collectors like both of them enough to make them double-digit buys in PSA 9 condition.

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1981 Donruss Pete Rose (#251)

Rose was sort of an amalgamation of Bench and Rose, a remnant of the Big Red Machine but riding high as a member of the reigning world champion Phillies.

And, of course, Pete was turning the corner on his assault of Ty Cobb‘s all-time hit record, so it’s not surprising that Donruss loaded up with three cards of Charlie Hustle.

Any one of them is liable to set you back $10 or more in graded MINT condition.

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Up until that point, most collectors were willing to look the other way as the supply of new cards inched up every year. After all, more and more folks were flocking to the hobby all the time, so we could absorb anything manufacturers spit out.

Besides, Donruss and Fleer, at least, seemed to have throttled production in 1987, seeing as how those cards were hard to come by … early on, anyway.

But, man, 1988 Donruss baseball was everywhere almost from the very first days of the new year. It was as if they had been planted as seeds on store shelves across America and blossomed into full bloom when the champagne flowed on New Year’s Eve.

Three decades has done little to attenuate the blue, red, black, white flow of 1988 Donruss cards into the market, and they’re still among the cheapest “old” cards ever issued.

Still, that doesn’t mean the ’88s are completely worthless. Donruss rolled out a pretty decent rookie card class that year, and there are several Hall of Famers in the set who will always have their supporters.

So, with that in mind, here are the ten most valuable 1988 Donruss baseball cards, presented in numerical order. Unless otherwise noted, you can pick up just about any of these babies for around $1 (or less) in raw condition, so we’ll be looking at the prices you might expect to pay for “perfect” PSA 10 copies.

(Check out our full series of posts on the history of Donruss baseball cards.)

1988 Donruss Roberto Alomar (#34)

Folks were only sort of excited about Roberto Alomar in the early stages of his career.

Sure, he was the son of a former Major Leaguer, but Sandy Alomar, Sr., was never a superstar, and Robbie seemed like he was destined to be a high-level middle infielder at best — great glove, possibly a high batting average, some speed, but not a ton more.

Many in the hobby were more anxious to see his brother, Sandy Alomar, Jr., who was a catcher with decent power potential.

As it turned out, of course, Robbie did all that stuff I mentioned above, but did it even better than we thought he might. Even added some decent power (210 home runs).

In the end, his even .300 batting average, 2700+ hits, nearly 500 stolen bases, and 10 Gold Gloves were enough to gain him Hall of Fame election in 2011.

Alomar’s 1988 Donruss Rated Rookie is pretty generic looking, but it can fetch more than $20 in PSA 10 condition.

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1988 Donruss Mark Grace (#40)

Truth be told, we were all grasping for great rookies to chase when the 1988 cards came out. After monstrous rookie-card classes from 1985 through 1987, Donruss had a lot to live up to.

The problem was, there just weren’t any of the usual big sluggers or power pitchers — Eric Davis, Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Roger Clemens, Dwight Gooden — to stoke our interest, so we latched onto other types.

Mark Grace was one of those “others,” an imperfect rookie target at best. I mean, first basemen are supposed to knock home runs all over the field (or at least pull them to one field), not challenge for a batting title.

But Grace played for the Chicago Cubs, so that helped, and he hit from the the beginning of his career to the end, to the tune of 2445 hits and a .303 lifetime batting average.

His lack of milestone numbers or a big power stroke will likely forever keep Grace out of Cooperstown, but his 1988 Rated Rookie pulls in $15-20 in PSA 10 anyway.

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1988 Donruss Al Leiter (#43)

Al Leiter was another guy we pulled into our fraternity of “hey, we don’t have any better” rookie cards to follow in 1988.

He did have a few things going for him — he was a second-round draft pick in 1984, he made his Major League debut at age 21, and, mostly, he pitched for the New York Yankees.

Nothing ever clicked for Leiter in the Bronx, though, and the Yanks traded him to the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for Jesse Barfield in April of 1989.

After another four years of up-and-down minor/Major-league action, Leiter finally stuck in Toronto in 1993, just in time for the Jays’ second World Series title.

He went on to several solid seasons with the Jays,  Florida Marlins, and New York Mets, but you can lay much of the $10-15 price tag for his Donruss rookie card (in PSA 10) at the feet of his post-playing television career.

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1988 Donruss Nolan Ryan (#61)

You know all about Nolan Ryan, but one thing to point out about his 1988 baseball cards is that they were the last ones issued while he was still pitching for the Houston Astros.

The next summer, Ryan would still appear on Astros cards, but he was busy crafting his legend with the Texas Rangers in real life by that time.

This final Donruss-with-the-Astros-while-he-pitched-for-the-Astros card of The Ryan Express generally sells for $15-25 in PSA 10.

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1988 Donruss Don Mattingly (#217)

Depending on how you look at things — through traditional or SABRose-colored glasses — Don Mattingly recorded his last truly great season in either 1986 or 1987.

As far as most of us were concerned, though, Mattingly was the man entering the 1988 campaign. Fresh off a season in which he hit .327 with 30 home runs and 115 RBI, he was a superstar among superstars and, as such, his cardboard was everywhere.

That power dropped dramatically in the summer of 1988, but many of us were too busy collecting his umpteen cards to really notice. Besides, we knew he would bounce back to 1985-86 levels, and better, in 1989.

That never happened, of course, but this blue-bordered 1988 Donruss Donnie Baseball still fetches around $25 in PSA 10.

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1988 Donruss Bo Jackson (#220)

Bo Jackson played the entire 1988 season at 25 years of age, logging 124 games and 468 plate appearances for the Kansas City Royals. Those were both career highs, and we were starting to get a real handle on what type of player Bo would be — prodigious power, free-swinging, prone to highlight-reel catches but still rough in the field.

Even though he wasn’t a perfect player, though, the sheer potential rippling through Bo’s every move kept us coming back for more — more video clips, more speculation, more hand-wringing, more baseball cards.

All these years later, we’re still at it even though Jackson’s career was cut way too short, leaving his legacy shy of what it could have been.

This 1988 Donruss card, Bo’s second base issue from Big D, checks in at $10-15 in PSA 10.

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1988 Donruss Barry Bonds (#326)

In 1988, Barry Bonds was young, lithe, cocky, and one of the best baseball players on the planet.

Thing is, he didn’t always get his due for that latter attribute, and folks threw around all sorts of trite phrases when speaking of him …

Lacks big-time power …

Maybe when his frame fills out …

Not really helping the Pirates win …

Great potential, but …

Not quite on par with teammate Bobby Bonilla …

I poop you not, these were real sentiments surrounding Bonds.

Well, the dude filled out (no one was happy about that, either), found his power, turned the Bucs and Giants into winners, became a legend.

And people still have all kinds of beefs with him.

Not enough beef, though, to prevent his 1988 Donruss card for selling at $10-20 in PSA 10.

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1988 Donruss Mike Schmidt (#330)

Not many of us realized it at the time, but 1988 would be Mike Schmidt’s last sorta full-time season.

Guess we should have seen that coming when his games-played dropped from 160 in 1986 to 147 in 1987 to, eventually, 108 in 1988.

Schmitty managed only 12 dingers in that summer of 1988, but we (I, anyway) thought he’d be back at full-force in 1989.

Instead, he retired 42 games into the campaign.

No matter, though, because Schmidt stands as the game’s greatest third baseman, and even his overproduced 1988 Donruss card trades for around $15 in PSA 10.

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1988 Donruss Tom Glavine (#644)

Among the non-Rated Rookies we tried to love from 1988 Donruss, Tom Glavine was maybe the top pitcher.

No one was too excited by the putrid Atlanta Braves teams of the era, but Glavine, at least, gave a glimmer of hope, with scouting reports that pegged him as a potential future rotation piece.

That worked out pretty well, even though early struggles (like a 7-17 record in 1988) may have made him think twice about that NHL career he turned down.

Soon enough, the Braves would turn things around thanks to guys like Glavine, John Smoltz, Sid Bream, Terry Pendleton, and, eventually, Greg Maddux and Chipper Jones.

Twenty years after this card was issued, Glavine finished up his 22-year run — including five with the New York Mets — as a 305-game winner and on beeline to the Hall of Fame (first-ballot inductee in 2014).

Today, his ’88 Donruss rookie sells for around $25 in PSA 10.

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1988 Donruss Gregg Jefferies (#657)

Now this was the guy everyone really wanted from among the 1988 baseball card rookies.

Gregg Jefferies had it all — youth (20), budding power (20 homers with the Double-A Jackson Mets in 1987), big batting average (.367), huge-market team (New York Mets).

After his six-game cup of coffee with the Sheas in 1987, the hobby was convinced Jefferies was the second coming of Mickey Mantle, the Infield Version.

In reality, it took Jefferies most of another season before he stuck in the Big Leagues for good and, when he did, it was a bit of a struggle.

Low batting average (.258 in 1989), low-to-middling power (12 homers), no catchy nickname.

Eventually, Jefferies settled in and, though he was never as hot as the initial expectations surrounding him had been, he turned in an All-Star level career split among six different franchises over 14 years.

He’ll never make the Cooperstown cut, but the warm memories of Phenom Jefferies keep his Donruss rookie card at the $15-20 level (PSA 10) all these decades later.

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In fact, if you’re searching for a set that’s nearly 30 years old, looks great, and loads up on Hall of Fame swagger, this just might be the one for you.

With that in mind, here is a rundown of the most valuable 1993 Donruss baseball cards, based on recent eBay sales for specimens in PSA 10 condition.

(Check out our full series of posts on the history of Donruss baseball cards.)

1993 Donruss Chipper Jones Rated Rookie Card (#721)

We knew from the before he ever appeared in a golf getup on a baseball card that Chipper Jones was going to be special.

And then, after a late-season call-up in 1993, Jones was poised to take over third base (or shorstop) in Atlanta in 1994.

An ACL tear in Spring Training put an end to that idea, though, and Jones missed the entire strike-shortened mess of a season.

Didn’t matter to Larry, though, because he stormed into the National League in 1995, hitting 23 home runs and driving in 86 runs as the Braves won their only World Series title of the 90s.

Jones was just getting started, too, as he put together one of the greatest 3B careers ever and sailed into the Hall of Fame on the first ballot in 2018.

His 1993 Donruss card leads off here at $25 in perfect graded condition.

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1993 Donruss Mike Piazza Rated Rookie Card (#209)

By the time Jones made his debut late in 1993, Mike Piazza was already the darling of the season.

Working his way up from a 62nd-round selection in the 1988 draft, Tommy Lasorda’s god son smacked 35 home runs, drove in 112, and hit .318.

In winning the National League Rookie of the Year award, Piazza immediately raised the bar for offensive production at catcher, and didn’t stop for 15 years.

When he hung up his spikes in 2007, Piazza had hit 427 home runs, with his 396 as a backstop breaking Johnny Bench‘s record.

Piazza made the Cooperstown cut in 2016, which helped push his Rated Rookie to $20 (PSA 10).

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1993 Donruss Ken Griffey Jr. (#553)

Griffey didn’t have a rookie card in 1993, but he had already changed the hobby with that 1989 Upper Deck thing of his.

And he was already thisclose to fulfilling most of that awesome promise everyone saw in him — all he needed was a skosh more power.

Those 45 dingers Junior hit that summer of 1993 checked the “slugger” box emphatically and set us all up for a couple decades’ worth of “is he the best ever?” discussions.

He wasn’t, but he was an all-timer, without any doubt.

All good enough for a $20 Donruss card from his breakout season (PSA 10).

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1993 Donruss Cal Ripken Jr. (#559)

Ripken played most of the ’93 season at just 32 years of age, but it seemed like he had been playing since Lou Gehrig retired.

Which was sort of ironic, considering that Iron Cal would break the Iron Horse’s record for consecutive games played (2131) in 1995.

When this card was issued, Ripken was exiting his prime, and his hobby popularity had peaked a couple years earlier, but he’ll always be a collector favorite.

Expect a $20 price tag for PSA 10 copies of this card.

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1993 Donruss Craig Biggio (#84)

Biggio played the first few years of his career with the Astros as an All-Star catcher.

In a move designed to save his body for the long haul and strengthen the team overall (welcome to the Astrodome, Ed Taubensee), the ‘Stros stationed Biggio at second base in 1992.

So … this is the first regular-issue Donruss card to show Bidge as a keystoner, and the Hall of Famer lines up here at about $12 in graded MINT condition.

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1993 Donruss Nolan Ryan (#423)

Ryan, on the other hand, had moved across the state from the Astros to the Texas Rangers before the 1989 season.

And it was in Arlington where his legend really gelled, thanks to notching his 5000th strikeout, his 300th win, and sixth and seventh no-hitters — all in a Rangers uniform.

The Ryan Express appears near the top of most of these sorts of lists, and he’s not far off here — the Donruss card from his last year in the Majors sells for about $10 in perfect 10 condition these days.

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1993 Donruss Barry Bonds (#678)

Bonds won his second MVP in three years in 1992 and then bolted Pittsburgh for the San Francisco Giants.

Barry, of course, had his biggest moments in the Bay, but that’s also where he fell from grace.

Will the dude who rewrote the record books — for better or for worse — ever make the Cooperstown cut?

Hard to say at this point, but he makes our team at $10 (PSA 10).

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1993 Donruss Roger Clemens (#119)

Same story for Clemens, except he followed up his second-place Cy Young finish in 1992 with a string of disappointing seasons.

Just when it looked like he might be nearing the end, though, Rocket landed with the Blue Jays in 1997 and reeled off four more Cy Young Awards through his age-41 season.

He’s one of a handful of the greatest pitchers ever, but he’ll also always have that PED taint draped over him like a smelly jockstrap.

Still, Clemens takes the mound at $10 here.

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1993 Donruss Rickey Henderson (#315)

Rickey turned on the afterburners in 1990 to win his only MVP award as the Oakland A’s streaked to yet another World Series (where they were swept by my Reds — just sayin’.)

For an encore, he broke Lou Brock‘s all-time stolen base record in 1991, then spent the next, like, 40 years, bouncing around from team to team.

Wherever he went, though, Henderson crouched, and walked, and stole bases, and scored runs, and hit leadoff home runs.

Might still be doing all that, somewhere, for all I know.

For all his hot-dogness, Rickey pushes his 1993 Donruss card close to $10 in perfect slabbed condition.

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1993 Donruss Frank Thomas (#7)

In the early 1990s, Thomas was like nothing we’d ever seen before — a linebacker (or at least a tight end), who could hit .300 with 30 home runs, 100 runs, and 100 RBI every year.

Like, every year. It was incredible.

And, while the Big Hurt slowed down as he got older, he was a monster offensive force for a lot of years and had a pretty easy time barreling into Cooperstown in 2014.

His 1993 Donruss card sells for $5-10 in PSA 10 condition.

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Same bat on the bottom with player name, same colored piping forming the interior border, same blazing white card stock.

But there were a few differences — a glove had replaced the baseball at the knob-end of the bat for displaying team name.

The player’s position was wrapped in a tranparent baseball instead of imprinted directly on the bat.

And the Donruss logo had beend moved from the upper right to the upper left.

So the 1982s and 1983s weren’t really the same at all (imagine an eyeroll emoji here).

And there was one other big difference — while everyone thought the 1982s were loaded with stellar rookies, it was the 1983s that ended up with three Hall of Fame RCs when all was said and done.

You can bet your puzzle pieces those first-year guys are part of this list of the most valuable 1983 Donruss baseball cards, but you’ll have to read on to find out who they — and the rest — are.

(Values culled from recent eBay sales for PSA 9 cards.)

Batter up!

(Check out our full series of posts on the history of Donruss baseball cards.)

1983 Donruss Tony Gwynn Rookie Card (#598)

A lot of what we said in our piece about 1983 Fleer will apply here, including this blurb about Gwynn, but in case you haven’t read that post …

The Gwynn rookie card trundled along without much notice for a year or so as the the hobby started to boom and as Tony got his feet under him in San Diego.

When the Padres stepped into the sun of the 1984 season looking like contenders, though, Gwynn led the charge with a gaudy batting average that would eventually win him the National League hitting crown.

Collectors took notice, and Gwynn’s RC moved from the stacks to the screw-downs in a heartbeat.

Today, the Gwynn rookie is a $30 buy in PSA 9 condition.

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1983 Donruss Ryne Sandberg Rookie Card (#277)

At the same time the Pads were doing things they didn’t normally do, the 1984 Cubs were causing their own stir.

Chicago sat near the top of the old NL East for much of the season and eventually took out a young New York Mets team that dripped with talent — Darryl Strawberry, Dwight Gooden, Ron Darling, Lenny Dykstra, etc.

But the Cubbies had their own breakout stars, too, including midseason acquisition Rick Sutcliffe and young second baseman Ryne Sandberg.

After a year in Chicago following a trade from the Phils, Ryno locked himself in at second base and turned in an amazing performance that included 19 home runs, 19 triples, and a .319 batting average.

Dude ended up winning NL MVP honors, and collectors ended up scrambling to find his year-old rookie cards, just as with Gwynn.

Today, this Hall of Fame RC brings about $25 in graded MINT condition.

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1983 Donruss Wade Boggs Rookie Card (#586)

By 1983, Boggs had already become Wade Boggs, Hit Machine.

His .361 average easily led the American League in 1983 and ensured that his fresh-from-the-pack rookie cards never saw the dark receses of a shoe box.

Boggs went on to win four more batting crowns, collect 3010 hits, and score an easy election to Cooperstown in 2005.

The ’83 Donruss rookie card of the lifetime .328 hitter is a $25 buy in PSA 8.

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1983 Donruss Cal Ripken Jr. (#279)

It’s hard to start a Major League Baseball career much better than what Ripken did…

I mean, all the lad did was win the 1982 AL Rookie of the Year Award and then lead the Orioles to a World Series title in 1983 as the AL MVP.

Ripken’s rookie season would also see him begin The Streak that would eventually put him in the same breath with Lou Gehrig and make Cal an all-time stone-cold diamond legend.

This second-year Cal card sells for around $15 in PSA 9.

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1983 Donruss Nolan Ryan (#118)

As this bright and colorful card, showcasing the Astros rainbow sleeve stripes, was popping out of wax packs across the land, Ryan was writing more baseball history.

Namely, he became the first of three pitchers — with Steve Carlton and Gaylord Perry — to surpass Walter Johnson‘s career record for strikeouts during that summer of 1983.

And, while many observers thought that achievement would be the capstone to a good but flawed career, Ryan wasn’t anywhere near done.

After another ten seasons in the Majors, the Ryan Express owned more records than you could shake a cowtail at, and he was a baseball god.

This card from one of Ryan’s big summers sells in the $15 area today (PSA 9).

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1983 Donruss Johnny Bench (#500)

Baseball lost a lot of talent and lore in 1983 with the retirements of Perry (above), Yaz (below), and Bench.

And, while all three were bona fide Hall of Famers who left behind all sorts of sweet memories, only Bench could rightly be called the all-time best at his position.

Even today, Bench sits near the top of various career lists for catchers and is the general pick as baseball’s greatest-ever catcher.

This vital cog in the Big Red Machine lines up here at $10+ in PSA 9.

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1983 Donruss Carl Yastrzemski (#326)

How many Triple Crown winners have you seen in your lifetime?

The number is just one for me (Miguel Cabrera).

Baseball got back-to-back Triple Crowns in the 1960s, though, first from the great Frank Robinson (1966), then from Yaz (1967).

And, though a World Series ring eluded the Red Sox great throughout his career, Cooperstown was an easy win.

Today, this Donruss card from Yastrzemski’s final season sells for around $10 in PSA 9 condition.

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1983 Donruss Pete Rose (#42)

Rose played all 162 games for the Phillies at 41 years of age in 1982 and entered the new season with his sights set on 4000 hits.

Though he’d land ten safeties short of that mark, he did help the Phillies back to the World Series before moving on to the Expos and then the Reds in 1984.

From there, it was a clean shot to Ty Cobb and the Hall of Fame … well, at least to Cobb.

Even with his transgressions, Rose has a strong hobby following and checks in here at about $10 (PSA 9).

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1983 Donruss Julio Franco Rookie Card (#525)

Franco made his Major League debut for the Phillies in 1982, but he did’t get enough at-bats to qualify as a full-on rookie until 1983.

That came after an off-season trade that sent Franco, Jay Baller, Manny Trillo, George Vukovich, and Jerry Willard to the Indians in exchange for Von Hayes.

From there, Franco finished second in AL Rookie of the Year balloting (to Ron Kittle) on the strength of 32 stolen bases.

And from there?

Well, Franco turned into an interesting mix of speed and power, with enough “average” thrown in to win the AL batting title with Texas in 1991 (.341).

And … Franco … just … kept … going.

Until he was 48.

He finally finished up with the Braves in 2007, having amassed 2586 hits and a collection of eight franchises.

Sometimes, when the season gets late and teams get desperate, I think there might still be whispers about Franco coming back … again.

For now, his 1983 Donruss rookie card is a $5-10 buy in PSA 9.

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1983 Donruss Rickey Henderson (#35)

Henderson played almost forever, too, until he was 44 in 2003.

Before he got to eternity, though, Rickey broke Lou Brock‘s single-season mark for stolen bases by swiping 130 in 1982.

This card shows Henderson from that era, before he perfected the power stroke that added to his elite on-base skills to make him the greatest leadoff hitter ever.

And, yeah, it wouldn’t be all that shocking to see Henderson mount a comeback, either.

In the meantime, his 1983 Donruss card sells for about $5 in slabbed MINT condition.

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And for a lot of years, it seemed like the blue-and-black, striped-and-catercorner beauties could only go up, up, up.

Then came the hobby bust and the realization that 1986 Donruss wasn’t really very scarce.

And then, the bottom sort of fell out of several of the careers that were driving the set.

Even so, some of these things are still popular today, and the most valuable 1986 Donruss baseball cards listed here will bring a smile to any old collector’s face.

(Prices based on recent eBay sales of PSA 9 cards. Check out our full series of posts on the history of Donruss baseball cards.)

1986 Donruss Jose Canseco Rated Rookie Card (#39)

Canseco was the first player I can remember who came out of the baseball chute greased with both megahype and a rookie card while he still maintained his rookie status.

Even as a kid growing up in rural Indiana, I started hearing about Jose’s exploits in 1985 and, like the rest of the hobby, was excited to see both him and his RCs in 1986.

Neither one disappointed, as Canseco overcame a hot start by Wally Joyner to win the American League Rookie of the Year Award, and Jose’s Donruss Rated Rookie debuted at somewhere around $3.

It was all rosy from there over the next few years, when Canseco teamed with Mark McGwire to form the nucleus of the Bash Brothers and lead the Oakland A’s to three AL pennants and a World Series title.

Along the way, Canseco became the first 40/40 (home runs/steals) man, won the 1988 AL MVP award, started preparing his Hall of Fame speech.

Then … a ball off the head, and steroids, and Madonna, and … well, the wheel sort of fell off.

In the end, Canseco landed short of our lofty goals for him, but he still helped change the game and the hobby, and for that, his 1986 Donruss Rated Rookie card remains a $35 buy in PSA 9 today.

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1986 Donruss Cecil Fielder Rookie Card (#512)

Fielder didn’t make the Rated Rookie cut, but his Donruss RC did enjoy some early action from speculators who, um, speculated that his minor league power would translate into Major League power.

And it would, but only after a season in Japan and a trip home that included a relocation from the Blue Jays to the Tigers.

In Detroit, of course, Fielder became the first player since George Foster in 1977 to smack 50 homers in a season (51 for Cecil) and set his cards on an upward trajectory.

Big Daddy won’t make the Hall of Fame, but he and his son, Prince Fielder, did each end up with exactly 319 home runs and one 50-homer season.

That has to be worth something, right? 

Right, like a $20 Donruss rookie card (in PSA 9).

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1986 Donruss Fred McGriff Rated Rookie Card (#28)

Cecil’s teammate Fred McGriff caused more hobby stir out of the gate thanks to his appearance on a Rated Rookie card, but then he settled into a boring pattern — 30 home runs, 100 RBI year after year.

After 19 seasons across six franchises, McGriff fell just short of 500 home runs (493) and drove in 1550.

Crime Dog is not (yet) a Hall of Famer, but his RC checks in at $15 in PSA 9.

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1986 Donruss Paul O’Neill Rated Rookie Card (#37)

O’Neill spent parts of eight seasons with the Reds, putting up semistar numbers along the way, until they traded him to the Yankees for Roberto Kelly in November of 1992.

In New York, The Warrior became a key part of the 1990s Yanks’ mini-dynasty and boosted his hobby profile in the process.

His 1986 Donruss RR sits at $15 in graded MINT condition today.

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1986 Donruss Don Mattingly (#173)

Canseco, McGwire, and all the other big-name guys with big-dollar RCs can thank Mattingly for making their cardboard fame possible.

And we can all thank Mattingly and his 1984 Donruss card for The Boom and for helping make the hobby what it is today, for better or worse.

For years, all Mattingly cards rode the tide of that ’84 Donruss masterpiece, and things aren’t much different today in that regard.

Expect to pay about $15 for 1986 Donruss Mattingly in PSA 9 condition.

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1986 Donruss Kirby Puckett (#72)

When this card debuted, Puckett was still just the little fire hydrant guy we’d pull aside into our rookie card piles, just in case, but all that was about to change.

In 1986, Kirby put up his first All-Star season, popping 31 home runs, scoring 119 runs, driving in 96, and batting .328.

Over the following nine seasons, Puckett strung together 200-hit seaons like they were tin-can telepones, won two World Series title with the Twins, and generally built himself into a legend.

This card from his breakout season is a $10 item in PSA 9.

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1986 Donruss Harold Reynolds Rookie Card (#484)

Reynolds was a typical 1980s (and before) second baseman — small, quick, fast (60 stolen bases to lead the AL in 1987), but with little power and middling batting averages.

Harold did learn to get on base later in his career, though, and he was one of the few stars for the mid-1980s Mariners.

His post-career television career didn’t hurt his exposure any, either, and Reynolds checks in here at $10.

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1986 Donruss Cal Ripken Jr. (#210)

Ripken, on the other hand, was not your typical shortstop — he was big, powerful, and steady.

And he was a superstar who had AL Rookie of the Year and MVP awards under his belt and a whole slew of history-making ahead of him when this $10 card was issued.

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1986 Donruss Andres Galarraga Rated Rookie Card (#33)

Galarraga was another guy who got some hobby play based on his Rated Rookie status, but toiling in Montreal limited his Expos-ure to some degree.

It wasn’t until he started raking for the Rockies in the mid-1990s that his cardboard really took off, and some of that momentum remains today.

Expect a $10 price tag for Big Cat’s Donruss rookie card in PSA 9.

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1986 Donruss Nolan Ryan (#258)

Ryan is a big name in every set where he appears, and 1986 Donruss is no exception.

This sun-splashed action shot shows the power of The Ryan Express to good effect and sells for $5-10 in slabbed MINT condition these days.

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This post is part of a series — check out our full list of posts about valuable Donruss baseball cards!

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