When it comes to Rookie Cards, 1981 Topps is one . Things screeched to a halt, though, when Jackson injured his calf running the bases in Game 2 of the ALCS against Oakland. In this guide, I will cover the 25 most valuable in the set. For its 1980-81 basketball set, Topps mixed things up by releasing an entire set in which each card had three panels, each . 2017-18 Panini National Treasures Donovan Mitchell RC Auto Patch /99. *TIM RAINES* 1981 Topps Traded #816 *CGS 9* RC Rookie Card. And incredibly, hed come back with a vengeance. 1981 Topps. If so, then please fill out the form below and I'll be in touch right away. Card Number: #418. There are only 7 examples of this card in circulation at the time of this writing that have achieved that gradeso they're very scarce. It was also the first Topps set to feature a monster 792-card checklist. He earned four varsity letters, two for college and two for the major leagues. This was limited to only 504 serial-numbered porcelain cards made and it has already been authenticated by Global Authentics (GAI). February 20, 2023; Super Bowl Delivers . #7. In 1981, the Boston Red Sox played 108 games during the regular season and won 59 of those games, losing 49. Mattingly's Donruss rookie was produced in smaller quantities than his Topps rookie, so it's worth more. For one more year, at least, Topps was the only game in town in 1980. 1981 Topps card list & price guide. Prices for 1982 Topps Baseball Cards 1982 Topps card list & price guide. 6. You can almost feel the tension in this card as he's poised and just waiting for the perfect moment to break for second. Since most collectors in this hobby tend to draw the line on the "vintage era" at 1980, many consider the Rickey Henderson rookie card to be the last big-name vintage rookie. After Wilson dodged a wild pitch from Boston's Bob Stanley, Kevin Mitchell scored from third to tie the game. Although Riley wasnt very popular, he was a Major League Baseball pitcher. While Brett would undoubtedly be on this list anyway, this is an example of where a special season for a player can make his card stand out even more than it may have otherwise. He played in Major League Baseball between 1977 and 1982 for the Seattle Mariners and the Pittsburgh Pirates. And, over the next twenty-two years, he would develop into one of the greatest players of his era with twelve All-Star selections, seven Gold Gloves and six Silver Sluggers to his name. Despite not being a Hall of Famer, Rose's legacy as one of the game's greatest hitters of all time keeps his cards in high demand throughout the hobby. 6. The Reds finished a half-game behind the Dodgers in the NL West in the first half. I know the game is played differently these days but even if it weren't, I'd be stunned if anyone in the future ever meets or bests his 130 stolen bases in a season. 1909 T206 Sherry Magee (Error) Price: $660,000. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2022 by Old Sports Cards, LLC. Tim Haines finished second in Rookie of the Year voting, 19th in MVP, and earned his first All-Star selection. 1981 Topps Traded Expos Tim Raines Card, 4. 2022 Topps Heritage Baseball Most Valuable Cards and Checklist; These 10 GOATS . This card is super tough to find in high grade, hence the huge price tag that might shock you. He was named Rolaids Relief Man of the Year four times and led the major leagues in saves three times. Things weren't always rocky during Jackson's time in New York, though, as they did win back-to-back World Series titles in 1977 and 1978. While George Brett lit up the AL in 1980, Mike Schmidt was doing the same in the NL and would take home his first of three career MVP Awards for his efforts. List; Gallery; Gallery - 6 Cards per Page; Gallery - 8 Cards per Page; Gallery - 9 Cards per Page; And they didn't know it at the time, but they also missed out on producing big-name rookie cards for Fernando Valenzuela, Harold Baines, and Kirk Gibson. 1955 Topps Sandy Koufax #123. Enrique Romo Navarro is a former professional baseball relief pitcher. 1983 Donruss. I remember several years ago you could find this card in a PSA 9 holder quite easily for $400 or so, which made it undervalued even back then. PSA 9 examples have sold for upwards of $6,000. Tom Seaver came within a handful of votes of winning his fourth Cy Young on the 1981 season with an incredible pitching display that saw him lead the Majors in wins (14) and winning percentage (.875). In 390 plate appearances (338 at-bats), Yastrzemski posted a .246/.338/.355 slash line with a career-low seven home runs and 53 RBI. For his regular-season efforts, Rose earned the only Silver Slugger Award of his career, his 15th All-Star selection, and a tenth-place finish on the NL MVP ballot. Steven Thomas Avery is an American left-handed former pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB). For 15 seasons from 1982 to 1996, Smith was a key cog in the Cardinals lineup as he went on to win 11 more Gold Gloves and appear in 14 more All-Star Games. Now that we got that out of the way, let's take a look at the list: The 1981 American League MVP race came down to two men, Oakland Athletics left fielder Rickey Henderson and former As closer Rollie Fingers. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2022 by Old Sports Cards, LLC. 1952 Topps #1 Andy Pafko. Ungraded & graded values for all '81 Topps Baseball Cards. In 1980, Kansas City Royals third baseman George Brett graduated from All-Star to crossover superstar. . Click on any card to see more graded card prices, historic prices, and past sales. Rookie Card (1982 Topps - Card #21), $700 (Photo: Amazon.com) Here is another player who enjoyed a long MLB career, spending it all with the Baltimore Orioles starting in 1981. Gary Carter, nicknamed Kid and The Kid, was a professional baseball player whose 19-year career in Major League Baseball was spent primarily with the Montreal Expos and New York Mets. During the 1977 season, Andre Dawson batted .282 with 19 home runs and 65 RBI, which earned him NL Rookie of the Year honors. Back to the point at hand. His career was far from over at that point, but Schmidt's play showed the baseball world that they were already witnessing the greatest third baseman of all-time in the making. He was the clear choice for National League MVP and also picked up a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger. Boston missed the playoffs by 1.5 games in the second-half AL East race. There's no questioning the significance of 1980 Topps baseball cards in hobby history. 8. On May 29th against the San Francisco Giants, Bench slid into second base, attempting to break up a double play but fractured his left ankle in the process. Unfortunately, the Kansas City Royals would slam the door on any hopes that Jackson and the Yankees had for a World Series ring when they swept them in the 1980 ALCS. Here are the top 15 Most Expensive Nolan Ryan Cards: #15 1978 Topps Nolan Ryan #400 Recent sale: $898 . 723 Bruce Bochte. 205 Pete Rose Record Breaker - Phillies. However, once they got there, the Oakland Athletics promptly swept them in the ALDS as Brett went just 2-for-12 (.167) in the three games. Rookie Cards: Options . Hold on to it. $12.95. 721 Toby Harrah. Growing up in Central Indiana surrounded by Cubs fans, I would hear about Dawson constantly as fans absolutely loved the guy, and rightly so. #8. PSA/DNA Certified. In 1981, Schmidt became the eighth player in MLB history to do just that. This article breaks down the top 19 most valuable 1981 Topps Baseball Cards In the World, as well as how much each card is worth. However, the turf at Olympic Stadium didn't do Dawson any favors resulting in knee problems that would hamper his speed later in his career. The problem was that the 33-year-old Bench simply wasn't healthy. 1961 Topps Willie Mays All-Star (#579) Here is a case where card scarcity and an immortal of the game conspire to generate a value anomaly an All-Star card worth more than the base card of the same player. There were tons of errors, collation inside boxes was hit and miss (mostly miss) and the . Wade Boggs is an American former baseball player who retired as a third baseman after 18 seasons of Major League Baseball. 390 during the 1980 season. He was nicknamed Mex because his name suggested that he was of Mexican descent. Despite the ups and downs, there isplentyto enjoy about this set. Estimated PSA 10 Gem Mint Value: $2,700. During the first part of his career, Tom Seaver was absolutely dominant on the mound as he racked up 20-win seasons, Cy Young Awards, ERA Titles and Strikeout Titles like it was nothing. The card features St. Louise Cardinals Batter Ted Simmons and is worth $49.45. The record-breaking card is from his rookie season and was produced by trading card giant Topps. He also loves to write about the hobby and has written for Beckett, Topps, SABR and of course, this website. Murphy struggled a bit during the 1981 split season as his batting average fell to a paltry .247 and his slugging percentage plunged to .390 from .510 the year before. Heres a rare rainbow foil card in mint condition by Risk Foil. Its one thing to have an expos future stars card signed by one of the 3 players, however, the value and rarity goes all the way up when you have the signatures of two players on one card. If you do the math on those 2,416 strikeouts he accumulated during his time with the Angels, that meant he averaged302 strikeouts per season, a mark many pitchers would be lucky to reach even once during their careers. On our list is an ungraded card featuring the 1981 Boston Red Sox, it was probably signed by the manager for the team, it is currently worth $72. Because of his career accomplishments and his overpowering style, Ryan remains one of the game's most popular players to ever play and you'll see his name in just about every set's log of key cards. He is ranked 33rd on the all-time list of career leaders for batting average among Major League Baseball players with at least 1,000 appearances at-bat. 1981, 1985, 1989), 11-time MLB strikeout leader (1972-74, 1976-79, 1987-90), two-time NL leader (1981, 1987), MLB All-Century Team. During the first part of his career, Tom Seaver was absolutely dominant on the mound as he racked up 20-win seasons, Cy Young Awards, ERA Titles and Strikeout Titles like it was nothing. Contact him at [emailprotected]. In the process, Schmidt led the league and set career highs in home runs (48), RBI (121) and total bases (342). Contact him at [emailprotected]. An Enrique Romo Signed Baseball card that has been authenticated by a grading service is pretty hard to find. 1 Rickey Henderson #119. He also led all of baseball with 89 runs scored and led the American League in stolen bases (56) and hits (135). He also holds the schools record for most strikeouts in both a single season and total career strikeouts with 309 in 305 innings pitched. Accolades aside, Schmidt felt his best accomplishment was in one of the few offensive categories in which he didn't pace the Majors: batting average. The card features Pete Rose. Roland Glen Fingers was an American right-handed relief pitcher who played for three teams between 1968 and 1985. And that's when his career started to take off as he made his first of seven career All-Star Games during the 1980 season and would finish twelfth in the MVP vote. The current value of this baseball card is $199.99, it has the signature of Tim Raines. (Updated for 2022) SUBSCRIBE NOW! Cal Ripken Jr. The defending AL champions were a mess early, though. 1981 Topps Kellen Winslow Rookie Card (#150) Winslow took the big-bodied, good-hands tight end model that Newsome brought to the fore and ran with it (after the catch!). 1989 Donruss The Rookies Ken Griffey Jr. #3. 1981 Topps Traded Tim Raines Rookie Baseball Card #816 NM-MT FREE SHIPPING. Ted Simmons St. Louis Cardinals 1981 Topps, 17. Read our methodology. Not bad for an 11th round pick (#250 overall) in the 1975 MLB Draft. Average . Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. $68.95. That season was the first time batted .300 or better, crossed the 30 home run mark, scored 100 runs or more and drove in 100 or more RBI. And, if you look back at his stats for his rookie campaign in the 1982 season, there really was no reason he shouldn't have made the All-Star team that year, too. During his first year with the Angels, Jackson proved he still had plenty left in the tank and led the Majors with 39 home runs and finished sixth in the MVP vote. Shortcuts: Most Expensive, Cheapest, List by Card # In his seventh season in the Majors, Yount broke out in a big way in 1980 as he led the league in doubles (49) while scoring 121 runs, driving in 87 RBI, and hitting 23 home runs to earn his first trip to the All-Star Game. 1981 Topps Baseball 2nd Year Card Rickey Henderson, 3. And while his offensive numbers dropped in 1981, Brett's star was still quite bright. Jackie Robinson | Card Sold For: $392,400. Somehow during all that success with college basketball, he also found the time to play for the Blue Jays from 1979 to 1981. Before Danny Ainge found success at the professional level in basketball as a player, coach and executive, he made his professional sports debut for the Toronto Blue Jays in 1979while he was still in college. Instead, he was more of a craftsman on the mound and outsmarted hitters to allow a career-low 6.5 hits per nine innings. Brett's performance at the plate put him well above Milwaukee's Cecil Cooper and his own impressive .352 average to earn his second of three career batting titles. Click on any card to see more graded card prices, historic prices, and past sales. Murray was one of the greatest first basemen to ever play the game but his cards seem to be a bit overlooked at times. 726 cards. This on-card autograph card is much rarer than the typically signed cards of this all-time great as it has been likely inscribed with an 81 HRC inscription commemorating this player being tied as the 1981 American League home run champion! Placing Mark McGwire's 1985 Topps card in this category may seem a little unfair considering its current $650 price tag. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2022 by Old Sports Cards, LLC. While it may not be one of the most popular sets of the era, the 1982 Topps baseball card set packed plenty of star power and two key Hall of Fame rookie cards. Incredibly consistent and productive during his 21 years in the Big Leagues, Murray ended his Hall of Fame career with 3,255 hits, 504 home runs, 1,917 RBI and set the all-time record for sacrifice flies with 128. And in this guide, I'll run through the ten most valuable. It is also (by a slight margin) the most valuable card in the 1984 Topps Football set. Although his best days were clearly behind him, he still played well enough to earn a trip to the 1982 All-Star game. Over his long and storied career, Henderson broke many records and helped transform the lead-off position. But, hey, that's the kind of excitement that he brought to the game: you never knew if he were going to bury one over the fence or get sent right back to the dugout. 6 Rickey Henderson #180. The last sale's most valuable Topps Nolan Ryan baseball card is the 1974 Topps Nolan Ryan baseball card number #20. The 1980 season would be Winfield's last with the Padres as the Yankees signed him to a ten-year, $23 million contract making him the game's highest-paid player at the time. Value: $300-325. It was a fitting punctuation mark for one of Ryan's best seasons on the . Inc. Ozzie was always one of my favorite players to watch as a kid as his acrobatic defensive play left fans in awe time after time as he went on to collect 13 Gold Glove awards. Reggie Jackson played five seasons as a member of the New York Yankees from 1977 to 1981, and the 1980 season turned out to be his best in pinstripes. Seaver was nothing short of incredible for the Reds that season but Los Angeles's Fernando Valenzuela was just a bit better and out-pointed Seaver in the Cy Young vote 70 to 67. Their scarcity is a result of several situations that can apply to baseball card collecting. Regardless of its market value at any given point in time, the significance of this rookie card cannot be overstated as it's one of the most expensive cards from the 1980s. Clocking in at 605 cards in total, this set made history when it first debuted. The greatest catcher of all time, Johnny Bench played in seventeen seasons with the Cincinnati Reds from 1967 to 1983, and in 2011 the team erected a statue in his honor at Great American Ballpark. Sure, the 1981 Topps set has the Montana rookie card, . Prices are updated daily based upon 1981 Topps listings that sold on eBay and our marketplace. Despite the poor production, Jackson still earned a spot on the All-Star team for the eleventh time in his career. The right card could make you rich. 1981 Topps Bob Owchinko Baseball Card, 11. Right around that same time, the relationship between the St. Louis Cardinals and their shortstop, Garry Templeton, wasn't going well either. They were the fourteenth and fifteenth players to achieve the incredible milestone. Along with those of Wade Boggs and Ryne Sandberg, the 1983 Topps Tony Gwynn rookie card is one of the most important and iconic baseball cards of the 1980's.. Sure, Gwynn was one of the greatest hitters who ever played with 8 batting titles to his name, but why are collectors willing to pay so much for this card . Bench was a complete catcher as he was dangerous with both the bat and glove and was a significant reason "The Big Red Machine" was so dominant throughout the 1970s. Cincinnati finished second in both halves of the 1981 split-season but ended the year with the best overall record in the National League. Tune in as Mrs. Wax Pack Gods reads about 1981 Topps Baseball Cards.When 1981 Topps baseball cards hit store shelves that spring, they were playing in a brav. Henderson posted a brilliant 1.144 OPS against New York, but the rest of the Oakland lineup went dead silent. His full name is Peter Edward Rose and was a professional baseball player who managed to exceed Ty Cobbs record for the number of hits in a career. From there you can also add a Card to your collection or wishlist. 203 Bill Gullickson Record Breaker - Expos. Checklist Top. Baseballs hit king, Pete Rose, led all of baseball in total hits on seven different occasions. 4. Description Card Number NM-MT 8 MT 9 GEM-MT 10; Larry Bird (HOF) Shop with Affiliates 4: 185+ 770+ 21,500+ Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (HOF) Shop with Affiliates 20: 45: 135+ 1,400-Magic Johnson (HOF) Shop with Affiliates 21: 170-850 1981 Reggie Jackson Topps Project 70 Card, 10. Jackson found a groove in the team's ALDS victory over the Milwaukee Brewers, hitting .300 with a .933 OPS, two home runs, and four RBI. While the 1982 Topps baseball card set may not ever be known as the company's best-looking in terms of design, it did pack a lot of star power and two Hall of Fame rookie cards. 10 Bo Jackson #600. He did his best, hitting .333 with a 1.095 in the final three games, but New York dropped all three and the series. His struggles didn't last long, though, and maybe it was seeing Mike Schmidt win back-to-back MVPs in 1980 and 1981 because, by the following year, Murphy's production skyrocketed as he'd go on to win back-to-back MVPs of his own in 1982 and 1983. PriceIt Game | His .246 batting average and .355 slugging percentage were also career lows. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1993. Getting hands on a card like this is pretty difficult. At that point, Murphy looked like he was on a surefire trajectory to Cooperstown. Yastrzemski played two more seasons in Boston before retiring, making All-Star appearances at the age of 42 and 43 during the 1982 and 1983 seasons, respectively. Unlike Smith, Cal Ripken's chances at the Hall of Fame were never in doubt. #5. Players include Hank Aaron, Nolan Ryan & Mike Trout. The cards featured in this list represent the most coveted and desired of all 1981 Topps Baseball cards. The 1981 Topps baseball card set consist of 726 standard size cards that measure 2" by 3". Prices are updated daily based upon 1981 Topps listings that sold on eBay and our marketplace. 1. However, once he was in San Diego, Templeton's hitting declined drastically and he'd never bat over .300 again. Heres an amazing baseball card that in my opinion should be worth more than it currently is. - http://bit.ly/W. He also loves to write about the hobby and has written for Beckett, Topps, SABR and of course, this website. Tags 1981 Topps Baseball. The 1980 season turned out to be historic for George Brett as he won the only MVP of his legendary career and fell just short of batting .400 on the year with an eye-popping .390 average. He also paced the Majors in ERA+ (195) and hits per 9 innings (6.0). Track your collection for free. To be fair, though, his innings pitched totals in Houston weren't as steep as those during his time in California, and his 11.5 strikeouts per nine innings in 1987 was the highest mark of his career. Dale Murphy enjoyed a bit of a breakout year in 1980 as he hit 33 home runs, scored 98 runs, had 89 RBI and made his first of seven career All-Star teams. You love collecting baseball cards, right? Although the 1980 season would mark the first of a nine-year stint for Nolan Ryan with the Houston Astros, Topps still had to show him as a member of the California Angels because of the timing of their print run for their 1980 Topps set. 1981 Topps Baseball Set Checklist. List by Card #, You own: 0 / 865 items The NL Rookie of the Year Award was close, with Raines receiving 85 vote points to Valenzuela's 107, but the Expos and all of baseball knew that Raines was something special. The 1961 Topps All-Star Mays falls in line with the others in the semi-high-number subset. Houston went just 28-29 in the first half but won the NL West's second half at 33-20. A rare 1980/81 baseball card. #10. In 379 plate appearances (347 at-bats), Brett slashed .314/.364/.484 with 24 home runs and 118 RBI to make his sixth-straight All-Star Game and finish 27th in the AL MVP race. Ross is the founder of Old Sports Cards and has been collecting sports cards for over 30 years. Ozzie Smith was given the name Wizard of Oz After an amazing record for the most assists at shortstop thus establishing a new record in that era. 3. Jackson slumped out of the gates in 1981, prompting Steinbrenner to invoke a clause in his contract that forced him to undergo a full physical examination. Rickey Henderson, an American retired professional baseball player who played his entire 24-year career in Major League Baseball, helped break the sports color barrier. The 1980 Topps Rickey Henderson is such a beautiful card. Interestingly, Ryan's highest single-season strikeout total in nine years with the Houston Astros was only 270 in 1987, a year in which he also led the NL with a 2.76 ERA. The subsets in the 1981 Topps baseball cards include the league leaders (1-8), record breakers (201-208), and team cards with checklists on the back (661-686).The key rookie cards from this set include #315 Kirk Gibson, #347 Harold Baines, and #302 Fernando Valenzuela. It was a fitting punctuation mark for one of Ryan's best seasons on the mound. On the right side were four rows of six . . When collectors think back to the junk wax era, one of the first sets to jump into minds is 1987 Topps Baseball. Yes, the checklist is quite messy at times with the errors and variations. For example, his .693 OPS was the worst of his career by nearly 40 points (.721, 1961), and it was almost 150 points less than his career mark of .841. The previous record which he broke was 601 assists by a shortstop was done by Glenn Wright of the pirates. After sixteen seasons and two World Series titles with the Cincinnati Reds, Pete Rose left the "Big Red Machine" behind and signed as a free agent with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1979. And while Rose hit no home runs in 1981 and drove in just 33, he was a fantastic table-setter for the Phillies. So for our purpose, the most expensive Nolan Ryan rookie card is the 1969 Topps RC which is valued at $20,000, give or take a thousand. That means the card needs to be flawless. Topps has dominated the baseball card scene for the past six decades, issuing a set in every year . And he was still very much a respectable pitcher during his time in Cincinnati from 1977 to 1982 as he'd win around 15 games regularly, made . One of the most interesting things about Dave Winfield, and a sign of his incredible athletic ability, was that four professional teams across three different sports drafted him. He spent eleven seasons with four teams in Major League Baseball the majority of it spent with the Detroit Tigers. While eligible for induction, Murphy peaked at 23% of the vote in 2000, falling well short of the 75% needed for entry. While they used to be a bit overlooked, it's nice to see the 1980 Topps baseball set getting more love in recent years. Baseball Cards. 1983 Topps #482 Tony Gwynn Rookie Card. After the 1986 season, Dawson left Montreal as a free agent for the Chicago Cubs, where he would become their everyday right fielder on a much more knee-friendly grass field. Ken Griffey Jr. After fifteen-straight All-Star appearances from 1965-79, Yastrzemski was left out of the Midsummer Classic for the second year in a row in 1981. Download Price List, SportsCardsPro 2019-2023 This is a 1981 fleer rookie card with card number #418. Wilson was incredibly speedy and was the Mets' career stolen base leader before Jose Reyes eventually broke his record many years later. 1981 Topps Traded Expos Tim Raines Card. In total, Henderson led the league in stolen bases . 1981 Donruss. Let's be clear:most of the cards from this set do not have any value these days. Heck, he even dated "Miss New York" Debra Sue Maurice from the Miss USA Beauty Pageant.