"I had hit .300 before, but I couldn't hold it," he said. . Rookie Cards: Options . This card has been signed by him and is currently worth $49. The card has been authenticated by the famous Beckett grading service. 726 Rick Monday. Like the 1982 Donruss and Fleer sets, large print runs saturated the market with these cards, driving down their values.
1981 Topps Baseball Cards - 15 Most Valuable - Wax Pack Gods 1982 Topps Card Prices | PSA & Ungraded Values - SportsCardsPro While this is considered one of his rookie cards, it doesn't command quite the price premium as his 1982 Topps Tradedrookie card which can sell for north of $5,000 in top condition. As a result, Topps created this monster 792-card checklist and loaded it with subsets to try and keep collector interestand collector eyeballsaway from Donruss and Fleer. And the reason it's worth so much in PSA 10 condition? Thats why everyone is constantly asking the question: What are the most valuable 1981 Topps baseball cards?. Tim Raines was one of the most successful stealers in baseball history and can be seen on the far left of the card. After rookie Fernando Valenzuela pitched a shutout on opening day, starting the craze that came to be known as Fernandomania, the 1981 Los Angeles Dodgers finished the season with a flourish. Card Number: #595. Mattingly's Donruss rookie was produced in smaller quantities than his Topps rookie, so it's worth more. 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). Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. 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. 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. 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. Many times, though, he'd fail to connect on those swings and would up earning himself a spot as the career leader in strikeouts with 2,597. And none of his Rookie Cards is bigger than . A rare 1980/81 baseball card. #7. 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. While eligible for induction, Murphy peaked at 23% of the vote in 2000, falling well short of the 75% needed for entry. 10 Bo Jackson #600. Just look at that awesome retro Astros jersey in all its striped glory! Here is a quick rundown of those most valuable 1982 Topps baseball cards, based on recent sales for copies graded PSA 9 and presented in numerical order. Unlike Smith, Cal Ripken's chances at the Hall of Fame were never in doubt. Rookie Cards. Placing Mark McGwire's 1985 Topps card in this category may seem a little unfair considering its current $650 price tag.
29 Most Valuable 1989 Topps Baseball Cards In the World Not bad for an 11th round pick (#250 overall) in the 1975 MLB Draft. Unfortunately, the strike-shortened season and growing tensions with Yankees owner George Steinbrenner got in the way. Previous Article. This set marked the end of an era in which Topps was the only mainstream company with the MLB's blessing to print baseball cards. 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. In 1981, Donruss and Fleer gave Topps some much-needed competition. Hold on to it.
Most Expensive [1981 Topps] Baseball Cards - SportsCardsPro 1981 Topps Basketball Cards - PSA Price Guide Struggling through back issues and other accumulated aches and pains, Yastrzemski had the worst offensive season of his 21-year career thus far. Price: $299.75 Grade: PSA 10. 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. 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. At the time, everyone thought the Padres were getting the better end of the deal as Templeton was a much better hitter. Somehow during all that success with college basketball, he also found the time to play for the Blue Jays from 1979 to 1981. 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. Today only a graded high-condition example gets that kind of money. However, Schmidt led baseball in multiple offensive categories, including home runs (31), RBI (91), OBP (.435), slugging percentage (.644), OPS (1.080), OPS+ (198), and total bases (228). 6) 1981 Topps Traded Rollie Fingers (#761) This may be the most iconic 1981 baseball card of all, thanks to 1) Fingers signature mustache, 2) the old-school kneeling pose, 3) the Cy Young-MVP twofer Rollie pulled off in 1981, and the 1982 Topps Kmart set that immortalized the entire card in miniature. He played most of his career with the St Louis Cardinals and New York Mets. Coming off a 1980 season in which he finished runner-up for the AL MVP award, New York Yankees right fielder Reggie Jackson looked to keep the momentum going in 1981. 1983 Topps #482 Tony Gwynn Rookie Card. One year removed from his Rookie of the Year-winning season, this Ripken card is still a hobby favorite because it shows the Orioles third baseman's timeless swing and a close-up of his youthful mug all on one important card. 19 Most Valuable 1981 Topps Baseball Cards Price List. 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. He also paced the Majors in ERA+ (195) and hits per 9 innings (6.0). *TIM RAINES* 1981 Topps Traded #816 *CGS 9* RC Rookie Card.
The Five Most Expensive Houston Astros Baseball Cards In a similar theme, Larry Bird is featured in a card from the 1981 Topps set. 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. The last sale's most valuable Topps Nolan Ryan baseball card is the 1974 Topps Nolan Ryan baseball card number #20. Owchinko played baseball for Eastern Michigan University. Recently, the price of a PSA 9 has continued to steadily fall to around $2,000 or less. 1 Rickey Henderson #119. The card features famous baseball player Reggie Jackson and is worth $75. The cards featured in this list represent the most coveted and desired of all 1981 Topps Baseball cards. 1981 Topps Kirk Gibson RC #315. . There are no scratches, bends, or folds. To commemorate Brett's 1980 MVP Award, Donruss basically changed the borders from green to red on his base card and slapped the "MVP" logo at the bottom while removing the team name and position. Within it, there were also several different subsets, including: For those collectors on the lookout for great Hall of Famers of the era or just a large checklist to complete, this set has it all. He won the American League MVP award with one of the best offensive seasons in league history, flirted with .400, and made his first World Series appearance. One of the most beloved New York Mets in franchise history, Mookie Wilson finished seventh in the 1981 NL Rookie of the Year race and went on to a very successful career until he retired in 1991. Brett's career batting average of .305 wasn't quite as good, but he did put up the better single-season effort when he batted. $12.95. Murray's first three seasons in the Majors were incredibly productive, but he kicked things up a notch in 1980 as he batted .300, belted 32 home runs, scored 100 runs and drove in another 116. The card is currently worth $189.99. Baines also won a Silver Slugger in 1989 and led the American League in slugging percentage (.541) in 1984. In 196 plate appearances (178 at-bats), he slashed .309/.369/.489 with eight home runs and 25 RBI. At 41 years of age, it seemed time had finally caught up to Boston Red Sox designated hitter/first baseman Carl Yastrzemski in 1981. Had Los Angeles's Fernando Valenzuela's not been so dominant in 1981, dousing the baseball world in "Fernandomania," Seaver would have earned his fourth Cy Young as he finished runner-up. 1981 Donruss. 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. Kansas City went 20-30 in the season's first half and started the second half slowly, with Manager Jim Frey taking the heat. The first standalone Topps Traded set may belong to 1981, but the first card to really make the series a hobby burner belongs to 1982 and to Cal Ripken, Jr. . Only Tony Gwynn had come closer to batting .400 or better since Ted Williams last did it in 1941 when Gwynn batted .394 in 110 games during the strike-shortened 1994 season. He was a two-sport star in baseball and basketball for the Minnesota Golden Gophers, so it wasn't too shocking that the Atlanta Hawks (NBA), Utah Stars (ABA) and San Diego Padres (MLB) each drafted him. Cards. Ungraded & graded values for all '81 Topps Baseball Cards. He played parts of four seasons in the MLB between 1979 and 1986, with the Chicago Cubs, San Francisco Giants, and Montreal Expos. 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!). During Dawson's first year with the Cubs in 1987, he would lead the league in home runs (49) and RBI (137) to win MVP honors, and the fans at Wrigley instantly fell in love with "the Hawk.". Pictured as a member of the New York Yankees, Jackson was actually traded to the California Angels for the 1982 season where he'd play for five seasons before heading back to Oakland for one final season. Although this one isn't worth as much as it might . Seaver would play one more year for the Reds in 1982 when he posted a 5-13 record before heading back to the New York Mets the following year. 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. But, for the 1982 season, Smith would never actually suit up for the Padres as he was traded to St. Louis for another highly-regarded shortstop in Garry Templeton. In Game 4 of the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, he'd return with New York holding a 2-1 advantage to try and help the team across the finish line. However, what raised eyebrows was that the Minnesota Vikings selected him in the 17th round of the NFL Draft despite having never played college football.
1981 Topps Baseball Cards - The Cardboard Connection That means the card needs to be flawless. The wrist band, the glasses.and that awesome stache You just don't see that kind of stuff in today's game so this card perfectly captures the style of the era and that's the great thing about baseball cards in general. . Shortcuts: Most Expensive, Cheapest, List by Card # Things weren't all rosy for Smith, however, as his relationship with Padres owner Ray Kroc and his wife Joan became publicly sour.
1982 Donruss Baseball Cards - PSA Price Guide