Much of it isnt particularly expensive to acquire, which helps to retain the fun element of chasing something so encompassing.. Aside from batting .325, well above his career average of .276, Ripken also set career highs in home runs (34), RBI (114), OBP (.374), slugging percentage (.566), OPS (.940), OPS+ (162), and total bases (368). And, the numbers indeed show it as his slugging percentage and OPS plummeted to .383 and .714, respectively. Its a different kind of chase that extends to present-day collecting as a seemingly endless number of errors and variations have captured the fascination of collectors across collecting blogs and chat rooms for decades. Many of the rookies come from the Draft Picks subset, the best of which is Chipper Jones. Sensing they had a good thing, TCG issued a few extras and parallels that have stood up to time and hobby fluctuations better than the original. Though McGwire had built a reputation as a power hitter capable of sending the ball to the moon heading into the 1991 season, he did not live up to it that year. Ungraded & graded values for all '91 Topps Archives 1953 Reprint Baseball Cards. Topps relied on a sales gimmick, tied to its anniversary, to entice collectors to the old standby, while still dressed in the familiar, old, gray cardboard. See, in 1990, Topps had issued a set of comic-book bordered cards that marched alongside the garish red of Donruss and the general ickiness of a crappy Fleer set as the three traditional companies made a beeline away from Upper Deck. Due to poor sales of the. I have over 2000 91 baseball cards how do I know which ones are worth money ? 1989 Steve Avery Signed Topps Rookie Card Some of the logos and card backs glow when placed under a black light, demonstrating the resourcefulness and zeal of 1991 Topps collectors to find such an anomaly. 1991 Topps Baseball sticks with a then-standard 792-card checklist. Add in the RCs of Bagwell and Pudge again, too, in Traded form. The top card in the set is easily the rookie card of Hall of Famer Chipper Jones. Although it's not one of the card maker's most valuable releases, it's one of their most attractive. Read our methodology . 1. Apparently, at least, as we were unwilling or simply unable to absorb the oceans of product on the market even as we continued to slobber over the gorgeous UD offerings in their second year. 1991 Topps #333 Chipper Jones Rookie Card Estimated PSA 10 Value: $85 It may not be quite as valuable as the Mark Whiten variation or Griffey's base card but the Chipper Jones rookie card is easily the face of the entire set. Total Prize Value. 13 Most Valuable 1991 Topps Football Cards - Old Sports Cards 1991 Topps Traded card list & price guide. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2008-2023 The Cardboard Connection. That wasnt the case in 1990 and 1991, but you can get some idea of relative print runs based on the PSA Population Report. 1991 Topps Baseball saw the company celebrate its 40th anniversary. When I watched Griffey playing during the 1990's, it almost seemed a certainty he would one day be the all-time leader in home runs. Originally, Topps listed his slugging percentage for the 1987 as618(missing the decimal point) on the back of the card. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2022 by Old Sports Cards, LLC. The multiple borders in the design allow multiple 3-D effects chosen seemingly at the whim of the Topps artists. The cards are a trademark Topps issue printed on non-gloss cardstock. Capitalizing on improvement in photography, Topps unveiled powerful images, such as the action-packed Carlton Fisk (with big Cecil Fielder barreling toward home), Walt Weiss and Rickey Henderson cards, all with horizontal displays. There were only a handful of cards worth more that $50 during this time. The wide variety of variations and the obscurity of many of them is the reason why Charles created his blog, to counter much of the incorrect information he has seen. Back then, we were always clamoring for limited print runs, premium (white) card stock, and clear photography. Remember, he was pitching in hisfourth decadein 1991 which speaks to his longevity on the mound. As you read through this list, please keep in mind that most cards in this set have little to no value these days. The fact that he didn't appear in the 1991 Midsummer Classic has to be one of, if not the biggest, All-Star Game snub in the game's history. This is just another case of where the value of a card can be boosted by a simple variation. It makes sense that Topps would feature the first player in this set in a tuxedo as a clever way of helping to market their first premium set in a higher standard. The 2000 Playoff Contenders Tom Brady will probably go down as the most iconic football card of all time. Prices for 1991 Topps Baseball Cards 1991 Topps card list & price guide. In 1988 he was playing with the San Francisco Giants. The look of the card was utterly simplistic gray cardboard; a uniform-matching color border; the teams nickname in the bottom right; a Topps 40 Years of Baseball logo in the top left but it still somehow resonates with collectors to this day. Sanders made sure to rework his contract in the offseason to be available for MLB playoff games in the future and the move certainly paid off in a big way for the Braves. Prices for 1991 Topps Archives 1953 Reprint Baseball Cards - SportsCardsPro I was lucky enough to find an original George Bush senior in his yale uniform. We use cookies to improve your experience. As you can imagine, not all of the soldiers were into these cards. Anyway, Ripken Jr. will always be known for that "other streak", the one in which he played in 2,632 consecutive games. A rundown of the most expensive 1991 Topps baseball cards sold on eBay in April-June of 2022.See the most recent eBay top sellers of 1991 Topps baseball card. Lets start at the beginning and work our way through the rest. The photography and premium look and feel of the cards have held up quite well to this day. Errors / Variations Gallery - 1991 Topps Baseball | Trading Card Database 33 cards. Was he originally slated to be the first card in the set but Topps decided to go with Dave Stewart at some point instead? I hve the whole collection of topps 40 baseball cards how do I find value. 1990 Topps George Bush USA1 Card #4. Click on any card to see more graded card prices, historic prices, and past sales. The Most Valuable Trading Cards Ever Sold - ONE37pm Sports collecting news - Sports cards and sports memorabilia industry news. How high can these cards rise? The guy had just broken out, to say the least, the season before when he appeared in his first All-Star Game while winning his first MVP, Silver Slugger and Gold Glove Awards. 21 Surprisingly Cheap: Tony Gwynn 1983 Topps Tony Gwynn was arguably the best pure hitter of his era or perhaps any other. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Page: Related: FAQ - Pricing I have those 1991 Topps cards how can I get them graded and sell fo.the best price. 2020 Jose Canseco Stadium Club Bash & Burn Auto Orange /5 #BBAJC. Read our methodology . Would the set have held up better if other major rookie cards materialized over time? I think most were accidental and the result of Topps wanting to get things right as the presses continued.. Baseball; Sets; 1991; Overview; 1991 Topps. Not to mention the hundreds of thousands of (opened product) cards found in hand-collated sets, collections, thrift store hauls and miscellaneous boxes that I have picked up over the years. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. But upon 30 years of reflection, that gray-cardboard set marks the dividing line between the traditional baseball card sets issued the 40 years prior to 1991 and the bright, white and slick sets that have dominated the industry in the last three decades. Well past his prime but still pitching at a high level in 1991, it was anyone's guess at how long his career would eventually last. Sources vary on the exact distribution but that is the figure most commonly cited. A double border in two different colors houses the photo image, except when that image is breaking out of the design. Charles does not believe the many variations which include several statistical errors were intentional on Topps part, which has been a common accusation regarding the litany of errors found in a number of sets during the overproduction era. 3. Any idea if they are all mint or could some have minor damage since cards were purchased back from collectors? 1991 Topps Baseball Card Checklist, Errors, Values - Gold Card Auctions There are faked versions of this card, so this is one worth buying authenticated. For the first time since the 1974 Topps set, the company included individual player cards that were oriented horizontally. One of the many hats that 1991 Topps Baseball wears is its reputation as one of the most variation-heavy sets ever created. His iconic status help keep his baseball cards among the most desirable in any set in which he appeared. Or, they'd need to be one of the rarer Desert Shield versions Not to be confused with Topps' set of Desert Storm cards which featured military subject matter, the Desert Shield baseball cards were sent to soldiers who were serving in the Persian Gulf War during that time. The blog covers a number of sets from that period, even from other sports, but readers keep returning to the posts about 1991 Topps, and many are armed with questions: * I have a Carmelo Martinez (who) played for the Pirates (and) all the Pirates cards have a black border around them but Car-melos border is grey is it (an) error., * I have a Steve Olin #696 with a faded logo, and the E*F* print code., * Is there a way of finding out all the errors that people have found (and) posting them on one post?, Dylans answer to the last question was, No, there is not. Love that Benny Santiago card you guys posted in the checklist page. 20 Greatest Jose Canseco Baseball Cards + Most Valuable @Sam You would need to look at the cards to determine that. 1952 to 1990. A team logo adorned the lower right-hand corner, and player information sat in an understated bar beneath his picture. Most of the cards show the logo faded with the stats easy to read, while variations off er a bright, bold, red logo that dominates the stats. Card backs are red with complete career stats and player vitals. Heading into the 1991 season, Griffey had already notched his first All-Star selection and Gold Glove, and by season's end, he'd add one more of each as well as his first Silver Slugger. Most are statistical errors, but some players have the wrong photo or wrong team. 1991 Fleer Ultra Baseball Was Company's first "High End" Brand That meant several never really made their way into the circulation of collectors. Click on any card to see more graded card prices, historic prices, and past sales. Rememberwhen Upper Deck released their debut set in 1989, they changed the hobby forever and forced Topps and other manufacturers to up their game. It also sounds familiar if youre a fan of classic sets from the hobbys history 1953 Bowman, 1957 Topps, 1967 Topps. Tommy Tom Lasorda Dodgers Topps Signed Card 7. But most collectors are probably focused on the main set. For this reason, and others, 1991 Topps Baseball is timeless, as it offers a number of attractions as varied as the hobbyists who are collecting the set still. And at the same time, Fleer threw its had into the premium card market, too. It requires a lot of work, especially if you want to collect the more nuanced and questionable varieties.. While PSA has graded close to 60,000 Desert Shield cards, just about 12,000 check in at PSA 10. By navigating the site, you agree to the use of cookies to collect information. Thanks to the inclusion of more than 20 Team USA members, the set also boasts rookies of Jason Giambi and Charles Johnson. The key to the brand's success lies in the fact that Bowman and Bowman Chrome rookie cards are typically the most valuable and sought after of all rookie cards. In all, there are 792 cards in the set, just like the regular 1991 Topps baseball cards. Track your collection and maximize your profit with Market Movers, the hobbys most powerful sports card pricing platform! Rating: 7.1 (153 votes) Click here to Rate. Grade: Ungraded. Then, theres the Chipper Jones card, with graded examples usually running close to $1,000 or more. Most expensive baseball cards in history. The price guide can be accessed in the top menu of this page. In 1990, those numbers fell to .335 and .643, respectively. 1988 Topps Baseball Cards - 25 Most Valuable - YouTube After two years of balancing his efforts as a two-sport athlete for the New York Yankees and the Atlanta Falcons, the Yankees finally decided to part ways with Sanders in September 1990. Upper Deck had proved with its $1 packs that there was a market for premium brands. His 368 total bases were actually tops in MLB that year. But he was also a baseball legend who was on the verge of 3000 hits, and his cards were among the most consistently popular in the hobby. Fred McGriffs extended bat stays within the frame while Evans bat breaks all the way through. 1991 Stadium Club Baseball Cards - 10 Most Valuable By utilizing Kodak technology, Topps delivered an incredible product that firmly put them as a serious competitor in the premium segment of the hobby. I remember he seemed to hit and run with a distinct style and grace and you can see that coming to life in this great image of him heading towards first base. Though most of Henderson's production fell off in 1991, as expected, he still led the AL in stolen bases with 58 and earned his tenth and final trip to the All-Star Game. Fortunately, the Chicago White Sox quickly gave him a shot and signed him to a three-year deal. Sadly, this was the last set in which Topps inserted gum into wax packs. It was recently sold on eBay for $150.50, thus making it worthy of being on our list of most valuable Bo Jackson baseball cards. I do believe that Topps upped the production on this set, being a big anniversary issue with a massive promotion behind it. Given the increasing prices of high-grade cards, the potential for unopened packs and boxes could be even greater by now. Fronts included full color images of players with white borders while backs had the typical statistic-laden layout found on Topps other sets. Ungraded & graded values for all '91 Topps Traded Baseball Cards. History All-Star Game; A.L.C.S. I was told graded its 10k. We dont know how big a role nostalgia plays with this one, but it still regularly sells north of $40. Instead, he attributes it to the volume of cards that Topps was producing that year, possible multiple print runs and creating them at more than one printing facility. Read our methodology. Counterfeits. Jose Uribe was a league baseball shortstop from 1984 to 1993. Let's take a look at the top 45 most valuable junk wax-era baseball cards below. Ungraded & graded values for all '91 Topps Baseball Cards. When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. No matter what form of packaging a collector purchased, the promotion appeared, exclaiming the chance to pull any card from Topps vast inventory from the previous 40 years. For cards worth more than that amount or issued prior to 1957, Topps inserted redemptions, according to the spokesman for Topps at the time. 2. The big draw is the first-year players. All rights reserved. So what are these cards? Some of the game's greats had more than one season that could be considered the greatest of their careers. Those sets that followed just dont seem like trading cards to them. Day Barry Bonds Err. Above the bar is a ribbon with the team's name. Slab Strong (Protective Slab Bumper Sleeves), 5 Things To Know About Victor Wembanyamas First Investable Card, Netflixs Full Swing: Top Golf Cards From the Shows Stars, Durants Deadline Move Shakes Up Multiple NBA Markets, Elly De La Cruz Rookie Cards: Best Sets and Parallels, Top 10 Most Valuable: 1981 Topps Basketball, Super Bowl Delivers Boost to Mahomes, Hurts and Kelce, Simons Surges; Fultz Returns: Top 5 Hottest Sports Cards, Pop Report: TCG, Ja Morant Rise in Latest PSA Returns. Check out that one here. Thats still quite a few by todays standards, but its tiny when you consider the typical flood of each issue from the early 1990s. )-78 including all ABA players and football from 1968-1981. 1969 Topps All-Star Rookie Johnny Bench Rookie Card #95 SHOP EBAY You can go back and forth on which is the actual Johnny Bench rookie card. Total Cards: 792. Of those submitted, eleven graded gem mint 10, 797 mint 9, and 1,460 near-mint to mint 8. Because of his NFL contract, Sanders missed all of the Braves' games in August and most of September and couldn't play for them during their playoff run that year. Only his other MVP-winning campaign in 1983 comes close to matching what he did in 1991. Here are the most expensive baseball cards right now I have hundreds of cards from this 91 set in plastic holders in my basement. Card #311 Mickey Mantle is one of the Topps baseball cards with the highest value on the market. Topps gesture would have been appreciated, surely, but, well, troops had bigger issues to worry about. One collector was also given a complete run of base sets from each year. Here are the top deals on boxes currently listed on eBay. While Topps didnt do anything to move away from their traditional mushy brown cardboard in base sets until 1992, we could always count on Tiffany. He'd appear in just 23 games for the White Sox in 1991 before missing the entire 1992 season due to hip replacement surgery. The Legacy of Bowman Baseball Cards. But why was Nolan Ryan also wearing a tux at card #200 in the checklist? Ross is the founder of Old Sports Cards and has been collecting sports cards for over 30 years. Collectors could also enter the grand prize drawing by filling out the back of the game card for the opportunity to win every flagship set that Topps had created in the previous 40 years. As part of the 40th Anniversary celebrations, Topps included buybacks and buyback redemptions for Topps Baseball cards released between 1952 and 1990. During his 1990 campaign, Henderson led all of MLB with a .439 OBP, 1.016 OPS, 189 OPS+ and 119 runs scored. For whatever reason, 1991 Topps Baseball has an abnormal amount of errors. 22. The title is a reference to the irreverent nickname given the famous (infamous?) Copyright 2023, Beckett Collectibles, LLC. Whether you include the sequential game card inserts, the bold 40th logo cards, the Glow Backs, the sheet code variants or just the more clear-cut error and corrected cards; it can go pretty deep and that means a lot of mystery to explore. Contact him at [emailprotected]. This has to be one of the strangest choices of images for any Barry Bonds card in hobby history. The promotion captured the imagination of collectors everywhere as they opened multiple boxes of 1991 Topps Baseball in a bid to Chase the Mick the famed 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card and land the coveted card for free, or at least for the price of however many boxes were opened. Ripken was simply on fire during the 1991 season and there was nothing that he couldn't do. 1992 Leaf card list & price guide. Prices are updated daily based upon 1991 Topps Micro listings that sold on eBay and our marketplace. You can email him at [emailprotected] or find him on Twitter @PreWarCards. Albert Pujols Cardinals Signed 2000 Multi Peoria Minor Rookie Card 5. But those kids are adults 30 years later and many now appreciate a clean design that may have been too subtle for younger collectors. 9 of the Most Valuable Baseball Cards in History - HISTORY Cards have a white border. There was no need for Bonds to panic, however, since he'd add six more MVPs and multiple top-five voting finishes before his storied career came to a close in 2007. Here is a look at the baseball cards that have exceeded a million-dollar price tag, including two by one of the sport's top active players: 1. Read our methodology . Giants Signed Topps Baseball Card 2. While most guys would be thrilled with a .317 batting average during an entire MLB season, that kind of performance from Tony Gwynn in 1991 was a bit of a letdown. While some of the sets most memorable moments were of the traditional vertical variety (Chipper Jones), a few of the most famous were horizontal images (Roger Clemens). The 1991 Topps set debuted just as America was engaging in the first Gulf War. For 1991, PSA has graded about 16,000 base cards and about a third that number of their Tiffany counterparts. Nolan Ryan broke out the tuxedo to pose for this card and that fashion statement helped it quickly become one of the most popular cards in the hobby that year. I have a lot of these football cards late 70s and up baseball basketball Im wondering if the have any value. Now that we got that out of the way, let's take a look at the list: 1991 Stadium Club #270 Ken Griffey Jr. I got my dads card collection going back to the mid 1940s. Im familiar with all the cards shown. Topps may have missed an opportunity to create a more exciting Barry Bonds card, but they definitely didn't miss with Mark McGwire's card. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. So which of the 1991 Topps baseball cards are most valuable? Now that we got that out of the way, let's take a look at the list: 1991 Topps #360 Emmitt Smith Estimated PSA 10 Value: $100 After making his rookie cardboard debut in the 1990 Topps football set, the company included Emmitt Smith in their "Super Rookies" subset the following year. I started high school in 91 so by late summer I packed all the cards safely away and never checked them out. Forty collectors who found an X on their Instant Win Game card won a complete set from a random year from 1952-90. At the time, the slugger was dealing with issues off the field that McGwire would later say affected his performance on the field. Additionally, unopened product is sometimes found. Among them are Hall of Fame-caliber All-Stars like Chipper Jones, Jim Thome and Jeff Bagwell. Prices for 1992 Leaf Baseball Cards. You mention that you plate is small so I wonder if it could be related to the Topps Micro issue that year. His batting average also nosedived to .201 and Tony La Russa, the Oakland A's manager at the time, even decided to bench McGwire for the final game of the season just to avoid his average potentially slipping below .200. He manages a pre-war sports card blog and database at www.prewarcards.com . 1991 Stadium Club George Brett (#159) Brett was more than a decade removed from his 1980 peak, and just a couple years out from retirement when this card was issued. Sports Cards: 10 Most Valuable Baseball Rookie Cards of the 1990s
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