The 1989 Star minor league baseball card series 2 brought fans 300 new prospects to get excited about from across America’s lower levels of professional baseball. While series 1 in 1988 had introduced fans to future MLB stars like Curt Schilling and Kenny Lofton in their rookie minor league seasons, series 2 upped the ante by featuring players from even more affiliate teams in more leagues.
Top prospects highlighted included a young Manny Ramirez playing for the Pittsfield Mets of the New York-Pennsylvania League and future 300-game winner Bartolo Colon pitching for the West Haven Whitecaps of the Eastern League. But deeper in the sets countless other future MLB contributors and memorable minor leaguers had their rookie card debuts as well.
For collectors at the time, the 1989 Star minor league baseball card series 2 offered the thrill of identifying breakout players early. While baseball card producers mainly focused on the majors then, Star carved out an important niche capturing the next wave of talent in its infancy. Their brightly colored cardboard portraits provided an affordable connection to the developmental ranks of America’s pastime.
As with series 1, the 1989 Star minor league issues came in wax paper packs of five cards with no gum. A total of 12 different sets made up series 2, each focused on a specific minor league. Beyond just showcasing the players, the sets also featured occasional manager or league leader stats cards to round them out. Collectors could mix and match subsets to build full rosters of prospects coming up through each affiliate circuit.
subsets included:
Eastern League (AA) – Featuring future platoon hitters like Nick Esasky and Jim Leyritz among its 100 cards.
Southern League (AA) – Highlighted Bartolo Colon in addition to Steve Carter and Gregg Olson on its way to 99 total players.
Texas League (AA) – Spotlighted Bobby Witt and Lee Stevens while totaling 100 cards.
American Association (AAA) – Included Lance Johnson and John Wasdin among 99 in all.
Pacific Coast League (AAA) – Had Donell Nixon and Scott Servais among 100 featured.
International League (AAA) – Pictured Steve Scarsone and John Habyan on 99 cards.
American Association (A) – Rained on upcoming hurlers like Ken Hill and John Wetteland over 100 cards.
Carolina League (A) – Immortalized Bobby Bonilla and Andy Ashby in addition to 100 others.
Florida State League (A) – Shone on Walt Weiss and John Cummings with 99 total players.
Midwest League (A) – Drew Rick Aguilera and Frank Catalanotto among 100 featured.
New York-Penn League (A) – Gave a rookie card to Manny Ramirez as part of 100 cards in the set.
Northwest League (A) – Highlighted soon-to-be-slugger Jeff Manto and arms like Mark Portugal over 99 cards.
Beyond the players, each set also included minor variations that add to the collecting intrigue. Pictured fronts came in both white and yellow borders. Reverse stats boxes could be found in different colored inks between red, blue, purple and green. Glossy, semi-gloss or matte cardboard finishes brought further diversity.
The success of the 1989 Star minor league baseball card series 2 helped cement their niche in the collecting scene. While other companies continued focusing on major leaguers, Star kept churning out affordable and desirable issues spotlighting the sport’s rising hopefuls for years to come. Their minor league cards allowed fans to follow favorite prospects’ stat lines and roster moves between levels all the way to The Show.
Though production values were basic, the sets served their purpose of capturing the next generation of baseball stars during formative seasons. Today they retain hobby significance for documenting that crucial developmental period just before breaking through. While not every name panned out, plenty within the 1989 Star minor league baseball card series 2 subsets went on to memorable big league careers. For enthusiasts of the farm system experience, they remain a fun connection to tracking talents’ first card appearances.
While series 2 didn’t have superstars quite on the level of series 1’s Schilling and Lofton rookie cards, it featured no less than a handful of eventual all-stars and 300-game winner Bartolo Colon. For a quarter of a pack at the time, it offered affordable access to the next wave of promise rising up affiliated ballclubs. Though production was simple, Star helped fill the niche between major-focused giants by chronicling embryonic prospects just starting out on the ladder to MLB. Their 1989 minor league card sets continue resonating today as a unique biographical chronicle of blossoming ballplayer careers.
