The 1989 Topps Bowman baseball card set was the 18th issued by Bowman/Topps and featured players from Major League Baseball. It marked a transition period for Topps as the issuer of the flagship set and Bowman focusing more on prospects. The 1989 set included some notable rookies but lacked star power compared to previous years. It also featured several design changes from 1988 Topps that fans had mixed reactions to.
The set totaled 528 cards and had the usual assortment of base players, managers/coaches, checklist cards and record breaker cards. The base design went with a muted blue border and photos in a white border. Some criticized the design for being too plain compared to past coloristic sets like 1987 and 1988 Topps. Card numbers ranged from 1 to 528 with stars and prospects getting low numbers while bench players and pitchers filling out the high numbers.
Notable rookies in the set included Larry Walker, Barry Larkin, Tom Glavine, Gregg Olson, and Carlos Baerga. Walker had one of the more visually striking rookie cards with a sharp photo of his long swing. Larkin had a classic batting stance captured. Glavine’s card showed his windup. Olson was a rookie pitching prospect at the time. Baerga’s card highlighted his throwing motion from second base.
Veteran stars featured included Wade Boggs, Ozzie Smith, Andre Dawson, Rickey Henderson, and Nolan Ryan. None of those future Hall of Famers were in their primes yet so the perceived star power of the set decreased compared to the mid-1980s. The card design did not help highlight these established players as well as past designs either in the opinions of collectors.
Checklist cards in the set paid homage to the original 1951 Topps design with team logos arranged in a grid format. A variety of checklists cards were included with the standard format checklist cards showing players by team and position. Another variation showed teams alphabetically. The record breaker subset highlighted milestones from the 1988 season like Nolan Ryan’s 5,000th strikeout.
One innovation Bowman/Topps tried was a diamond-shaped subset called “Diamond Kings” within the base set. This subset featured 24 mini cards within the regular 525 card checklist. These 1 3/4″ by 1 3/4″ cards were meant to be stashed in team sets as diamond holders or displayed together as a mini team set. Reaction to these smaller cards was mixed with some finding them a fun novelty and others seeing it as a gimmick taking up base card slots.
The design and production quality of the 1989 Topps Bowman set were similar to 1988 levels. Centering, printing and cut quality were generally good for most of the 528 cards produced but not perfect. Surface wrinkles or dings could occur too. Condition grades tended to be all over the place for the set with no consistent pattern of poorly produced cards. Top star cards predictably received more use and abuse which hurts their grades decades later versus obscure bench player cards.
In terms of the vintage cardboard condition, most 1989 Topps Bowman cards that have survived to today are in EX/MT or worse condition with only a fraction in near mint or gem mint grades. The affordable cards from the set in the best available condition tend to be pitchers, backups and prospects that seldom saw play from collectors as kids. Established star cards have typically undergone more wear and have descended to lower grades on average due to demand as part of team sets.
When it comes to today’s collectible market, the 1989 Topps Bowman set can still becompleted in lower grades. Most base cards trade for under $5 in EX while stars command $10-20. The rookie cards have more value led by Walker’s $50-75 in EX. Even higher grades fetch commensurately higher prices to completionists trying for mint sets. The 1989 set holds interest for collectors of the late 1980s and early rookie cards but ranks behind flagship and more prestigious Topps/Bowman issues in hobby esteem and value retention over the decades.
While criticized at the time for a perceived plain design compared to it’s colorful predecesors and lacking the star power of mid-80s sets, the 1989 Topps Bowman set still warrants a look for collectors interested in that era. It introduced notable young players and had the traditional assortments of checklists and record breakers found in annual baseball sets. Surface issues and grades kept it from being a true condition-sensitive set but most cards can still be found. Rookies and stars command the greatest current interest and prices while filling out a 1989 set in lower grades remains affordable for collectors.
