In 1988, Donruss released their popular baseball card set which featured rookie cards of future Hall of Famers like Ken Griffey Jr., Greg Maddux, and Tom Glavine. This set is also notable for containing several rare production errors that make certain cards highly valuable for collectors. Let’s take a deeper look at some of the most significant error cards from the 1988 Donruss baseball set.
One of the most famous errors is the “Blank Back” Ozzie Smith card. Due to a glitch in the printing process, around a dozen of the Ozzie Smith cards were accidentally printed without any information or stats on the back. This left the back of the card completely blank except for the small Donruss copyright on the bottom. As one of the set’s biggest stars at the time, finding an unmarked Ozzie Smith card was a shocking mistake. In near mint condition, a Blank Back Ozzie Smith now sells for thousands of dollars due to its extreme rarity and status as a truly one-of-a-kind error.
Another standout error is the “Peeling Numbers” Bo Jackson card. A small subset of Bo Jackson cards had an issue where the printed numbers containing his career stats were slowly peeling off the front of the card. This created a strange visual effect where it looked like Jackson’s stats were shedding away. While production errors are usually considered flaws, collectors appreciate the Peeling Numbers cards for their bizarre and almost artistic appeal. Graded examples have sold in the $500-1000 range.
One quirk of the 1988 Donruss set was the inclusion of player position initials above the team logo on most cards. On a select few Mike Schmidt cards, his initials of “3B” were mistakenly left off, making those Schmidt cards instantly identifiable as errors. Only a small number of Schmidt cards are believed to exist missing the position initials. Graded examples have achieved prices up to $800 due to the clear scarcity.
Another scarce error involved Cardinals pitcher Joe Magrane, whose first name was misspelled as “Joeg” on a small subset of cards. The botched spelling of “Joeg Magrane” has become a highly sought-after error variation. Just finding one in a collector’s entire box of packs would be considered quite fortunate, as likely less than 10 of these errors were ever printed. Pristine examples have sold for over $1000.
One of the most visually appealing errors comes in the form of the “Pink Back” Greg Maddux rookie card. Due to an ink-mixing mistake, roughly 50-100 Maddux cards had their standard gray backs replaced with a bright pink coloring. The vivid pink contrasting with the rest of the card makes these among the most aesthetically pleasing errors. In top grades, Pink Back Maddux rookies have reached auction prices above $2000.
In addition to specific player errors, there were also several parallel errors that affected entire subsets of the set. The “Blue Line” parallels saw a group of cards mistakenly printed with a horizontal blue line across the entire front of the card. Ranging from stars to commons, cards with the distinctive blue stripe are instantly recognizable. Another parallel involved select cards being printed on the wrong sheet of card stock, giving them an unusual glossy texture compared to the standard issue. Examples have sold for hundreds due to their parallel status.
One other noteworthy parallel came about due to an overprinting glitch which caused some cards to have an additional ghost image slightly overlaid on the front. Known as “Double Prints,” examples like the Ken Griffey Jr. rookie with this error attracted bids into the thousands. Elsewhere, the final card in the base set, featuring an action photo of pitcher John Farrell, was accidentally left out of production entirely, making the “Missing Farrell” card a prominent error for set completionists.
In terms of rarer serial number errors, examples exist of cards being printed with no number at all, while others contain numbers that are off-center, misaligned, or partially cut off. Finding higher numbered cards with serials in the 100-300 range has also proven elusive. And in an oddball error that defies odds, at least one 1988 Donruss pack is known to have contained two of the coveted Ken Griffey Jr. rookie card.
While the 1988 Donruss set is best remembered today as a treasure trove for rookie cards, it also left a mark through its array of fascinating printing mistakes. Three decades later, examples still surface of the more obscure errors, captivating collectors with their historical uniqueness. For error card aficionados, the 1988 Donruss issues remain the gift that keeps on giving.
