The 1987 Upper Deck baseball card set was truly a watershed moment that changed the baseball card collecting hobby forever. With sharp photography, innovative design, and unmatched quality control, the 1987 Upper Deck set shook up the entrenched “Big 3” card manufacturers of Topps, Fleer, and Donruss and helped launch Upper Deck to become the dominant brand in the industry for over a decade.
Prior to 1987, the baseball card market had been stagnant for years, with the same dreary designs being recycled annually and little innovation between manufacturers. Topps had enjoyed a de facto monopoly for decades by virtue of exclusive licensing deals with MLB. Entrepreneurs such as Dr. Roger Krishna and Richard McWilliam saw opportunity for change and founded Upper Deck in 1988 with the goal of producing the highest quality cards available.
Upper Deck’s rookie release came in 1987, circumventing MLB’s licensing with a collegiate strategy that featured current minor leaguers and retired stars instead of active major leaguers. While an unconventional approach, it allowed Upper Deck to showcase its superior production values and design sensibilities. The 1987 set was a revelation for collectors, with sharp, colorful photography on a thicker card stock previously unseen in the hobby. Closeup headshots and action images really made the players jump off the card.
Gone were the drab aerial “headshot on a helmet” photos that had for years been the norm. Attention to detail was also vastly improved – players were clearly identified by team, name and stats/accomplishments were easy to read. The card designs incorporated team colors and logos beautifully. Quality control in cutting, centering and coating was so improved that mint and near-mint specimens seemed plentiful compared to the frequently poorly cut and chipped competing brands. Additional innovations like the hologram on the front of each card helped combat counterfeiting.
While lacking current MLB stars, the 1987 Upper Deck set still featured many notable players, especially popular alumni. The 252-card base set included retired standouts like Hank Aaron, Stan Musial, and Whitey Ford, as well as then-current MLBers when in the minor leagues like Mark McGwire and Tom Glavine. Rated rookies like Reds pitcher Rob Dibble and Expos outfielder Delino DeShields also gained new collector interest. Short prints like the award-winning “Teddy” teddy bear card added to the challenge of completion.
The true crown jewels though were the autograph and memorabilia cards inserted at ultra-low prefabs. Incredibly rare pulled rookie signatures of future Hall of Famers like Ken Griffey Jr. and Chipper Jones commanded insane prices. Memorabilia cards featuring game-worn equipment were also novel for the time. While posing collection and financial risks in retrospect, these revolutionary autograph and memorabilia cards helped drive interest and chase aspects that are core to modern blockbuster sports card releases.
While initially met with some skepticism lacking current MLB stars, the 1987 Upper Deck release quickly gained cult status and is now one of the most coveted vintage sets among collectors. Pristine baseline cards even 30+ years later can sell for hundreds of dollars. The most valuable rookie cards like Griffey and Jones routinely fetch thousands. The set proved there was a market for beautifully produced cards at a higher price point and helped kick off the modern sports card boom of the late 80s and 90s.
The 1987 set played a huge role in sinking the then-dominant Donruss and Fleer brands, who struggled to keep up with Upper Deck’s production advances. It ultimately forced giant Topps to improve significantly as well or risk losing its MLB license. Within a few short years, Upper Deck had outsold the traditional “Big 3” and emerged as the sports card market leader through the 1990s thanks to constantly improving releases that lived up to the standard first set with their pioneering 1987 baseballs.
While lawsuits and market consolidation have diminished Upper Deck in the modern era, their 1987 baseball release will always be remembered as one of the most impactful and collectible card sets ever produced. It took the hobby by storm by proving fans demanded high quality photography, designs and innovations more than familiar league logos and retired stars. The obsession with pristine vintage 1987 UD cards that continues even today is a testament to how thoroughly it changed collectors’ expectations virtually overnight. It was truly a landmark “rookie” issue that helped turn baseball cards from a niche pastime into a multibillion-dollar industry.
