The 1988 Donruss baseball card set was the fifth edition of Donruss’ popular baseball card series. It marked a return to form for Donruss after some lackluster sets in the mid-1980s that featured unusual photography and designs. The 1988 set went back to a more traditional look that baseball card collectors enjoyed.
The set totaled 792 cards and had the usual assortment of current major leaguers, rookie cards, stars of the past, and team/league leaders. Some of the top rookie cards in the 1988 Donruss set included Mark McGwire, Barry Larkin, and Bobby Thigpen. McGwire’s rookie card in particular has become one of the most iconic and valuable cards from the late 1980s.
In terms of design, the 1988 Donruss cards featured a clean and classic look. Each card had a solid color background with the team logo prominently displayed at the top. Below the logo was the player’s name and that season’s stats. The front of the card also featured a nice action photo of the player. For veteran players, the photos tended to show them in their team’s uniform rather than a posed studio shot.
One of the things collectors enjoyed most about the 1988 Donruss set was the return to traditional photography. After some experimental sets in the mid-1980s that featured odd cropped or angled photos, it was refreshing to see more normal straight-on shots of the players in action. The photos gave the cards a classic baseball card aesthetic that harkened back to the 1970s era.
On the back of each 1988 Donruss card was the usual assortment of the player’s biography, career stats, and season highlights. One small innovation was the addition of the player’s handedness and batting stance. This was a helpful addition for collectors to better identify and remember each player. The card backs also continued Donruss’ tradition of having a blue color scheme rather than the more common gray found on rival brands like Topps.
In terms of parallels and variations, the 1988 Donruss set was fairly standard for the time. The main parallel was “Glossy Sendbacks” which had glossy photo fronts on otherwise identical cards. These glossy versions were available by mailing in proofs of purchase. Other variations included factory sets, gold foil stamped cards, and error or miscut cards. But unlike modern sets, parallels and short prints were not a major focus for Donruss in 1988.
The 1988 Donruss set is also notable for featuring some true rookie cards of future Hall of Famers like Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux, and Frank Thomas. While they were not the superstars yet that they would become, their rookie cards remain popular with collectors today. The set as a whole also captured a great snapshot of the late 1980s MLB rosters as stars like Wade Boggs, Ozzie Smith, and Nolan Ryan remained active.
In terms of production, the 1988 Donruss set had a standard print run for the time of around 180 million cards. This made individual cards from the set readily available through the late 1980s and 90s. As interest in vintage cards has increased over the past 20 years, key cards from the 1988 Donruss set have risen in value. Rookies of stars like McGwire, Larkin, and Thomas routinely sell for hundreds of dollars now. Near-mint examples of the set’s flagship cards can even reach into the thousands.
The 1988 Donruss baseball card set remains a very popular vintage release among collectors. It marked a return to a classic design philosophy and featured some of the most iconic rookie cards of the late 80s. While individual cards can be pricey for high-grade examples now, the set as a whole is still attainable to collect. Its combination of star players, rookies, and clean design make the 1988 Donruss one of the quintessential baseball card sets from the junk wax era.
