The St. Louis Cardinals are one of the most historic franchises in Major League Baseball. Since arriving in St. Louis in 1882, the Cardinals have celebrated 11 World Series championships and over 20 NL pennants. With such a long and successful history, Cardinals players have routinely appeared on some of the most iconic and valuable baseball cards ever made. Lets take an in-depth look at some of the most notable St. Louis Cardinals baseball cards from throughout the years.
One of the earliest and most sought after Cardinals cards is the 1909-1911 T201 set from the American Tobacco Company. These cards featured active players from across MLB at the time. Included in the set was Cardinals pitcher and future Hall of Famer Grover Cleveland Alexander. His T201 card in poor condition can sell for thousands of dollars. Other key Cardinals from the set include Rogers Hornsby and Billy Southworth. These early 20th century tobacco era cards helped kick off the baseball card collecting hobby.
In the 1950s, Topps really took over the baseball card market and introduced designs that defined card sets for decades. The 1954 Topps set featured Stan Musial on card #126, depicted in his road uniform with a fun birthday hat graphic. This is considered one of the more iconic Musial cards due to his classic stance and milestone season where he won the MVP award. Other notable 50s Topps Cardinals include Red Schoendienst, Enos Slaughter, and Vinegar Bend Mizell.
The 1960’s brought about colorful action photos and multi-player cards from Topps. Perhaps the most valuable 60’s Cardinals card is the 1967 Topps #632 Curt Flood/Bob Gibson/Orlando Cepeda card. All three were stars of the 1964 and 1967 World Series teams. In near mint condition, this coveted card can command over $1000 due to the high number of stars featured. Lou Brock’s 1964 rookie card from Topps is also a highly sought after Cardinals piece from the decade.
Moving into the 1970s, photography and production quality continued to evolve for baseball cards. The 1973 Topps set introduced smaller team/league cards showing full rosters. Cardinals fans adored the #543 card featuring the entire ’73 NL champion Redbirds squad. Individually, 1976 Topps rookie cards of future Hall of Famers Ted Simmons and Rollie Fingers in Cardinals uniforms are iconic cards from the decade. The colorful horizontal design elements from the late 70s Topps sets really appealed to collectors as well.
During the 1980s boom, card companies experimented more with oddball sets and unlicensed designs. Donruss even tried brief cartoon drawings on some of their cards. But Topps remained the gold standard, and their flagship sets sold extremely well. 1985 Topps featured rookies of Vince Coleman, Willie McGee, and Todd Worrell, who would help propel the Cardinals to the 1982 World Series title. Another fan favorite is Ozzie Smith’s 1986 Topps card, captured right before his iconic backflip celebration. Upper Deck also entered the scene in 1989, elevating production value to a new height with their premier set.
The late 80s/early 90s really defined the junk wax era when overproduction caused the vast majority of cards from that time period to hold little long term value. There are exceptions among key Cardinals stars. The 1990 Upper Deck Kevin Mitchell rookie and Mark McGwire’s 1989 Fleer rookie are considered the cream of the crop from that era.
As the hobby transitioned into the 21st century, manufacturers focused more on inserts, parallels, autographs and memorabilia cards to drive demand. In the 2000s, exclusive cards featuring Albert Pujols rookies from 2001 Upper Deck and Bowman were surefire hits. And 2005 Topps featured the entire Championship core on card #579.
Upper Deck also released highly sought after autograph cards of Adam Wainwright and Yadier Molina around their dominant seasons in the late 2000s. Recently, Topps Project 70 cards featuring retro designs brought nostalgia to cards like Bob Gibson in 1968. And 2021 Topps Fire cards really popped with their parallel rainbow foil finishes highlighting stars like Nolan Arenado and Jack Flaherty.
Whether it’s a vintage 1909 T206 Honus Wagner level rarity or a modern autographed rookie card, Cardinals collectors have sought after some of the game’s most iconic baseball cards spanning over a century. The rich history and on field success of the St. Louis Cardinals franchise is truly represented in the highly collectible cards created over the years featuring the team’s many legends and memorable players. With new stars continuing to emerge at Busch Stadium, Cardinals cards remain hugely popular with both longtime and new collectors.
