The 1987 Topps baseball card set is considered one of the modern classic and iconic baseball card issues. While it may pre-date the era of premium flagship sets like Upper Deck, Topps, and Leaf that began in the late 1980s, many of the 1987 Topps cards still hold value for collectors today due to the quality of the photography, design elements, and the rookie cards and players featured in the set.
The 1987 Topps set consists of 792 total cards issued in wax packs, with additional promotional and traded sets as well. Some of the key rookie cards and notable players featured included Ken Griffey Jr., Mark McGwire, Greg Maddux, Bryn Smith, and Darren Daulton. Griffey and McGwire in particular went on to Hall of Fame careers and remain extremely popular players with collectors to this day.
In terms of individual card values, the most valuable cards from the 1987 Topps set unsurprisingly center around the rookie cards of Griffey and McGwire. In near-mint to mint condition, a Ken Griffey Jr. rookie fetches a valuation of between $150-350 or more depending on exact centering, corners and edges. A Mark McGwire rookie in similar top-notch condition is valued at $75-200.
Of course, PSA/BGS graded rookie examples of Griffey and McGwire in high grades of 9-10 can far exceed these prices, with active sales of graded ’87 Griffey rookies regularly seeing final amounts around $1,000 or higher for gem mint 10s on populous auction sites like eBay. Less common graded examples graded even higher have been known to reach the $5,000+ range when finding the right, serious Griffey collector bidder.
Beyond the two highly coveted rookies, other key ’87 Topps cards that typically hold values even in raw, ungraded condition today include:
Bryn Smith Rookie Card – $20-50
Darren Daulton Rookie Card – $15-30
Greg Maddux Rookie Card – $15-35
Ozzie Smith – $10-20
Cal Ripken Jr. – $10-15
Wade Boggs – $8-12
Most stars and Hall of Famers from the 1980s have maintained demand from collectors for their ‘87 Topps rookie or staple cards. Conditions is still king, but examples graded NM-MT 7-8 can usually pull $5-15 even for secondary stars.
There are also short prints and error cards from the 1987 Topps set that can significantly boost the value for the right examples. The most valuable and renowned is the “Mullet Card” featuring Darren Daulton that was accidentally printed with a photograph of him with long hair from a previous season, making it one of the most iconic error cards ever. High graded examples of this card have crossed the $1,000 plateau before.
Other short prints like the Ivan Calderon card that was only printed around 50-100 times also hold substantial collector demand. Even relatively common stars like Dwight Gooden, Pedro Martinez, and Tim Raines have short print variations that can often double or triple the value of their regular base cards.
Condition and the specific player/card are the driving forces behind the valuations for 1987 Topps cards 35 years later. While mass produced, there is still a strong collector market given the quality and rookie talent featured. Taking care to assess exact condition factors like centering, edges and corners is important before placing values on individual raw cards as well. But overall, this set remains a stable and enjoyable one for collectors due its classic design aesthetic and historic players/memorabilia it provides. So in summary – yes, many 1987 Topps baseball cards hold value today for the right examples and circumstances.
