The 1981 Fleer baseball card set was the third issued by the Fleer Corporation after they entered the baseball card market in 1981. Fleer had obtained the license to produce Major League Baseball cards in 1980 to compete with industry leaders Topps. The 1981 Fleer set saw the company make improvements and build upon the foundation they laid with their 1980 and 1981 inaugural sets.
The 1981 Fleer set contains 132 total cards and features all 26 Major League Baseball teams from 1980. Some of the biggest stars of the era like Mike Schmidt, Nolan Ryan, and George Brett are prominently featured. Roster and team checklist cards are also included to round out the set. Fleer continued their tradition of using action shots on a white background for the majority of the player cards. The set marks the first year Fleer included a card for the Commissioner of Baseball, Bowie Kuhn, as card #132.
One of the most notable aspects of the 1981 Fleer set was the card stock and photo quality improvements over the previous year. The 1980 Fleer cards were criticized for having a thin, low quality card stock that was prone to damage. For 1981, Fleer addressed this by switching to a thicker, higher grade paper that made the cards more durable. The photos were also clearer and sharper compared to 1980. This helped the cards better compete visually with the market leading Topps sets of the time.
The design and layout of the 1981 Fleer cards remained similar to 1980. The team name and logo are prominently displayed at the top in team colors. Below is the action photo with the player’s name directly underneath. The uniform number is included along with their position in smaller type at the bottom. On the back of each card is the standard player stats and brief career summary. Fleer continued using a blue and white color scheme throughout. The fronts have a white border around the photo while the backs feature a solid blue background.
In terms of chase cards and variations that make certain 1981 Fleer cards more valuable today, there are a few standouts. The Mike Schmidt card #49 is one of the most popular from the set due to his Hall of Fame career and status as a Phillies star from the 1970s-80s. The Nolan Ryan card #100 also holds value as one of the earliest Fleer cards of the all-time strikeout king. The George Brett #23 and Robin Yount #29 rookie cards are also desirable for collectors due to their star players.
For errors and variations, the 1981 Fleer set included a printing plate proof of the Mike Schmidt card that is highly sought after by collectors. There are a small number of test market cards from the set that were distributed in Florida and Texas prior to the official national release. These test issues have card #1 of Steve Carlton and #49 of Mike Schmidt on gray cardstock instead of the standard blue backs. They are considered the rarest variants from the 1981 Fleer set.
When it was released in 1981, the Fleer baseball card set made further inroads against the Topps monopoly. The improved production quality helped the cards gain more acceptance among collectors. While still smaller than Topps’ 660 card flagship set that year, Fleer established themselves as a serious competitor with their third 132 card offering. Prices for 1981 Fleer cards have increased steadily as the set has become popular with both vintage collectors and investors in recent years. Key rookie and star player cards can fetch hundreds of dollars in top grades due to their relative scarcity compared to the larger Topps releases of the same year. The 1981 Fleer baseball card set marked another step forward for the fledgling brand as they worked to capture their share of the lucrative baseball card market.
