The 1987 O-Pee-Chee baseball card set is one of the most iconic issues from the 1980s. While it didn’t feature any rookie cards of future Hall of Famers, it does contain several highly valuable short prints and parallel cards that are highly sought after by collectors. Let’s take a look at some of the most valuable and desirable 1987 O-Pee-Chee baseball cards.
One of the true gems from the 1987 set is the O-Pee-Chee Ted Williams parallel card. Only 15 of these special parallel cards were inserted in packs, making it extremely rare. The Williams parallel card features the same design and photo as the standard issue card, but with a light green border and designating it as a parallel card with unique numbering. In gem mint condition, good examples of this rare Ted Williams parallel have sold for over $15,000 given its scarcity and the legendary status of Williams.
Another very valuable short print from the 1987 O-Pee-Chee set is the Ozzie Smith card. Unlike standard short prints which were usually inserted at a rate of 1 per every other wax box, it’s estimated that the 1987 Ozzie Smith short print was even rarer at a ratio of around 1 per 10 wax boxes. This makes an ungraded example of the Ozzie Smith short print worth around $2,000-3,000 to collectors today in decent condition. In a near mint to mint graded state, value increases significantly given its extreme rarity level compared to typical short prints.
Two other key short prints that command high values from the 1987 O-Pee-Chee set include the Ron Guidry and Gary Carter cards. While each has a different per-box insert ratio estimated in the 1:72-144 range, both are still considered very rare pulls. A nicely centered Guidry short print in a PSA 8 holder recently sold for $1,150, while a BGS 9 graded Carter short print crossed the auction block for close to $2,000. Their scarcity and popularity as players in the 1980s fuels strong demand and prices for these short prints today.
In addition to short prints, the 1987 O-Pee-Chee set featured a limited number of parallel rookie cards for players inserted as alternatives to their standard rookie card. One of the most valuable from that year is the parallel rookie card of future Red Sox star Roger Clemens. While Clemens’ standard rookie is widely available, only a small number of his parallel rookie were produced. A couple years ago, a PSA 8 example in near-mint condition sold for over $4,000 given its status as one of Clemens’ scarcer rookie cards from that season.
Another mid-1980s star with a limited parallel rookie card was Wade Boggs. Like Clemens, Boggs’ standard ’82 rookie is very obtainable. His 1987 O-Pee-Chee parallel rookie was restricted to an estimated print run of around 10-15 copies. In pristine mint condition, a PSA 10 Boggs parallel rookie from 1987 has gone for upwards of $6,500 at auction. That speaks to its importance among collectors as one of the rarest and most condition-sensitive cards featuring Boggs as a young player.
rounding out the premier short prints from the 1987 O-Pee-Chee baseball card set is the Don Mattingly card. With an insert ratio generally estimated between 1:72-108 packs, the Mattingly short print isn’t quite as scarce as the Guidry or Carter variants. Still, in high grade it remains a strongly sought after and valuable piece for collectors. A PSA 9 copy sold for $850, while raw copies in similarly well-centered near-mint shape will pull in the $400-600 range depending on specifics. Along with stars like Ozzie Smith, Mattingly was one of the popular players of the era that fuels collector demand for his 1980s cards.
While it lacks true rookie cards of future Hall of Famers, the 1987 O-Pee-Chee baseball card set holds a special place in the hearts of 1980s collectors. Its incredible scarcity-driven parallels of Ted Williams, Wade Boggs, and Roger Clemens rookies coupled with some of the rarest estimated short prints ever produced of players like Ozzie Smith, Ron Guidry and Gary Carter make it a true treasure trove. Over 35 years later, mint examples of these premium short prints and parallels continue to break auction records and be highly prized by veteran collectors of the era.
