The hobby of collecting baseball cards saw a massive boom in the late 1980s. More people than ever were opening packs of cards, putting together complete sets, and pursuing the most valuable rookie cards and inserts on the burgeoning trading card secondary market. The 1987 Topps set introduced the Griffey rookie card that quickly gained legendary status. Building off this momentum, the 1988 Fleer and Score sets introduced ultra-rare insert sets that are among the most desired chase cards ever. By 1989, the perfect storm was brewing for some true gem cards to emerge that would stand the test of time as highly coveted by collectors.
One of the biggest rookie card treasures from 1989 is the Ken Griffey Jr. Upper Deck card. Upper Deck burst onto the scene in 1989 with its radically improved production quality over other brands. They featured perfect centering, sharp focus, and bright vivid colors. Even the card stock itself felt thicker and more premium. Naturally, collectors went wild for the set. Among the 259 total cards were rookie cards for Gregg Jefferies, Jeff Bagwell, and Moises Alou. But none would become more iconic than the Griffey. With his sweet left-handed swing already making headlines in only his second MLB season, Griffey seemed poised for stardom. Now, graded PSA 10 examples of this rookie sell for upwards of $10,000. Even well-centered PSA 9 copies still fetch over $1,000.
Another massive hitter who made his MLB debut in 1989 was Mark McGwire with the Oakland A’s. His rookie card comes from Donruss and Fleer that year. It’s the Fleer card that has earned legendary status. Featuring McGwire crouched in the batter’s box with intense focus, the photo has become synonymous with the start of “Big Mac’s” prodigious home run prowess. Raw copies still hold substantial value thanks to McGwire’s notoriety. But a PSA 10 example, which are extremely scarce, was sold at auction in 2018 for over $30,000, providing a true rarity from ’89.
While stars like Griffey and McGwire exploded onto the scene right away, other ’89 rookies like Barry Larkin, Frank Thomas, and David Justice took time to develop. Their rookie cards from sets like Score, Donruss, and Fleer are quite affordable today. But sleeper selections like the Luis Gonzalez rookie from Bowman Traded hold intrigue. Gonzalez didn’t blossom until later in his career with the Diamondbacks. His rookie is quite tough to find in high grade due to production issues with the Traded set. A PSA 9 could command $400 nowadays.
The biggest insert rarity from baseball cards in 1989 comes from Upper Deck’s Miniatures set. Featuring iconic photos shrunken down to business card size, the 88-card Miniatures set was one of the original “short print” inserts that became the precursors to autographed jersey cards and 1-of-1 parallels found in modern products. The biggest chase was the Ken Griffey Jr. Mini. In PSA 10 condition, with a population around 50 copies, Mint Griffey Minis have sold for over $15,000. Even well-centered PSA 9s still pull in $3,000. Beyond Griffey, stars like Bo Jackson, Nolan Ryan, and Ozzie Smith Minis also have valuations approaching $1,000 PSA 10. It’s amazing to think cards barely bigger than a postage stamp hold such significance.
1989 Donruss also had its share of rare varieties. The Gwynn Rookie Cup parallel is one of the toughest pulls in the entire set. Featuring Tony Gwynn in San Diego Padres brown and yellow with “Rookie Cup” stamped on the front, these rare rookies have sold for over $5,000 in pristine condition. Similarly scarce are the “1st Run” parallel variations found throughout Donruss ’89. For example, the Mark McGwire “1st Run” shows him with the A’s and is valued over the standard issue at $500 PSA 9. Collectors also hunt the elusive 1/1 printing plates from ’89 Donruss featuring unfinished white borders around the image.
Arguably the most valuable baseball card from 1989 is the Nolan Ryan/Rickey Henderson Upper Deck SP Autograph duo. As one of Upper Deck’s inaugural autographed insert sets, only 3000 combined sets were produced. Each combo pack contained 4 autographed cards, 2 each of Ryan and Henderson. Getting both HOFers on a single SP auto each makes these true crown jewels. Even partially signed graded examples have broken the $20,000 sale threshold. A pair receiving full Authentic autos from PSA could be worth $50,000. No other release in 1989 spawned a card as legendary in the memorabilia world.
While not a true “rare card,” the sheer popularity of Don Mattingly’s rookie from Topps Traded makes it an interesting discussion when covering valuable 1989 issues. Considered one of the all-time classic baseball cards, high-grade Mattingly’s routinely sell for $1,000-$2,000. What’s fascinating is how the Traded design differs from the standard Topps set version—featuring a blue and yellow color scheme with diamond-shaped logo rather than red text box. It’s a more aesthetically pleasing issue that many collectors prefer.
In summary, 1989 was a truly amazing year for rare and valuable baseball cards. Stars like Griffey, McGwire and Thomas emerged alongside inserted memorabilia like the Ultra Miniatures. Rare parallel varieties fromScore and Donruss also delighted collectors pursuing the obscure. But perhaps most impressive were the ultra-high end SP autographs from Upper Deck, a true landmark release cemented as one of the greatest sports card inserts ever made. When discussing the hobby’s golden years, 1989 will forever stand tall.
