The 1987 Topps baseball card set is widely considered one of the most historic and iconic sets in the entire history of the hobby. Issued in 1987 by Topps, the set is memorable for capturing the late 1980s era of baseball as well as marking several notable career milestones.
The 1987 set consists of 792 total cards issued in wax packs. The design features a white or cream colored border around each player photo with their team name and position listed across the bottom in colored block letters. On the back of each card is the standard career stats and highlights section. What makes the ’87 set so historic is that it was the final year that Topps held the exclusive license to produce MLB trading cards.
Several major stars grace the ’87 Topps roster including Don Mattingly, Roger Clemens, Wade Boggs, Rickey Henderson, and Kirby Puckett. But one of the most iconic cards in the entire set is #418 featuring Pete Rose of the Cincinnati Reds. In 1987, Rose broke Ty Cobb’s all-time hits record with career hit number 4,192. Topps captured this historic milestone by featuring Rose tripling during the momentous at-bat on his ’87 card.
To this day, Pete Rose’s record-breaking card remains one of the most sought after and valuable in the entire vintage baseball card marketplace. The photo perfectly captures the excitement and significance of the record-breaking hit. Many collectors feel Rose’s ’87 Topps card is the most definitive piece of cardboard from that entire era.
Another notable career milestone marked in the ’87 set was Ozzie Smith of the St. Louis Cardinals reaching 2,000 career hits on card #700. Smith’s defensive wizardry made him a fan favorite for years and the ’87 issue commemorated this offensive achievement for the slick-fielding shortstop. The Rickey Henderson rookie card (#156) is also a major key card considering his all-time stolen base records.
Rookie cards of future stars like Mark McGwire (#308), Barry Bonds (#671), and Greg Maddux (#680) also appear. McGwire’s inclusion is especially memorable because his monster breakout season was still a few years away. Bonds and Maddux, meanwhile, were just getting their careers rolling at that point. For anyone who holds these rookie cards today, they possess significant vintage cardboard from some true all-time great players.
The 1987 set also saw the rise of Baltimore Orioles star Cal Ripken Jr., who was well on his way to breaking Lou Gehrig’s legendary consecutive games played streak. Ripken’s card #166 shows him batting during the ’87 season when he was becoming a household name in baseball. The ’87 set was the last to feature Hall of Famer Jim Rice during his playing career on card #340 before his retirement.
1987 was also the final season that Don Mattingly reigned as the most popular player in baseball, regularly appearing on magazine covers and in commercials. His iconic card #1 photo catching during batting practice cemented him as the face of the late ’80s MLB generation. Mattingly carded over 30 homers and 115 RBIs in ’87, showcasing why he was such a fan favorite star.
While 1987 marked the end of Topps’ monopoly on baseball cards, they went out with an incredible set highlighting so many notable names and milestones. Whether you’re looking at iconic rookie cards, milestone achievements, or cards of the game’s biggest stars, the ’87 Topps set truly has it all. For collectors and historians of the hobby, it serves as a virtual time capsule back to that exciting late ’80s era of the sport before expansion and free agency totally changed the landscape of baseball forever. Overall the 1987 Topps baseball card set is undoubtedly one of the most famous, cherished, and valuable in the long history of the category.