Toys R Us was famous for its giant retail stores stocked with toys of all kinds. What many people may not realize is that Toys R Us also had a major influence on the baseball card collecting hobby for a short time in the early 1990s. During this period, Toys R Us issued a series of spectacular rookie cards for some of the top young baseball stars of that era through exclusive partnerships with the major sports card manufacturers.
These Toys R Us baseball rookie cards were released in special packs sold only at Toys R Us locations. Produced by Donruss, Fleer, and Score between 1991-1994, the cards featured some true rookie cards and early career cards of future Hall of Famers and all-time greats like Chipper Jones, Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Nomar Garciaparra, Mike Piazza, and many others. While they were initially just considered novel promotional inserts by card collectors, the Toys R Us rookies have grown dramatically in value and prestige over the past few decades.
For collectors in the 1990s, finding these coveted rookie cards was an exciting scavenger hunt that required trips to local Toys R Us stores. The cards would be found in special “Rookie Card Packs” sold in the main aisle by the cash registers or in the sports card section. Unlike the regular card packs available everywhere, the Toys R Us exclusive packs always contained a dazzling shiny rookie or star player parallel to chase. Due to the limited print runs and One Per Pack nature of the inserts, these difficult to obtain rookie parallels took on a highly desirable collector mystique.
Some key factors contributed to the immense popularity and subsequent rise in value of the 1990s Toys R Us baseball cards over time. Firstly, the brand recognition and consumer base of the Toys R Us retail empire helped hugely in promoting awareness of the new card inserts amongst both kids and adult collectors. Secondly, the selection of true rookie cards and earliest career parallels for franchise players like Jeter, Jones, Piazza and others ensured these inserts featured some of the most influential stars of the Steroid Era. With solid performances on the field cementing their places in the game’s history, demand has grown for any early relics capturing their early careers.
Another major driver of the cards’ rise in stature has been the closure of all Toys R Us stores in 2018. After liquidating its entire U.S. retail chain, the brand no longer poses any competition to the insert cards. With the stores gone, the sense of scarcity and nostalgia for a bygone 90s retail icon has amplified collector demand tremendously. Prices that were once just a couple dollars per packaged rookie parallel have skyrocketed into the hundreds or thousands depending on the player and specific variant. PSA Gem Mint 10 examples of especially coveted stars like Jeter or Jones could easily fetch over $10,000 today.
The 1991 Donruss/Toys R Us Griffey Jr. rookie is a standout that perfectly illustrates the increasing value trajectory. At the time of issue, Ken Griffey Jr. was already one of baseball’s brightest young stars but had not yet reached legend status. Now considered one of the most talented players in history, high grade Griffey Jr. Toys R Us rookies have appreciated enormously to become true iconic relics capturing his early superstardom. While a 1991 Donruss Griffey Jr. basic rookie card in PSA 10 condition may sell for $2-3,000, the Toys R Us parallel commands prices frequently exceeding $10,000 and occasionally approaching $20,000-30,000 depending on circumstances.
The other manufacturers also had their share of spectacular Toys R Us inserts over the 3 year run that featured a variety of parallel and memorabilia card designs. Score issued prospect/rookie combos of stars like Jeter, Rivera, Garciaparra and Jones. Fleer came out with an innovative dual player rookie parallel of Jeter and Rivera on the same card in 1993 that has become hugely collectible. Donruss followed up their Griffey Jr. success with sterling rookies/prospects of Piazza, Ramirez and others in 1992-1994.
Despite their relatively short print window in the early 90s, the Toys R Us baseball cards stand as one of the all-time most coveted and valuable sports card sets for collectors today. Their mystique was fueled as much by nostalgia for Toys R Us as the young talents depicted. For anyone who remembers tearing open those iconic blue and red packs on a 90s shopping trip, the cards trigger a powerful sense of childhood wonder and memory. Combined with strong histories by their subjects like Griffey, Bonds and Jeter, the Toys R Us rookies have become immortalized as relics of baseball’s past worthy of enshrinement in any collection.
