Welcome to the 1980's Baseball Card Appreciation Thread.

[ThoseBackPages]

Welcome to the 1980's Appreciation Thread. I hope that this thread becomes a place to discuss all things 1980's baseball card related.
All of it should be loved, regardless of how much was made or not made. From Mothers Cookies to Topps Coins, i love it all and i know
im not the only one.

Maybe this will be an "eye opener" for some of our younger members who most likely weren't even born until the 1980s were over. There's
nothing wrong with that at all, just throwing it out there. The 80's sure were a different time to be a baseball card collector. i guess you
kind of had to be there to understand what i mean.

Maybe it's that im going to be 40 this year and want to go back to how it used to be in my life, maybe im just a idiot, or a collecting fool,
some might say im both. i really love baseball and honestly love baseball cards more then the game itself. there truly is no wrong way
to collect, and i respect everyone for what they decide to collect, it would be nice if everyone else felt that way. it might make FCB an
even better place to hang out.

i'd love this to be a thread where people not only share scans and information, but stories about themselves if they happened to be collecting back in the 1980's

i will start with a short story that ive shared before. i know im not the only one that gets certain "images" in their brain when they hear about a particular product. i have a lot of very strong memories that are tied to cards. One i will share now...

1987 Topps. Hearing that phrase throws me right back to the spring of 1987 just as baseball was about to start up again (and before the Gooden fiasco) i bought a box of 1987 Topps wax from a local candy store, about a mile from my house. i rode my bike there to buy the box. on the way home, it started to rain and i remember putting the box inside my sweat jacket to protect it during the ride home. man i miss those days.

ok, since i started this thread, might as well kick it off with possibly the three iconic cards of the decade (of course that IS debateable)

Thank you all for taking the time to read the thread and i hope that this thread makes you remember better times for those of us old enough to remember the 80s and maybe spark a little collecting fire under those that aren't.

 

[MojoDan]

Huzzah!

 

[uniquebaseballcards]

I think of *sets* and the way they were designed way more than individual player cards when I think of those great '80s cards. Its fantastic being able to identify the *year and set* a card is from with just the most cursory glance...can't say that with regard to the vast majority of cards produced starting in the mid '90s.

Given there were far fewer brands and sets in the '80s it seems fair to say the cards produced during the '80s will be/are far more iconic than cards produced in the decades afterwards...at least until they produce fewer sets than they do today.

Topps Vault has some unique and fun '80s stuff:

 

[Pine Tar]

Eric I went back to the Store you and I went to back in 2006 March
and they have a boat load of older wax for sale. I told them if I had a I-Phone I was going to send you a
picture of what they had.

 

[69MetsFan]

I remember busting countless packs of '86 Donruss hoping to see Jose Canseco's $hit eating grin looking back at me.
The '89 Upper Deck offering was a favorite of mine as well. As I recall, you could get multiple Jr's per box.
The other cards that come to mind are the '84 Topps Mattingly & Darryl Strawberry cards.
Thanks for starting this thread, E!

 

[notjomommasclint]

eric! exceptional thread. i just want to share a couple of cards and my thoughts or memories on them!

one of the most magical things about the early 80s was this guy throwing bbs past batters. he wore his husky trousers out there on the mound and made people look stupid all the while looking to the sky!

many people forget that tony gwynn could swipe 50 on you in his younger years. he is one of the best hitters the game has ever seen and lets not forget he was a multi sport stud.

the thrill was destined for stardom. his first at bat he took the ryan express on notice. his swing is still the most beautiful thing i have ever seen on a baseball field. it was effortless and produced outstanding results. the mustache phase he went through docs him a few points in my book but that middle name more than makes up for it!

87 topps does the same thing to me eric. i remember my grandmother taking me to the iga in summerfield ks and letting me grab as many packs as i could. my dream was to pull a mark mcgwire... however once i had one i wanted more more more! what some forget is they had a topps league leader set which was bout half the size and only had the stars of the game! i have a whole box full of those and each card has a thumbtack hole in them from where i put them on my sticky board. the don mattingly from this set is still one of my favorite cards from a visual aspect.

this card was one of my first trips into prospecting. robin owned the world of college baseball and his hitting streak was the ninth level of awesome! his stance, the way he wore his uniform, and the batman and robin nickname pushed me to the brink of financial tragedy (for a 12 yr old). they arent worth jumping up and down over now but they still remind me of the chase and feeling i would get when i captured one! hooray!

ken griffey jr lit the world on fire with his swing, smile, and potential in the late 80s! not sure about your area but the card to have wasnt the upper deck (until the glossy took over) but it was the bowman. the photo is gorgeous and the set was new and exciting. if i had everyone of these i pulled that year i would be the envy of the bowman crowd!

 

[brouthercard]

Mattingly, Mattingly, Mattingly. His cards were iconic.

 

[George_Calfas]

81 Topps Cello, 83 OPC, 83 Fleer Cello bust last week
82 Donruss and 82 Fleer arriving this week.

 

[hofmichael]

Great thread Eric.Here are some my favorites from the 80's.

 

[ronfromfresno]

I started collecting in 1988 as a 9 year old. This card was the card of my dreams, at the time it booked at $7 and sold for $9, almost the cost of a full box. I bought one back then for $8 and last year I purchased this one for $15:

I also love the Mother's Cookies Cards and Sportflics:

And food issues, I can remember bugging my Mom to buy just about anything to get the cards inside:

I bought sets likes these at K-Mart all of the time, man I loved doing that:

I also loved Star, I remember buying a ton thinking the players would someday become stars and make me rich :lol:

And who could forget 1989 Upper Deck, those dang cards were an outrageous $1.00 a pack and dealers couldn't keep them instock:

 

[Mozzie22]

This is an awesome thread! But... this thread doesn't go one more post without THE card of the 80's, period.

 

[ThoseBackPages]

Mozzie, you are 100% right. FAIL on my part ::facepalm::

i will add his other rc's to make up for it

 

[ral72]

Great thread Eric...I started collecting when I was 8 in 1980. I was 15 in 1987, and I worked as a dishwasher in a local restaurant all summer. I ended up spending a good part of my wages on a 24-box 1987 Topps Vending case, and a 6-box rack case! Needless to say, I had pages filled back-to-back in a 3-ring binder (18 of each card); pages of Roger Clemens, Gooden, Mattingly, Nolan Ryan, and SO MANY "hot" rookie cards of Will Clark, Bo Jackson, Wally Joyner, Ruben Sierra, Devon White, Mike Greenwell, BJ Surhoff and Dave Magadan. That was going to be the set that made me a fortune in 20 years!!

 

[ThoseBackPages]

Rack Packs. ive always loved rack packs. Topps especially. Reason being? All Star Glossy Card. No "value" but also not available anywhere else! NOT in wax, cello OR vending

The All Star Glossy Card is the one on the far left in this picture

 

[jay1065]

Great idea for a thread, Eric! 1987 Topps was the beginning for me. I also rode my bike to the local drug store to buy pack after pack. I always hoped to pull anyone from the Red Sox, along with Will Clark (huge Thrill fan back in the day,) Bo Jackson, Ryne Sandberg, and Wally Joyner.

Its fantastic being able to identify the *year and set* a card is from with just the most cursory glance

I couldn't agree more!!!


I've been sent back in time with the recent discovery (by my almost 3 year old daughter) of my childhood Ellis Burks collection. I've steadily added to the old PC since then. I can honestly say working on the Burks collection is the most fun I've had since I came back to the hobby almost seven years ago.

 

[thelesquad]

Rack Packs. ive always loved rack packs. Topps especially. Reason being? All Star Glossy Card. No "value" but also not available anywhere else! NOT in wax, cello OR vending

The All Star Glossy Card is the one on the far left in this picture

 

[ccouch (Chad)]

Ahhh... these types of threads just bring the memories flooding back. I was born in '73, so the bulk of my collecting childhood was in the 80's. I started with the 1983 Topps, and that one will always be my all-time fave.

I've had my eye on a 1984 Topps Rack Pack Box at BBCE for awhile. I keep waiting for him to get an '83 in as well, but haven't seen one in awhile.

 

[rum151man]

the late 80's is when i got into collecting as i was only 7-8 years old and will the thrill was my favorite player and i remember going to all the card shows to see what cards of him i could find that i didnt have, and every sunday after church going to the local flea market to do the same. I still have my will clark collection i think its at about 500 different cards or maybe more.

 

[Therion]

Almost nothing beats the 80s minor league cards. Photography was terrible. Card stock was iffy. And I absolutely love them.

 

[jbmm161]

I started collecting in 1988 (I was 9) should have saved my money for 89 and Griffey Jr RCs (first thing i bought when getting back into collecting in 2008). Wow packs where only 50cents back then.

But this says it all of my early days as a collector and baseball fan.