Believe it or not, 1990 Topps baseball cards may be better than you think.
I know, I know, but hear me out.
See …
What seemed to start out as a sort of cheap attempted knockoff of the classic 1975 Topps set actually has some character of its own.
Those wild borders, for example, aren’t just colorful – they have print dots. Like … wow … like comic books have (something I first realized while reading a post from Night Owl Cards).
And then there is the photography, which is pretty sharp in some cases.
And then there are some pretty interesting subjects, from draft picks to error cards to scads of Nolan Ryans.
Of course, even the stoutest of the ‘90s will likely never rattle any bank accounts, not on the whole, and not to the extent that some of the hobby’s big hitters do and will.
But these cards are still fun all these years later, and they might just surprise you, if you give them a chance.
What follows, then, are the most valuable 1990 Topps baseball cards plus the most valuable 1990 Topps Traded baseball cards PLUS a few surprises, as judged by actual selling prices for copies graded PSA 9.
In all cases, you could also opt for the more limited, super glossy Tiffany version, which will generally set you back three to five times the cost of the corresponding base cards.
Alright, let’s play ball, 1990 Topps style!
(Note: The following sections contain affiliate links to eBay and Amazon listings for the cards being discussed. You might also enjoy our Ultimate Guide treatment of 1990 Topps baseball cards, right here. )
25) 1990 Topps Sammy Sosa Rookie Card (#692)
Sammy Sosa entered 1990 with designs on a starting job for the first time in his big league career, thanks to a midseason trade in 1989 from the Rangers to the White Sox.
The young, toolsy prospect made a decent showing in his new climes, cracking double-digit home runs and stealing 32 bases. The next couple seasons were lean, though, as Sammy struggled for playing time, especially after a 1992 trade to the Cubs.
Things started to look up the next summer, though, as 24-year-old Sosa connected on 33 long balls, the first of 11 straight full seasons (he cracked 25 in strike-shortened 1994) when he hit 30 or more.
Of course, those homer numbers were off the charts starting in 1998, when he chased Mark McGwire to Roger Maris’ single-season record.
Predictably, his cards skyrocketed like one of his Wrigley Field blasts.
Today, even after the great slugger downfall of the 2010s, Sosa’s rookie cards maintain enough hobby swagger to appear on lists like this one.
Value: $5-10
Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)
Check prices on Amazon (affiliate link)
24) 1990 Topps Larry Walker Rookie Card (#757)
It took awhile for fans, and especially collectors, to warm up to Larry Walker and his talents.
Part of that was probably because he started out with the Montreal Expos, who infamously never won a division title, but who looked like a good bet in 1994 before The Strike ended everyone’s season.
That was Walker’s last year with the team.
Then it was on to the Colorado Rockies, for whom Walker broke out, big time … forever giving critics the “yeah, but he did that in the thin air of Denver” excuse to denigrate, or at least downplay, his performance.
In the end, Walker had the last guffaw, elected to the Hall of Fame in 2020.
Even with that honor under his belt, though, Booger’s cards – like this 1990 Topps rookie – never exploded in popularity or value and offer the chance to own some Cooperstown cardboard on the relative cheap.
Value: $5-10
Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)
Check prices on Amazon (affiliate link)
23) 1990 Topps Dale Murphy (#750)
No one knew it at the time, but this would be the last time Dale Murphy ever appeared in a Braves uniform on a regular-issue Topps base set as an active player.
With his production continuing to slide, and the Braves going nowhere fast, Atlanta sent their legendary two-time MVP to the Phillies in a sort of complicated August trade.
And, although Murphy struggled in Philly and Colorado before retiring in 1993, he’s still a hobby heavyweight all these years later, and this card reflects a solid hunk of 1980s baseball history just as an era was about to end.
Value: $5-10
Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)
Check prices on Amazon (affiliate link)
22) 1990 Topps Roger Clemens (#245)
This is about as bland a card as you’re likely to find for one of the greatest pitchers of all time, but I guess that was Roger Clemens’ punishment for having not won a Cy Young award for two years running at the time of issue.
He would extend that 0-fer to three years in 1990 before getting off the snide and reigniting his cards in 1991.
Like Barry Bonds and others from the steroid era, Clemens reputation has fallen on hard times in recent years, but his amazing numbers are hard to overlook – even if his 1990 Topps doesn’t stoke your nostalgia fire.
Value: $5-10
Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)
Check prices on Amazon (affiliate link)
21) 1990 Topps Kirby Puckett (#700)
As if collectors needed more reason to chase Kirby Puckett, the Minnesota Twins’ fire hydrant of a centerfielder had won his first (and only, as it turned out) American League batting title in 1989.
That showing came with a massive power outage that would last most of the rest of Puck’s career, but he remained a smiling catalyst as the Twins won their second World Series in five years in 1991.
Puckett remains a collector favorite today, earning this card showing the man in his prime a slot on our list.
Value: $8-12
Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)
Check prices on Amazon (affiliate link)
20) 1990 Topps Albert Belle (#283)
We didn’t really know that “Don’t Call Me Joey” would be a thing when this card was issued, but we’d find out soon enough that Albert Belle had one of the most potent bats in the history of baseball.
Sure, the dude’s personality rubbed folks like a porcupine-grained sandpaper, and health issues sank his Hall of Fame hopes, but Belle managed to dominate in the batter’s box long enough to add some forever value to his rookie cards.
Value: $10-12
Check prices on eBay (affiliate link)
Check prices on Amazon (affiliate link)