30 Most Valuable 1987 Donruss Baseball Cards
Some sets in this hobby are instantly recognizable and the 1987 Donruss baseball card set is certainly one of them.
How can we forget those black borders and those little baseball-laden stripes that flank the player images?
The set is notable for its long line-up of rookie cards in Greg Maddux, Bo Jackson, Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Barry Larkin, and Rafael Palmeiro, among others.
But the set design is unforgettable…
While many of the cards in this set sadly no longer have any value, you might be surprised by what some of these cards are selling for these days.
And in this guide, I’ll run through the 30 most valuable.
Let’s jump right in!
1987 Donruss Baseball: Market Analysis and Value Guide
1987 Donruss Baseball Set Snapshot
Previous Set:
Next Set:
1987 Donruss Grading Analysis
-
1987 Donruss #35 Bo Jackson Rookie Card
PSA 10 Value: $400
Total PSA Population: 9,479
PSA 10 Population: 1,585
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 16.7% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
Because of his iconic status as a two-sport superstar during the late 1980s and early 1990s, Bo Jackson is one of the hottest names in the hobby from the “junk era”.
Kids who grew up collecting during that time were inundated with Bo Jackson hype in the form of everything from Nike ad campaigns to his legendary dominance on Nintendo’s Tecmo Bowl.
Had that fateful hip injury not have derailed his career, he may have ended up as a two-sport Hall of Famer.
Who knows?
What is certain, though, is that his rookie card in this set can be worth around $400 in high grade.
-
1987 Donruss #36 Greg Maddux Rookie Card
PSA 10 Value: $350
Total PSA Population: 35,637
PSA 10 Population: 2,847
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 8.0% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
You wouldn’t have thought Maddux end up as one of the greatest pitchers of all-time by his performance in the 1987 season.
After going 6-14 with a 5.61 ERA, he was looking like anything but that.
However, he’d flip the script the following year as he finished 18-8 with a 3.18 ERA.
And the rest is history.
It’s amazing how masterful Maddux was all those years, especially that stretch of four consecutive Cy Young seasons from 1992-1995.
The guy practically owned the 1990s and early 2000s during an era when many opposing hitters were jacked up on PEDs.
Selling right around $100 these days, Maddux’s rookie card is the key to the set.
-
1987 Donruss #361 Barry Bonds Rookie Card
PSA 10 Value: $235
Total PSA Population: 31,146
PSA 10 Population: 1,995
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 6.4% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
Although his reputation hangs under a cloud of controversy due to his ties with the PED scandal that rocked the sport late in his career, the value of Bonds’ rookie card has held up well over time.
Despite that controversy, though, he remains quite popular with baseball fans and collectors who watched him transform into one of the most skilled players in history even before PEDs were introduced into the equation.
If he ever makes it into the halls of Cooperstown, this card will surely skyrocket to the top of the list.
-
1987 Donruss #46 Mark McGwire Rated Rookie
PSA 10 Value: $150
Mark McGwire burst onto the baseball scene in 1987 when he cracked a league-leading 49 home runs which were also the most ever by a rookie at the time.
For years, Big Mac was one of the most feared big bats in the league as he was always in the chase to lead the league in home runs when healthy.
However, like Bonds, his ties to PEDs have been well-documented and we’ll never know for sure how much of that otherworldly power was attributable to drugs.
This hobby still remembers McGwire and how the former “Bash Brother” was smashing homers even in his early days, which is why his rookie card sits comfortably in the middle of this list.
-
1987 Donruss #138 Nolan Ryan
PSA 10 Value: $150
Total PSA Population: 2,219
PSA 10 Population: 522
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 23.5% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
Of all the seasons that Nolan Ryan pitched in his storied career, the 1987 season sticks out as one of his most interesting.
But, not for the reasons you might think.
No, he didn’t through any no-hitters that year.
It’s interesting because of how great he was yet how terrible his record was.
After leading the league in strikeouts (270), ERA (2.76), H/9 (6.5), K/9 (11.5), K/W (3.10), and FIP (2.47) he wound up with a record of 8-16 which was good enough for a .333 winning percentage, the lowest of his career.
Houston had a terrible bullpen that year and the bats provided him with next to no run support.
Even though this photo was taken before the start of the season, it’s almost as if Ryan has a “Are you kidding me?” expression on his face.
-
1987 Donruss #52 Don Mattingly
PSA 10 Value: $65
Total PSA Population: 898
PSA 10 Population: 290
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 32.3% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
Heading into the 1987 season, Don Mattingly already had a batting title, MVP, 2 Gold Gloves and 2 Silver Sluggers to his name.
The guy was on fire and was looking like the next great Yankee Hall of Famer.
However, injuries would plague Donnie Baseball and although he was still great with the glove, his power would nosedive in the 1990s.
Despite the unfortunate turn of events, Mattingly remains a beloved figure of the era and still has quite the collector following in this hobby.
-
1987 Donruss #558 Bobby Bonilla Rookie Card
PSA 10 Value: $65
Total PSA Population: 180
PSA 10 Population: 44
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 24.4% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #5 Ozzie Smith Diamond Kings
PSA 10 Value: $60
Total PSA Population: 143
PSA 10 Population: 62
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 43.4% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #19 Kirby Puckett Diamond Kings
PSA 10 Value: $60
Total PSA Population: 219
PSA 10 Population: 91
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 41.6% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #22 Eric Davis Diamond Kings
PSA 10 Value: $60
Unless an error is caught and corrected in this hobby, it usually won’t impact the value of a card that much and winds up being nothing more than an interesting side note.
Well, Donruss did catch the error on this card and eventually corrected it making the uncorrected version worth something.
A staple of Donruss sets for years, the Diamond Kings cards in this set featured a yellow stripe over the “Donruss Diamond Kings” phrase on the cards’ reverse sides.
However, Davis’ card can be found without that yellow stripe making the error version worth much more.
-
1987 Donruss #77 Ryne Sandberg
PSA 10 Value: $60
Total PSA Population: 383
PSA 10 Population: 203
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 53.0% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #6 Jose Canseco Diamond Kings
PSA 10 Value: $50
Total PSA Population: 234
PSA 10 Population: 66
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 28.2% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #29 Randy Myers Rookie Card
PSA 10 Value: $50
Total PSA Population: 70
PSA 10 Population: 32
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 45.7% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #66 Will Clark Rookie Card
PSA 10 Value: $50
Total PSA Population: 1,949
PSA 10 Population: 673
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 34.5% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #228 Rickey Henderson
PSA 10 Value: $50
Total PSA Population: 467
PSA 10 Population: 157
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 33.6% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #612 Roberto Clemente
PSA 10 Value: $50
Total PSA Population: 389
PSA 10 Population: 113
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 29.0% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #64 Tony Gwynn
PSA 10 Value: $45
Total PSA Population: 561
PSA 10 Population: 187
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 33.3% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #149 Kirby Puckett
PSA 10 Value: $45
Total PSA Population: 410
PSA 10 Population: 145
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 35.4% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
Kirby Puckett was consistently one of the best players on both sides of the ball throughout his career as he picked up 6 Gold Gloves and 6 Silver Sluggers when all was said and done.
The 2-time World Series champion and 10-time All-Star remains popular in the hobby as you’ll see his name among the key cards to own in any set of his era.
-
1987 Donruss #97 Jose Canseco
PSA 10 Value: $40
Total PSA Population: 918
PSA 10 Population: 307
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 33.4% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #492 Barry Larkin Rookie Card
PSA 10 Value: $40
Total PSA Population: 3,823
PSA 10 Population: 1,345
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 35.2% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
Over his 19-year career, Larkin would appear in 12 All-Star games, win 9 Silver Slugger awards, 3 Gold Gloves and was named the MVP of the 1995 season.
He also helped lead the Reds to that stunning sweep in the 1990 World Series over the Oakland Athletics, who everyone thought at the time was transforming into a baseball dynasty.
Larkin was one of the greatest players of his era and for his efforts, he was inducted to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2012.
Prior to that induction, Larkin might not have appeared on this list so that shows you what being a Hall of Famer can do to a card’s value.
-
1987 Donruss #502 David Cone Rookie Card
PSA 10 Value: $40
Total PSA Population: 2,210
PSA 10 Population: 340
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 15.4% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #43 Rafael Palmeiro Rookie Card
PSA 10 Value: $35
Total PSA Population: 11,032
PSA 10 Population: 873
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 7.9% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
Although Palmeiro made his rookie debut as a member of the Cubs in 1987, it would take him several years and a trade to the Texas Rangers before he transformed into one of the best hitters in the game.
Known as one of the most feared hitters from the mid-1990s through the early 2000s, Palmeiro went on an 11-season streak from 1993 to 2003 when consistently hit around 40 home runs and rove in well over 100 RBI.
But, as we’d later learn, he too would be tied to the PED scandal and his reputation would forever suffer as a result.
His rookie card can still be worth around $35 in top condition.
-
1987 Donruss #89 Cal Ripken Jr.
PSA 10 Value: $35
Total PSA Population: 1,128
PSA 10 Population: 433
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 38.4% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #139 Mike Schmidt
PSA 10 Value: $35
Total PSA Population: 400
PSA 10 Population: 197
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 49.3% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #54 George Brett
PSA 10 Value: $30
Total PSA Population: 390
PSA 10 Population: 171
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 43.8% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #60 Ozzie Smith
PSA 10 Value: $30
Total PSA Population: 243
PSA 10 Population: 121
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 49.8% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #78 Dale Murphy
PSA 10 Value: $30
Total PSA Population: 193
PSA 10 Population: 107
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 55.4% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #252 Wade Boggs
PSA 10 Value: $30
Total PSA Population: 250
PSA 10 Population: 94
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 37.6% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
-
1987 Donruss #621 Fred McGriff
PSA 10 Value: $25
Total PSA Population: 377
PSA 10 Population: 126
PSA 10 Grade Rate: 33.4% (Set Avg.: 13.5%)
1987 Donruss Baseball Cards In Review
So there you have it, the ten most valuable 1987 Donruss baseball cards.
While lacking in subsets, the 660-card checklist does contain a run of 27 Diamond Kings created by hobby icon, Dick Perez, and some big name rookie cards.
If you’re looking for a cheap set with lots of stars and Hall of Famers that’s packed with nostalgia, then this one’s for you.
