Welcome Cubs Fans!

This blog will discuss the 1980s and the baseball card collecting hobby, with a focus on the Chicago Cubs. Contrary to vintage baseball cards, the majority of modern cards are affordable. The various sets will be considerably simpler to obtain. So, with thousands of cards in between, we'll start with 80 Topps and end with 89 Upper Deck. The apex of this period was represented by the Sandberg Rookie of the Year in 1983.


Tuesday, March 19, 2024

1988 Topps Major League Leaders Minis Cubs

Number of Cards

77 cards in the 1988 Topps Major League Leaders Minis collection included 3 Cubs players.

Size of Cards

Cards measure approximately 2 1/8" by 2 15/16".

Basic Features

Included in this set are the leaders in various statistical categories for the 1987 season. The backs of the cards are blue-yellow with red lettering. The card number is on the top left, along with the player's biography, the previous year's stats, and a brief description of the categories he led. What distinguishes these cards is the portrait photo in a circle, making this a great set to collect.

Chicago Cubs 1988 League Leaders Minis Checklist

Number Player
43 Andre Dawson
44 Lee Smith
45 Rick Sutcliffe








Monday, March 18, 2024

1988 Topps Coins Cubs Checklist

Number of Cards

60 coins in the 1988 Topps Coins collection included 3 Cubs player.

Size of Cards

Each coin measures approximately 1 1/2" in diameter.

Basic Features

The player's name, position, and team are displayed below a gold-starred scroll that includes a full-color photo of the athlete. The coin number and some basic biographical details are displayed on the reverse. There are coins with silver rims and ones with gold rims.

Chicago Cubs 1988 Topps Coins Checklist

Number Player
33 Andre Dawson
52 Ryne Sandberg
52 Rick Sutcliffe






Sunday, March 17, 2024

1987 Kraft Home Plate Heroes Cubs

Number of Cards

48 cards in the Kraft Home Plate Heroes collection included 2 Cubs players with many varations.

Size of Cards

The size of the cards are standard-size 2 ½ x 3 ½

Basic Features

The backs of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese boxes had baseball cards featuring the best ballplayers of the era. Kraft issued it in two-card panels that had multiple combinations. The front of the card featured a color portrait photo of the player with the team logo airbrushed off the cap and below the player's name, position, team, and statistics. Since the back is blank, the cards are numbered on the front.

Chicago Cubs 1987 Kraft Home Plate Heroes Checklist


Number Player
6 Jody Davis
8 Ryne Sandberg

Keep in mind that these cards are hand cut and will not be perfect.









Thursday, March 14, 2024

1986 Sports Design JD McCarthy Cubs

Number of Cards

24 cards in the JD McCarthy collection included 3 Cubs players.

Size of Cards

The size of the cards are standard-size 2 ½ x 3 ½

Basic Features

J.D. McCarthy's photography is featured on this set. The fronts are designed similarly to the 1969 Topps issue, while the backs are very plain and show only the player's name. McCarthy was a baseball photographer in Detroit. He specialized in taking posed photos of ball players. Over the years, he made a lot of postcards. For some people, that is all they collect. I really like the photos of the all-time great Cubs that are in this set. These are not reprints.

Chicago Cubs 1986 Sports Design JD McCarthy Checklist


Number Player
7 Ernie Banks
8 Billy Williams
19 Ernie Banks






Wednesday, March 13, 2024

1989 Cadaco Discs Cubs Checklist

Number of Cards

Four Cubs players were represented among the 64 cards in the 1989 Cadaco Discs collection, each of which also had a var back.

Size of Cards

Measuring approximately 3 1/2" in diameter

Basic Features

The 1989 Cadaco Ellis Discs were designed to be used in a game. Full-color photos are on the front, and the backs have complete major league statistics.

Player images were originally added on Cadaco Disc discs in 1989. The fact that the team and league names were missing from the back of the disk in the first printing and added in the second printing suggests that they were in breach of a license agreement.

Chicago Cubs 1989 Cadaco Discs Checklist


Number Player
- Andre Dawson
- Andre Dawson VAR
- Greg Maddux
- Greg Maddux VAR
- Ryne Sandberg
- Ryne Sandberg VAR
- Shawon Dunston
- Shawon Dunston VAR







Tuesday, March 12, 2024

1992 Donruss McDonald's MVP Cubs

Number of Cards

33 cards in the 1992 McDonald's MVP collection included 1 Cubs player.

Size of Cards

The size of the cards are standard-size 2 ½ x 3 ½

Basic Features

There are six "Blue Jay Gold" cards, a checklist, and 26 "Team MVP" cards (one player for each MLB team) plus 1 autograph card made up this set. The cards include color action images with white borders and blue stripes above and below the image. The MVP logo, which features McDonald's "Golden Arches" trademark on the front and back.

Chicago Cubs 1992 Donruss McDonald's MVP Checklist


Number Player
- Ryne Sandberg




Monday, March 11, 2024

1988 1941 Goudey Reprints Cubs Checklist

Number of Cards

33 cards in the 1941 Goudey Reprints which there are 2 Cubs players which each have 4 differant color fronts.

Size of Cards

The size of the cards are (approximately) 2 3/8" x 2 7/8"

Basic Features

This set was produced by Larry Fritsch, a long time vintage dealer who does most of his business by mail order. This set is reprinted from the 1941 Goudey. These reprints are not considered unlicensed cards. They feature black and white player photos silhouetted against a full color background. (The four backgrounds are Green, Yellow, Blue, and Red). The backs of the cards are blank.

Let's be honest, this wasn't one of the best Goudey sets. They folded in 1941, and I must say the reprints aren't much better.

Chicago Cubs 1988 Goudey (Reprint) Checklist


Number Player
21 Rabbit Warstler
28 Al Todd