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, January 15, 2013

1989 Fleer + Update Chicago Cubs Checklist

Number of Cards

1989 Fleer has 660 cards, of which there are 30 Cubs players plus 7 updated cards.

Card Dimensions

The standard-sized cards are the following dimensions: 2-1/2" by 3-1/2"

Basic Features

Card fronts feature a distinctive gray border background with white and yellow trim. Cards are again organized alphabetically within teams, and teams are ordered by previous season record.

There are plenty of errors and variations in this set, including the famous Card 616, which Billy Ripken was issued with a "four-letter word" on the knob of the bat. Don't think Fleer put that on the bat; it was the players who did that; Fleer didn't catch it.


Fleer Update set contains 132 standard-size cards. The cards are identical in design to regular issue 1989 Fleer cards except for the U-prefixed numbering on back.

Subsets include:

  • Specials (628-639)
  • Rookie Pairs (640-653)
  • Checklists (654-660)

Parallels include:

  • Fleer Glossy
It turned out that Fleer's final glossy parallel release was this 660-card set. These cards are identical to the regular Fleer cards with the exception of the glossy shine on the front and the collector's edition on the back with blue stripes instead of yellow. This set is more difficult to find than the standard 1989 Fleer. The update set wasn't glossy-printed.

Inserts include:

  • Team Stickers
  • Fleer For The Record




One rack pack contained this standard-size insert set of six cards. The "For The Record" set honors those players' record-breaking performances from the previous year. On white card stock, the card backs are printed in red, black, and gray.



Different Fleer Sets in 1989:

  • Baseball Allstars
  • Baseball MVP
  • Baseball Exciting Stars
  • Baseball Heroes of Baseball
  • Baseball League Leaders
  • Baseball Super Stars
  • Fleer final Glossy


Chicago Cubs 1989 Fleer with Update and Inserts Checklist




Number Player
418 Damon Berryhill
419 Mike Bielecki
420 Doug Dascenzo
421 Jody Davis UER/Braves stats for/'88 missing
422 Andre Dawson
423 Frank DiPino
424 Shawon Dunston
425 Rich Gossage
426 Mark Grace UER/Minor League stats/for '88 missing
427 Mike Harkey RC
428 Darrin Jackson
429 Les Lancaster
430 Vance Law
431 Greg Maddux
432 Jamie Moyer
433 Al Nipper
434 Rafael Palmeiro UER/170 hits in '88,/should be 178
435 Pat Perry
436 Jeff Pico
437 Ryne Sandberg
438 Calvin Schiraldi
439 Rick Sutcliffe
440 A Manny Trillo ERR/ Throws Right
440b B Manny Trillo COR
441 Gary Varsho UER/
442 Mitch Webster
640 Steve Wilson/Cameron Drew
643 Mike Capel/Drew Hall
644 Joe Girardi RC/Rolando Roomes
658 CL: Indians/Cubs/Cardinals/Angels/449 Deleon
1989 Fleer Update
U76 Paul Kilgus
U77 Lloyd McClendon
U78 Scott Sanderson
U79 Dwight Smith RC
U80 Jerome Walton RC
U81 Mitch Williams
U82 Steve Wilson
1989 Fleer Inserts
n/a Team Stickers
5 Fleer For The Record



























































Chicago Cubs 1989 Fleer Baseball Update Checklist