The Best Rookie Cards Of Gary Sheffield

Here at Cardlines, we love the Baseball Hall of Fame. The election process allows us one more chance to discuss the players on the ballot’s careers, greatest moments, and if they belong in the Hall. Oh, and the player’s rookie cards.

It gives us a great chance to look at their rookie cards, including considering if they are good investments or not.

Gary Sheffield is a bit of a unique player on this ballot. He was in the 10^th and final year on the ballot, and after starting with low vote totals, he saw significant jumps over the last few years but failed to make the ballot in his 10th and final year.

But who is Gary Sheffield? What’s the story of his Hall of Fame candidacy? And what are the best rookie cards of Gary Sheffield?

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Who is Gary Sheffield?

Gary Sheffield was the #6 overall pick in the 1986 amateur draft by the Milwaukee Brewers and would make his big league debut for them at the tender age of 19 late in the 1988 season. Sheffield would go on to play 22 seasons for 8 different teams. He was one of only four players in MLB history to hit home runs both as a teenager and after age 40.

In his career, Sheffield hit .292/.393/.514, good for an OPS of .907 and 140 OPS+. He hit 509 home runs in his career despite never leading the league in that category and added over 250 career stolen bases.

He had 2,689 career hits and despite hitting the ball as hard as just about anyone, walked more in his career than he struck out.

Sheffield was a nine-time All-Star, won 5 Silver Slugger awards, and won a batting title during his career. His career WAR total was 60.5.

Sheffield was mentioned in the Mitchell Report and implicated in the 2004 BALCO scandal, so he has a strong association with performance-enhancing drug use. If not for the PED connection, Sheffield surely would already be enshrined in the Hall of Fame.

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Gary Sheffield and Hall of Fame

Gary Sheffield debuted on the Hall of Fame ballot in 2015 with 11.7% of the vote. This suggested a player that would hang around the ballot for a while but was not likely to approach election. Indeed, for the first five years that Sheffield was on the ballot, his vote total was always below 15%.

Suddenly, in 2020, Sheffield’s vote total more than doubled to 30.5%. After matching 40.6% totals in 2021 and 2022, he again saw a jump in 2023, to 55%.

A vote total over 50% typically suggests someone who will eventually make the Hall of Fame, although perhaps via the era’s committees. Going into his 10^th and final year on the ballot in 2024, Sheffield needed a big jump to get anywhere close to getting elected.

While he fell just short of induction, Sheffield did indeed see an impressive increase in his vote total, receiving 63.9%. Sheffield will now become eligible for future era’s committee ballots.

Sheffield’s growing vote total over his 10 years on the ballot represents changes in voters’ attitudes about PED users who didn’t test positive after widespread league testing was implemented.

Gary Sheffield Baseball Cards

Gary Sheffield has appeared on 9,893 cards according to the Trading Card Database (TCDB.com).

Of these, 177 were produced in Sheffield’s rookie season of 1989. Many of those are either unlicensed cards or cards made by the local police with back variations for each community’s department.

This was indeed the heart of the junk wax era. Sheffield appeared on 16 cards prior to his 1989 rookie year cards. He also appeared on a whopping 239 cards and variations in 2023, showing he remains popular with fans to this day.

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The 10 best rookie cards of Gary Sheffield

As mentioned above, Sheffield appeared on some 177 cards during his rookie card year in 1989. But what are the best Sheffield rookie cards to chase? We’ll stick to the major brands, and offer a variety of price points.

10. 1989 Fleer Gary Sheffield #196

The 1989 Fleer card that starts off our lists has one of the higher PSA populations on the list, with a higher percentage of PSA 10s than most of the rest of the list.

These two facts combine to make it the most affordable card on our list, with copies in a PSA 10 slab selling for $35-45.

9. 1989 Score Gary Sheffield #625

The 1989 Score Sheffield has less than 1/5^th the total PSA population of the 1989 Fleer card, yet sells for $35 to $60 in a PSA 10 slab.

That low PSA population makes this one interesting, although I feel 1989 Score cards were printed on better stock than say the Fleer or Donruss products that year, so maybe more cards still in packs would grade PSA 10.

8. 1989 Donruss Gary Sheffield #31

1989 Donruss isn’t the prettiest card design out there, and the thin card stock these were printed on isn’t the best.  

With a total PSA population just north of 2,000, of which 440 are PSA 10s, these aren’t particularly overgraded. Still, you can find a copy in a PSA 10 slab for $40-90.

7. 1989 Topps Gary Sheffield #343

The 1989 Topps Sheffield is well placed in the middle section of our list, as in terms of PSA population and price, it’s pretty middle-of-the-road. I think the card is a better-looking card than the earlier cards on this list, which I think makes it a bit more desirable.

6. 1989 Upper Deck Gary Sheffield #13

It’s hard to explain just how much the release of 1989 Upper Deck changed the game. The premium cards, with their premium stock, hologram, and $1 per pack price tag (twice the other brands) created a sensation.

The good news is that the 1989 UD Sheffield is still a great card. The bad news is that it’s been graded by PSA over 9,350 times. That’s more than three and a half times more than any other card on this list. The high population count makes these cards pretty easy to find and keeps prices fairly low.

5. 1989 Bowman Gary Sheffield #142

Topps resurfaced the long-defunct Bowman brand with the release of 1989 Bowman. Not yet “The Home of the Rookie Card”, the set was attractive, had a solid checklist, and was likely produced in smaller quantities than the bigger base sets, but it had one fatal flaw.

That would be the size of the cards. The cards measured 2 1/2″ x 3 3/4″, ¼ inch taller than a standard modern card. This was done to pay homage to the size of the last Bowman sets in the mid-1950s.

But by 1989, everyone was keeping their cards in boxes, plastic pages, top loaders, and penny sleeves. And the 1989 Bowman cards didn’t fit in those. It hurt demand for 1989 Bowman, which is now an underrated and under-collected set.

4. 1989 Topps Big Gary Sheffield #55

Speaking of oversized cards, 1989 Topps Big matched Bowman’s 3 ¾” height, but were even wider at 2 5/8”. The cards were a bit of a novelty, although to this day they have a bit of a cult following.

PSA has only graded 54 copies of this card, with 24 in PSA 10 slabs. The one recent comp for a PSA 10 was at $100. The low population point and cool horizontal layout might make these a good choice for your Sheffield collection.

3. 1989 Fleer Glossy Gary Sheffield #196

1989 Fleer Glossy was Fleer’s version of Tiffany. They were only sold in complete set form in special tin boxes. More importantly, the print run was only 30,000 sets.

That’s a tiny fraction of the base cards of that era. In high grade, these will cost you quite a bit more than a standard Fleer card but are likely worth it due to the small print run and small total PSA population.

2. 1989 Topps Collector’s Edition (Tiffany) Gary Sheffield #343

The 1989 Topps Tiffany product was the premium version of the flagship Topps set that year. With high gloss and better card stock, these are some nice looking cards.

They are also much harder to come by than the regular Topps issue, with only approximately 15,000 sets produced.

The Sheffield has been graded 630 times, with 110 of those in PSA 10 slabs. A PSA 10 sells for around $400-450.

1. 1989 Bowman Collector’s Edition (Tiffany) Gary Sheffield #142

New in 1989, Bowman had the issue of being “too tall” for modern storage options, which hurt their popularity with collectors. The Tiffany set that year was produced in very small quantities, somewhere around 6,000. That makes these easily the rarest of Sheffield’s mainstream rookie cards.

The total PSA population is a hair over 500, with only 68 in PSA 10 slabs. The PSA 10 copies sell for $400-500.

By the numbers: The best Gary Sheffield rookie cards

Other early Gary Sheffield cards of note

The 1987 Procards is Sheffield’s first cardboard appearance. PSA has graded 216 of these, but only 14 are in PSA 10 slabs, with no recent comps in that grade.

The 1988 Best El Paso Diablos set came in both a standard version and a limited edition Platinum version. Both are not particularly rare but are condition-sensitive. PSA has only graded one of each in a PSA 10 slab. The standard version also has only 4 PSA 9s (the Platinum has more at 39). If you can find a nice one, it’s a grading sub-option.

1988 CMC Triple A All-Stars Gary Sheffield is another early Sheffield card with a low PSA population, a small number of PSA 10s, and no recent comps for a PSA 10. The good news is that in a PSA 9 these are very reasonable at around $30 each.

Investing in Gary Sheffield rookie cards

So, we know Sheffield was a feared slugger who put up Hall of Fame numbers. His connection to PEDs had been keeping his vote total low, but in his 10^th year got extremely close to election to the Hall of Fame. But are his cards a good investment?

Since it appears likely that Sheffield will eventually make the Hall of Fame, the answer is likely “yes”. Exactly when is anyone’s guess. It won’t likely be in the short term, due to the way the era’s committee operates.

That being said, Sheffield’s cards, being from the junk wax era and being in the same year as higher profile rookie cards like Ken Griffey Jr. and Randy Johnson, are pretty affordable and likely have some upside. Add in the fact that Sheffield moved around a lot during his career, often playing for teams with smaller fan bases, and you can see how his Hall of Fame credentials snuck by some folks.

If you’re looking to add a few Sheffield cards to your collection, buy what you like and what makes sense for your budget.

If you’re looking at things from purely an investment lens, there are a few approaches you can take to combat the overproduction of the era. Watch the population reports. The 1989 Upper Deck Sheffield may be his “best”, base card, but with so many already slabbed, it is very far from rare.

Buy only PSA 10 examples, as they’re far fewer than the lower grades and will demand a premium. And finally, your best bet is with the “limited edition” sets of the day, notably the Bowman Tiffany, Topps Tiffany, and Fleer Glossy.

An investment in Sheffield rookie cards is likely to be a long play, so keep that in mind when making your plan.

Final Thoughts on the Best Rookie Cards of Gary Sheffield

Gary Sheffield was one of the most feared hitters of his era, but had his Hall of Fame journey dinged by his appearance on the Mitchell report. The tide is turning, and it appears evident that Sheffield will someday be inducted into Cooperstown. That should help drive demand for his cards, especially his best rookie cards.

What’s your take on Sheffield? Think he’s a Hall of Famer? Looking to add his cards or selling? And what is your favorite Gary Sheffield rookie card? Tell us about it at card_lines on Twitter.

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