Best 15 Junk Wax Baseball Cards from the ’90s

Introduction

Junk wax baseball cards didn’t get their name because they’re rare and valuable. In fact, they are quite the opposite. With the baseball card popularity exploding in the late ’80s and early ’90s, card companies printed 2 to 3 times more 90’s baseball cards than in previous years.

Because so many baseball cards were printed between roughly 1987 and 1993, the values plummeted significantly. However, the prices for gem mint condition examples have slowly increased with recent grading companies such as PSA, BGS, and SGC giving grades to cards.

So which junk wax baseball cards in your collection should you be submitting to PSA for grading? Let’s take a look at the top 45 most valuable junk wax-era baseball cards below. 

• #1. 1993 SP Derek Jeter Rookie Card #279
  
• #2. 1990 Frank Thomas NNOF Rookie Card #414
  
• #3. 1990 Topps George Bush USA1 Card
  
• #4. 1993 Finest Ken Griffey Jr. Refractor #110
  
• #5. 1987 Donruss Open. Day Barry Bonds Err. #163
  
• #6. 1993 Upper Deck Derek Jeter Rookie Gold Hologram #449
  
• #7. 1989 Fleer Glossy Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie Card #548
  
• #8. 1990 Donruss Juan Gonzalez Aqueous Test Rookie Card #33
  
• #9. 1989 Fleer Bill Ripken FF Card #616
  
• #10. 1993 SP Chipper Jones Rookie Card #280
  
• #11. 1993 SPManny Ramirez Rookie Card #285
  
• #12. 1991 Topps Micro Chipper Jones Rookie Card #333
  
• #13. 1993 Mariano Rivera Rookie Card #302
  
• #15. 1987 Fleer Glossy Barry Bonds Rookie Card #604
  

Before we begin…

This list includes your average run-of-the-mill 90’s baseball cards. It does not include the 1991 Topps Desert Shield cards, Topps Tiffany cards, minor league cards, or any autographs. Junk wax baseball cards came from packs and sets widely available to everyone. If you want to see the full 45-card list check out the video I posted on my Youtube channel below! 

#15
1987 Fleer Glossy
Barry Bonds Rookie Card #604
Sold for $306

Second to Ken Griffey Jr, Barry Bonds is the most collected baseball rookie card from the late 80’s early 90s. His 1987 Fleer glossy card isn’t his most expensive, but for being a junk wax baseball card, it is relatively valuable when found in PSA 10, gem mint condition.

Currently, PSA has authenticated and graded over 7,300 examples with 534 being declared gem mint condition. The value of a gem mint example has increased from around $170 on average in 2018 to roughly $225 in 2019. 

#14
1989 Upper Deck Dale
Murphy Reverse Negative #357
Sold for $306

If you’re not aware, a significant factor that makes 90’s baseball cards so valuable are the errors like reverse negatives. These are cards that were accidentally printed backward. As you can see in the Dale Murphy photo above, the Braves logo on the uniform is backward. Dale Murphy is supposed to be flipped. Now and then, cards like this make it into packs and fetch premium prices because they aren’t like the rest.

This particular Dale Murphy error card has been seen by PSA a total of 504 times. With only 104 being found in gem mint condition, error card collectors consider this one of the rare cards to collect. Prices have increased from around $150 in 2018 to over $300 in 2019. 

#13
1992 Bowman
Mariano Rivera Rookie Card #302
Sold for $358

I’m not entirely sure what look Bowman was intending on getting with the early Mariano Rivera rookie card, but if it was casual golf Fridays at the resort then they crushed it! With no baseball equipment, gear, or media in the photo I can see this card easily being confused with a golfers card. Regardless of the poor decisions behind the production, this is a Hall of Fame player and a gem mint condition rookie card can fetch prices upwards of $350. 

With bright white borders, it’s easy to tell whether an example will be in gem mint condition. Look for evenly centered borders, bright white card stock, and four sharp corners. 

#12
1991 Topps Micro
Chipper Jones Rookie #333
Sold for $430

Topps produced complete micro sets in 1991, 1992, and 1993 that mimic their regular sets with the exception of their size. The Topps micro cards come in at about 1/4 of the standard card size. Chipper Jones’s rookie card is in the 1991 set and is very difficult to find in gem mint condition. Because the cards are so much smaller, the cuts were made off-center and sometimes miscut entirely. Check out my video on opening 10 factory-sealed 1991 Topps micro sets to see for yourself. 

#11
1993 Upper Deck SP
Manny Ramirez Rookie Card#285
Sold for $766

Believe it or not, the 1993 Upper Deck SP baseball card set is part of the junk wax era. Even though it was considered a more premium product in the early 90s, it was still massively over-produced. With key rookies like Manny Ramirez, Chipper Jones, and Derek Jeter, this set still holds huge value today.

Currently, a Manny Ramirez rookie card, in PSA 10 gem mint condition, sells for around $750. If you have one, make sure and triple-check the corners. These foil cards are very susceptible to chipping and whitening. Which will knock them down to mint condition. 

#10
1993 Upper Deck SP
Chipper Jone Rookie Card#280
Sold for $800

Another highly collectible and valuable baseball rookie card from the 1993 SP set is the Chipper Jones rookie card. Chipper Jones is one of the most valuable and collectible 90’s baseball cards falling just short of Derek Jeter.

His 1993 SP rookie card, in gem mint condition, sells for around $800 on average. This Hall of Fame Braves third-baseman was inducted into baseball’s national Hall of Fame in 2018 and has a large fan base. 

#9
1989 Fleer
Bill Ripken Whited Out Vulgarity #616
Sold for $1,166

A classic error card that everyone loves is the 1989 Fleer Bill Ripken vulgarity card. There are actually 4 versions of this card with the original card displaying the words “Fuck Face” on the but of the bat being more common. I’m not sure why the bat was labeled that but the photographer, Bill Ripken, Fleer’s editing team and printing team failed to catch the error way too far down the road.

Fleer had already printed mass amounts. They later attempted to correct it with black scribble, a black box and a white out. The whited out version is the most rare and the one that made the most sense. With the vulgarity having the worst curse word in the English dictionary, this card instantly became a classic 90’s baseball card. You can view the population report of each card below. 

#8
1990 Donruss Aqueous Test
Juan Gonzalez Rookie Card #33
Sold for $1,251

Typically, when making these top 25 lists, I add somewhat obtainable cards. For this instance, the 1990 Donruss Juan Gonzalez Aqueous test rookie won’t fall under that category. For that, I apologize. There are said to be only 10 of each aqueous test card in existence. Which makes all the cards in the set rare and collectible. 1990 Donruss aqueous cards are some of the rarer 90’s baseball cards. If you’re unfamiliar with the Donruss test cards, check out this link for more information. 

So far, PSA has a population report of 12 for this Juan Gonzalez rookie card. With the rumored print run of only 10, this may lead us to believe that there is more in existence. However, when you consider the possibility of collectors breaking PSA cases and re-submitting, we can argue that’s what happened in this case. For now, we can only leave it open to speculation as to how many were made. 

#7
1989 Fleer Glossy
Ken Griffey Jr Rookie Card #548
Sold for $1,317

There are plenty of Ken Griffey Jr. rookie cards to choose from in the 90’s but one of his most valuable and collectible cards is his 1989 Fleer glossy card. Fleer glossy cards were sold as complete sets only and were considered a more premium brand. Just like the name implies, Fleer glossy cards have a glossy surface to them. Unlike the regular Fleer cards, the glossy were printed with a much smaller print-run which makes them much more valuable. 

Viewing the PSA population report, we can determine just how rare the Fleer glossy cards are. PSA has authenticated and graded 1,633 Ken Griffey Jr. examples. So far, just 115 were found to be in gem mint condition. With roughly 44,000 regular-issue Fleer Ken Griffey Jr. rookie cards submitted to PSA, the rarity is substantially different. 

#6
1993 Upper Deck
Derek Jeter Rookie Gold Hologram #449
Sold for $2,250

Upper Deck created a unique set in 1993 with gold holograms instead of regular silver holograms on the back. These rare sets were inserted 1 in every 15 set case and are some rarer parallels from the 90s. Derek Jeter rookie card collectors have been competing to own the most pristine example since its debut in 1993. 

PSA has recently graded and authenticated 221 of the Jeter gold hologram cards. Surprisingly, 40 of those cards were declared to be in gem mint condition. Making it one of the rare PSA 10 Derek Jeter rookie cards to chase.

A recent auction for a gem mint example ended in November 2019 for a record $4,150. We can only expect the prices to go higher after Jeter is inducted into the Hall of Fame. 

#5
1987 Donruss Opening Day
Barry Bonds & Johnny Ray Error Card #163
Sold for $3,988

90’s baseball cards that are error cards hold value much better than error-free ones. The reason for this is due to rarity. For instance, the correct version of the Barry Bonds rookie card sells for around $50 when found in PSA 10, gem mint condition. However, the Barry Bonds error card showing Johnny Ray on the front sells for substantially more at around $3,500. This is simply due to supply and demand. 

So far, PSA has authenticated and graded 136 error cards and over 2,600 correct cards. With the incredibly lower population of the error card and even lower in gem mint condition, the supply is at just 13 examples.

#4
1993 Finest
Ken Griffey Jr Refractor #110
Sold for $7,200

In 1993, Topps created the first set with the refractor technology in their Finest set. Even though these packs were wax, they still fell in the Junk Wax Era. Collectors are becoming more aware that this is the first baseball card set to feature the refractor card insert, and competition is climbing on the PSA 10 examples. Even the un-graded examples are fetching premium prices. Some of the more notable players are Ken Griffey Jr, Nolan Ryan, Cal Ripken Jr., Barry Bonds, and Frank Thomas. 

Even the common player refractor cards can fetch premium prices. So, if you have any, I would consider getting graded or at least stored away safely as the value continues to rise on this set. The 1993 Topps Finest set is one of the only junk wax baseball cards with newer age technology and stands out from the rest. 

#3
1990 Topps George Bush #USA1
Sold for $7,767

Topps printed what is rumored to be around 101 of these cards specially for the President in 1990. The originals have a glossy surface that makes them easily distinguishable from fakes. Due to the rarity of this unique baseball card, its popularity has risen over the past few years. PSA has graded and authenticated exactly 101 copies to date. None have been found in gem mint condition however, two have been found in mint 9. 

Although Topps has stated that they did not insert these into packs, a collector claimed he did find one in a 1990 Topps baseball pack. I wouldn’t jump at the chance of ripping any 1990 Topps wax packs in an attempt to pull any because, chances are, you won’t find one. 

#2
1990 Topps NNOF
Frank Thomas Rookie Card
Sold for $24,244

The 1990 Topps Frank Thomas, no name on front error rookie card, is on most collectors’ bucket lists for one reason, it’s very rare. So far, PSA has graded and authenticated just 214 examples, with only 1 being found in gem mint condition. This is massively smaller than the 13,000 regular-issue Topps Thomas rookie cards submitted.

Furthermore, the 1 of 1 PSA 10 example only rises in value as the year’s progress, and none other surfaces. If this card were an average player, the value wouldn’t be as high as it is. Because it’s of Frank Thomas, aka “The Big Hurt,” the value is astronomical. 

Frank Thomas made an impressive impact during his career in the MLB. One of his most impressive stats is being on a short list of players who have hit 500 home runs while maintaining a career .300 batting average. Joining Hall-of-Famers: Babe Ruth, Jimmie Foxx, Mel Ott, Ted Williams, Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, and later joined by Manny Ramírez and Albert Pujols). Furthermore, Thomas was inducted into the Hall of Fame in his first round of eligibility in 2014. 

#1
1993 Upper Deck SP
Derek Jeter Rookie Card
Sold for $168,000

The rising popularity, and price, of the 1993 Upper Deck SP Derek Jeter rookie card has been incredible. In May 2018, a PSA 10 example sold at auction for a record $99,100. At this time, baseball card collectors and hobbyists alike were blown away.

Because the 1993 Upper Deck SP isn’t a short print or rare card, we had every reason to be. There isn’t anything special about this Jeter rookie card. Well, looking at the PSA population report will prove there is. So far, PSA has graded and authenticated over 16,000 of the Jeter SP rookie cards. Of that massive sample, only 22 have been found in gem mint condition. This makes this set one of the most challenging in near-perfect conditions.

Conclusion

What is the Most Valuable Junk Wax Baseball Card?

The most valuable baseball card from the junk wax era is the 1993 Upper Deck SP Derek Jeter rookie card #279. Why is this so expensive? Couple Jeters massive success in the MLB with this very elusive 1993 SP PSA 10 gem mint rookie card example, and you get an unprecedented selling price. 

With the most recent auction of a PSA 10 example ending at $168,000, this is, without a doubt, the most expensive and valuable baseball card from the junk wax era.No other baseball cards printed between 1986 and 1993 come remotely close to reaching this value.