From the late 1970s through the early part of the 1980’s Topps Baseball Cards were the main card in the industry. However, the sports card industry and how baseball card collectors collected were not like today. eBay wasn’t around, the way of the internet to search for baseball cards for sale and heck, the internet hadn’t even been created for collectors to use. Baseball cards were used for sound machines in bike tires, pitched along the side of buildings for entertainment, and often glued or stuck in photo albums. Despite all this, 1980 Topps baseball cards are still a fan favorite today.
The best baseball card in the 1980 Topps Baseball set is the 1980 Topps Rookie Card of Rickey Henderson. Henderson is just one of the long list of baseball players with a 1980 Topps Rookie Card featured in the 726-base set.
Other notable rookies within the set include Dave Stieb, Rick Sutcliffe, and Jesse Orosco. Unfortunately for baseball card collectors, Topps did not produce a 1980 Topps Traded set, limiting the number of rookies available to collect.
Overall, there is a good list of players on the best 1980 Topps Baseball cards list. Here is a quick look at the 10 best 1980 Topps baseball cards.
10 Best 1980 Topps Baseball Cards
1980 Topps #580 Nolan Ryan
If you are looking for an all-time great pitcher to collect, it is hard to look past Nolan Ryan, who put together a long career across four decades.
The long-time star racked up a long list of baseball cards for collectors, including one of the best 1980 Topps Baseball Cards featured within the baseball set.
Ryan, who has his jersey retired with the California/Los Angeles Angels, Houston Astros, and Texas Rangers, is the all-time MLB strikeout leader after recording 5,714 strikeouts over his career, while throwing an MLB record seven no-hitters.
The last PSA 10 sold back in August of 2022 for $10,700. A recent 1980 Topps Nolan Ryan Baseball Card sold for $454 in February 2023.
Here are recent sale prices for Nolan Ryan Topps cards.
- PSA 10 – $10,700 (August 2022)
- PSA 9 – $454
- PSA 8 – $59.99
- Raw (Ungraded) – $97.50
1980 Topps #482 Rickey Henderson Rookie Card
Rickey Henderson, one of the best leadoff hitters of all time, put together a hall-of-fame career while eventually landing a spot in the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.
Henderson was one of those leadoff hitters that could do it all, from hitting leadoff home runs to picking up a single before turning it into a triple by stealing both second and third base.
The long-time baseball great finished his career as the MLB Stolen Base All-Time Leader.
A recent 1980 Topps Rickey Henderson PSA 9 Rookie Card sold for $2,325 in March 2023. Here are recent sale prices of Rickey Henderson rookie cards.
- PSA 10 – $120,000 (April 2022)
- PSA 9 – $2,325
- PSA 8.5 – $599.99
- PSA 8 – $499
- Raw (Ungraded) – $410.44
1980 Topps #70 Gary Carter
Another baseball player with a solid following among card collectors over the years was the Montreal Expos and New York Mets great Gary Carter.
Carter finished his career as a .262 hitter with 2,092 hits, 324 home runs, and 1,225 hits, earning him a selection into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2003.
A recent 1980 Topps Gary Carter PSA 10 sold for $682.42 in February 2023. Here are recent sale prices of Gary Carter Topps cards.
- PSA 10 – $682.42
- PSA 9 – $74.95
- PSA 8 – $6.50
- Raw (Ungraded) – $18.33
1980 Topps #192 Atlanta Braves Team Checklist
Over the years, Topps had made it part of their sets to feature team checklist cards, while some of the older team checklist cards were more difficult to find in excellent condition.
The 1980 Topps Atlanta Braves team checklist featured Bobby Cox, Phil Niekro, Gary Mathews, and Dale Murphy.
A recent 1989 Topps Atlanta Braves Team Checklist sold for $676 in February 2023. Here are recent sale prices for the Atlanta Braves Team Checklist cards.
- PSA 10 – $676
- PSA 9 – $29
- SGC 8.5 – $3.84
- PSA 8 – $6
- Raw (Ungraded) – $2
1980 Topps #270 Mike Schmidt
The Baseball Hall of Famer and long-time Philadelphia Phillies All-Star Mike Schmidt owns one of the 10 Best 1980 Topps Baseball Cards.
Schmidt, who played his entire career with the Phillies from 1972 to 1989, was one of the best third basemen of all time and the best power-hitting third baseman to play baseball.
Schmidt finished his career with the 1980 NL MVP Award, 548 Home Runs, and 10 Gold Glove Awards while being elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1995.
A recent 1980 Topps Mike Schmidt Baseball Card sold for $599 in February 2023. Here are recent sale prices for Mike Schmidt Topps cards.
- PSA 10 – $599.99
- PSA 9 – $76.51
- PSA 8 – $26.72
- Raw (Ungraded) – $1
1980 Topps #160 Eddie Murray
Arguably the greatest switch hitter of all time, Eddie Murray was as good of a hitter as any across his career while also having the opportunity to join the 3,000-hit club and 500-home run club.
Along with these statistics, the long-time Baltimore Orioles first baseman earned the 1977 AL Rookie of the Year Award, made eight All-Star Teams, and had his number 33 retired by the Baltimore Orioles.
A recent 1980 Topps Eddie Murray Baseball Card sold for $595 in January 2023. Here are recent sale prices for Eddie Murray Topps cards.
- PSA 10 – $595
- PSA 9 – $48.71
- PSA 8 – $8.60
- Raw (Ungraded) – $1.25
1980 Topps Highlights #1 Lou Brock/Carl Yastrzemski
Topps has had a history of featuring multiple baseball players on one single card, from league leaders, to the team rookie cards featuring three players, to the Topps Highlights cards similar to the one featuring Lou Brock and Carl Yastrzemski.
This card features two great players in the Baseball Hall of Fame. A recent 1980 Topps Lou Brock/Carl Yastrzemski Baseball Card sold for $454 in January 2023.
Here are recent sale prices for Lou Brock/Carl Yastrzemski Topps cards.
- PSA 10 – $454
- PSA 9 – $90
- PSA 8 – $24.76
- Raw (Ungraded) – $1.25
1980 Topps #274 Dale Murphy
The Atlanta Braves are among two of the best cards featured within the 1980 Topps Baseball set, with the Atlanta Braves team checklist and the 1980 Topps Dale Murphy PSA 10.
Murphy, who started his career with the Braves, played from 1976 to 1993, compiling 398 career home runs, 2,111 hits, and 1,266 runs driven in, with two NL MVP Awards and seven All-Star appearances.
Despite not being one of the 1980 Topps Rookie Cards featured in the product, high-graded versions of the 1980 Topps Dale Murphy Baseball Cards are hard to come by.
A recent 1980 Topps Dale Murphy Baseball Card sold for $425 in March 2023. Here are recent sale prices for Dale Murphy Topps Cards.
- PSA 10 – $425
- PSA 9 – $62
- PSA 8 – $25.99
- Raw (Ungraded) – $1.99
1980 Topps #700 Rod Carew
Possibly the best all-around hitter during his playing days, Rod Carew could hit with the best baseball players while finishing his career with a .328 batting average mark to go along with 3,053 hits.
The former Minnesota Twins and California Angels outfielder led baseball in batting average in six different seasons while posting marks of at least .350 in four of the five seasons between 1973 and 1977.
Carew’s resume on the field, including his 1977 AL MVP Award and 18 All-Star appearances, landed him in the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991. Carew is a fan favorite, with many baseball card collectors adding his cards to their collections daily.
A recent 1980 Topps Rod Carew Baseball Card sold for $399 in January 2023. Here are recent sale prices for Rod Carew Topps Cards.
- PSA 10 – $399
- PSA 9 – $53.80
- PSA 8 – $20.50
- Raw (Ungraded) – $3.26
1980 Topps #206 Strikeout Leaders Nolan Ryan/J.R. Richard
Rounding out the 10 best 1980 Topps baseball cards is the 1980 Strikeout Leaders Baseball Card featuring Nolan Ryan and J.R. Richard.
Ryan, who finished his career leading the league in strikeouts in 11 different seasons, finished the 1979 season with 223 strikeouts.
Meanwhile, Richard, who played for the Houston Astros, would finish the 1979 season leading the NL with 313 strikeouts in the second of his league-leading strikeout seasons.
A recent 1980 Topps Strikeout Leaders Nolan Ryan/J.R. Richard Baseball Card sold for $399 in March 2023. Here are recent sale prices for Nolan Ryan/J.R. Richard Topps cards.
- PSA 10 – $399
- PSA 9 – $59.95
- PSA 8 – $18
- Raw (Ungraded) – $2.01
1980 Topps Baseball Card Buyers Guide
Over the years, Topps has had a history of producing multiple baseball card sets each season to feature the Topps base set and the Topps Traded set.
However, in 1980 Topps did not produce a Topps Traded set, leaving collectors to search for individual packs and cello packs to build their sets.
The 1980 Topps Baseball Base Set
The 1980 Topps Baseball base set featured a 726-card checklist featuring a solid list of MLB stars from Rickey Henderson to Mike Schmidt to Pete Rose to Ozzie Smith. In addition to traditional base cards, the set also featured team-themed rookie cards featuring three rookies from one team as well as the six 1979 Highlights cards starting the set from cards 1-6 featuring Willie McCovey, Pete Rose, and Lou Brock/Carl Yastzemski.
