30 Best Kirby Puckett Baseball Cards In Hobby History

1983 Fritsch Visalia Oaks #6

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $1,500

In 548 at-bats over 138 games played for the Class A Visalia Oaks in 1983, Kirby Puckett batted .314 with nine home runs, 97 RBI and 105 runs scored.

His production that year showed he was clearly skilled and capable of doing some serious damage at the plate.

And it was enough to land him a spot on the Triple-A roster in Toledo the following year, where he'd play in just 21 games before the Twins called him up to the Big Leagues early in the 1984 MLB season.

This Minor League card produced by Larry Fritsch Cards and sponsored by Tyson Foods was part of the "1983 Minor League Stars of Tomorrow" set that featured Minor Leagues from across the nation.

1984 Fleer Update #U-93 Kirby Puckett Rookie Card

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $1,200

Two years after being the third overall pick in the 1982 MLB Draft, Kirby Puckett made his MLB debut with the Minnesota Twins.

At just over 24 years old, Puckett was the leadoff batter on May 8, 1984, in his first of 1,783 regular-season games played in his career.

Puckett made an instant impact with four hits in his debut, scoring once and stealing a base in Minnesota’s 5-0 win.

He would finish the season third in Rookie of the Year voting after batting .296 with just 17 extra-base hits in his first full season as a pro.

He also drove in 31 runs and stole 14 bases in 21 attempts while doing his part to put the ball in play more often than not with just 16 walks and 69 strikeouts.

His .336 slugging percentage and .320 on-base percentage would end up being the worst totals of his career.

Ever since this Puckett rookie card appeared in the 1984 Fleer Update set, it's been one of the most iconic cards of the era.

1985 Topps #536

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $650

In 557 at-bats during his rookie campaign, Puckett failed to hit a single home run.

And it would take fourteen games into the 1985 season before he uncorked his first career homer.

In the fourth inning of an April 22, 1985 game against Seattle, Puckett hit a three-home shot off Ken Schrom that gave Minnesota a 5-0 lead.

Puckett would hit three more home runs in his second season while leading all of MLB with 691 official at-bats among his 744 plate appearances.

This Kirby Puckett rookie card is a key to the 1985 Topps set and continues to grow in popularity as high-grade cards from the 1980s have made a solid rebound in the hobby.

1985 Donruss #438

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $350

Nearly all his offensive production increased in that second year as he finished with 74 RBIs, 13 triples, and 29 doubles, all of which were more than twice as many as he had in his rookie season.

His batting average, though, dipped to .288 despite his on-base and slugging percentage both increasing over that first season.

That was the last time Puckett batted below .300 until the 1990 season when he slipped just below the mark with a .298 batting average.

I've always loved the 1985 Donruss design with the black borders and full-color imagery and Puckett's rookie card is no exception.

1985 Fleer #286

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $450

Puckett's 1985 Fleer rookie card is another iconic card from the 1980s and the grey borders give it a unique look overall.

And I've always loved the baby blue uniform, red helmet and Twins cartoon logo in the upper-left corner of this card.

While he technically made his Fleer debut in the company's 1984 Fleer Update set, this was the first time that Puckett appeared in a standard Fleer set.

1985 Leaf #107

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $3,500

After a 25-year hiatus, the 1985 Leaf set marked the brand's return to the hobby since they produced their last set back in 1960.

Being the Canadian cousin to Donruss, you can see that there isn't much different about the Leaf design overall except for the green leaf logo in the upper-left and the French text and Leaf trademark data on the reverse.

However, one thing is clear about this card and the set in general: they are incredibly difficult to find in top condition.

The Leaf print run wasn't nearly as large as Donruss's, nor was the print quality on the same level.

That's where the difficulty in finding them in top shape comes into play.

1985 O-Pee-Chee #10

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $2,000

Donruss wasn't the only mainstream card company in 1985 to have a Canadian cousin churning out cards for the Canadian market.

O-Pee-Chee had produced a set as far back as 1937 but consistently served as a Topps's partner to create baseball cards for the Canadian market since 1965.

So, the 1985 OPC set wasn't as much of a newcomer to the hobby as the 1985 Leaf set, but since this was Puckett's first OPC card, I figured I'd include it on this list.

And it's his OPC rookie card anyway, so it has to be on this list.

The same comparison between the 1985 Leaf and Donruss sets applies to the 1985 OPC and Topps sets as well: the OPC print run was less than Topps's, and the quality wasn't on par either.

So, as you can imagine, finding a gem mint example of Puckett's OPC rookie card can be challenging, and collectors will pay large price tags as a result.

1986 Topps #329

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $175

Puckett’s true breakout season came in 1986 when he won the first of his six Golden Glove Awards and six Silver Sluggers.

It was also the start of 10 consecutive All-Star nods for the center fielder as he moved up from 21st in MVP voting in 1985 to sixth in 1986.

After hitting just four home runs in his first 289 major league games, Puckett blasted 31 homers in his third year in the Majors to go along with 96 RBIs and a career-high 119 runs scored.

He managed to crank out 223 hits in 680 at-bats with 37 doubles and six triples to boost his batting average up to .328, and his slugging percentage rose to .537.

The 365 total bases he accumulated were also a career best, but the Twins still struggled and posted just 71 victories that season to finish a distant sixth in the AL West.

Many cards from the 1986 Topps set, including Puckett's, have continued to steadily climb in value in recent years.

1987 Topps #450

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $60

In 1987, Puckett led the MLB in hits for the first of four times in his career, belting 207 hits, including 32 doubles and 28 home runs for the Twins.

Puckett raised his batting average for the third year in a row, finishing with a .332 average as his slugging percentage and on-base percentage stayed reasonably stable.

He also had a chance to play in the postseason for the first time in his brief career after Minnesota had a 14-win turnaround to win the AL West.

In his first playoff series, the center fielder struggled with just five hits in 24 at-bats against the Tigers, but he shined in the 1987 World Series against St. Louis.

Puckett had ten hits in 28 at-bats while driving in three runs, including the game-tying run in Game 7 to help the Twins win the World Series for the first time since the franchise moved to Minnesota.

1988 Topps #120

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $50

For the second year in a row, Puckett finished in third place in MVP voting in 1988 despite driving in a career-best 121 RBIs, batting a career-high .356, and leading the league in hits (234) and total bases (358).

He also scored 109 runs, the second of three times he hit triple digits in runs scored during his career.

He would hit just 24 home runs this season, the most he would hit for the rest of his career, and walked only 23 times, the fewest he had after his rookie season.

The 1988 Twins' hopes for a World Series repeat fell apart as they missed the playoffs entirely, despite having a better regular-season record than the 1987 team that won the World Series.

At 91-71, they finished in a distant second place to a loaded Oakland Athletics team led by Jose Canseco and Mark Mcgwire that went 104-58.

However, on an individual note, Puckett earned an All-Star roster spot for the third year in a row and won his third consecutive Gold Glove and Silver Slugger awards.

1989 Topps #650

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $40

Statistically, Puckett's power took a significant step back during the 1989 season, hitting just nine home runs while driving in only 85 runs as his slugging percentage dropped 80 points.

However, he did establish a career-high 45 doubles but scored just 75 runs, the fewest he'd had in any season after his rookie campaign.

Puckett did continue to be a master at making contact, leading the league in both batting average at .339 and hits with 215, the third straight year he led the MLB in hits and fourth consecutive season with at least 200 hits.

Puckett struck out just 59 times and set his career-high with a .379 on-base percentage while the Twins plummeted below .500 again.

1989 Upper Deck #376

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $30

When the 1989 Upper Deck set first hit store shelves, collectors rushed to get their hands on these premium cards.

The entire hobby was flipped on end as the newcomer changed the collecting world for good.

Donruss, Fleer, and Topps had been churning out sets over and over, so Upper Deck had to do something different to get their foot in the door: release an advanced product with top-quality photography on premium card stock.

And, boy, did they deliver.

Today, the Ken Griffey Jr. rookie card from this set is one of the most iconic cards in hobby history.

An image of Puckett leading off from base may not have been the most exciting choice that Upper Deck could have used for this card, but you can still quickly get an idea of the quality that the company brought to the table with this card.

1990 Topps #700

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $35

The 1990 season was arguably the worst of Puckett's career despite being a pretty good year for most Major Leaguers.

Puckett batted just .298 with 12 homers and 80 RBIs while collecting only 164 hits in 551 at-bats.

He did still manage to his on-base percentage at .365, just above his career average of .360, aided in large part by setting a career mark with 57 walks.

His minor dip in performance mirrored his team as Minnesota dropped to last in the AL West in 1990 with a 74-88 record.

Although Puckett was named an All-Star again, the 1990 season ended Puckett's streak of Gold Glove and Silver Slugger awards at four years.

Puckett also played in just 146 games, the fewest in his career since being called up in 1984 for the first time.

1991 Topps #300

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $20

As bad as the 1990 season was for Puckett and the Twins, 1991 was precisely the opposite.

Puckett hit .319 with 15 home runs and 89 RBIs, though many of his other stats weren't all that impressive in the regular season.

He still finished seventh in MVP voting and won his fifth Gold Glove Award, but Puckett's true heroics would come in October when Minnesota returned to the postseason.

After batting .429 with six RBIs and scoring four runs to help Minnesota blast through Toronto in five games, Puckett earned the honor of ALCS MVP.

Of course, Puckett will always be remembered for his performance in the 1991 World Series.

His six hits in the seven games of the World Series weren't all that impressive, but he was at his best in the final two games of the season.

Half of his hits came in the critical Game 6 as he finished just a double shy of the cycle.

Puckett gave the Twins an early lead in the first inning with a triple and added an eighth-inning single along with an RBI sacrifice fly in the fifth.

However, the highlight of his career came in the 11th inning when he launched the 2-1 pitch from Charlie Leibrandt over the fence in left-center field to send the World Series to a seventh game.

Puckett's arm-raising celebration wouldn't have mattered nearly as much if the Twins didn't win 1-0 in 10 innings the next night to capture their second World Series title.

1991 Topps Desert Shield #300

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $900

The 1991 Topps Desert Shield set has steadily grown in popularity over the years, and because of this, their values continue to climb.

Because Topps produced a minimal number of these cards and gave packs to troops stationed in the Middle East during the Gulf War, it isn't easy to find surviving examples in high grade these days.

Some were lost, some were damaged, some were simply thrown away to be forgotten for good.

Today, these cards are some of the most expensive cards from the 1990s.

The easiest way to tell the Desert Shield version from the base version is to simply look for the gold stamping on the front of the card which, in this case, is in the upper-right of Puckett's card.

1991 Topps Stadium Club #110

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $30

Feeling the heat from Upper Deck's move into the hobby as a premium card manufacturer, Topps dipped its toes into the upper-scale segment of the market when it released its "Stadium Club" line in 1991.

The full-color photography that dominates the front of the card offered collectors a different collecting experience after seeing borders year after year.

And Topps used Kodak paper to give them an added shimmer and boost in quality.

The Stadium Club line continued annually throughout the 1990s while it appeared in an on-again, off-again fashion from 2000 onward.

1991 Ultra #195

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $40

While this card may not look like a premium card, that was Fleer's full intention when they released their "Ultra" brand in 1991.

By 1991, not only did Fleer have Donruss and Topps to compete against, but Upper Deck had cemented itself as a reputable brand as well.

Not to mention that Score had joined the market in 1988, Topps had revitalized the Bowman brand in 1989, and Leaf and O-Pee-Chee were also still in the mix.

To try and stand out just a bit more, Fleer released their "Ultra" product line as a premier product that came in foil packs.

But the foil packs were about as premium as it got because the cards themselves weren't glossy and could pass for a regular Fleer set quite easily.

Regardless, this set has its place in hobby history, so Puckett's card deserves a spot on this list.

1992 Topps #575

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $20

Feeding off the momentum from the 1991 postseason, Puckett had a career year in 1992 at the age of 32.

Puckett led the MLB in hits for the fourth and final time in his career with 210 and led the league in total bases for the second time after finishing with 313.

For the third time in his career, Puckett scored at least 100 runs, crossing the plate 104 times, while driving in more than 100 runs for the second time in his career with 110 RBIs.

His 19 homers were the most he had hit in five years to go along with a .329 batting average and .490 slugging percentage, his best in five seasons.

These efforts culminated in his sixth and final Gold Glove and his fifth Silver Slugger Award while he earned three first-place MVP votes to finish second in 1992, the highest placement of his career.

1993 Topps #200

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $30

The 1993 season was another dip for Puckett as he batted just .296 with 89 RBIs, even though he smashed 22 homers.

However, he continued to be a doubles-hitting machine with 39 doubles among his 184 hits that season as he began his transition to right field defensively.

Where Puckett took the biggest step back was getting on base after his on-base percentage dropped to .349, the lowest it was for any season after his first two in the MLB.

The highlight of the 1993 season for Puckett was the All-Star Game, where he was named MVP after going 2-for-3 with two RBIs and a home run to lead the American League to a 9-3 win.

Puckett was also the 1993 recipient of the Branch Rickey Award for his work in the community off the field.

1993 Finest Refractor #112

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $1,250

Certain sets in the hobby changed the game forever, and one of those is the 1993 Finest set.

If you look around the collecting community these days, you'll see all kinds of "Refractors" that are more or less cards produced with special technology to refract light.

And you'll even find them in all kinds of different color variations or parallels that can signify a certain degree of rarity. There may be only five red refractors of a certain card, while there are one hundred blue refractors of the same card.

The rarer the refractor, the higher the price.

So, the whole idea of refractor cards is to offer collectors another selection of cards to chase in any given set.

But, while today refractors are quite a common feature of many sets and, as mentioned before, there are now even different color variations of refractors themselves, the 1993 Finest set offered just a basic refractor.

In 1993, however, refractors were considered anything but basic as it was the first set to offer such a card.

The set itself was Topps's attempt at offering a super-premium set to compete against Upper Deck's "SP" and Fleer's "Flair" super-premium sets.

But, it was the only one to feature refractors and credited as the set that started everything in the world of refractors.

1993 Flair #242

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $50

It's fair to say that Fleer underdelivered on its attempt at a premium set with its 1991 Ultra release.

But, they didn't make the same mistake when they launched into the super-premium segment of the market with their 1993 Flair product line.

The dual-imagery and fantastic full-color photography immediately jumped off the card front while the card stock was thicker than anything else in the hobby.

Flair production numbers were significantly lower than those of Ultra to maintain relative scarcity.

And the imagery on Puckett's card speaks for itself.

To me, it's one of his best-looking cards ever produced.

1993 SP #7

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $50

Now known for containing the most valuable Derek Jeter rookie card, the 1993 Upper Deck SP set was the company's first super-premium set meant to compete with Finest and Flair.

The first eighteen cards of the set are All-Stars, and you'll notice that on Puckett's card, the phrase "1993 A.L. All-Star" is printed across the top in an arching pattern.

The photography on the cards in this set is top-notch and features many great action shots.

But, the aesthetics on Puckett's stands out a bit more than others, in my opinion, as the triple-imagery sequence of Puckett making a sliding catch and coming up for the throw creates a lot of visual pop.

1994 Topps #100

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $30

If not for the player's strike that cut the 1994 season short, Puckett probably could have finished higher than seventh in MVP voting.

In just 108 games played that year, Puckett led the Majors with 112 RBIs while batting .317 and blasting 20 home runs, which at least earned him his sixth and final Silver Slugger Award.

That would have put him on pace for roughly 150 RBIs and close to 30 home runs for the season had it been completed.

Puckett registered a .540 slugging percentage that year, the second-best of his career, and he was hitting home runs in 4.2 percent of his at-bats, the second-best rate of his career.

Perhaps equally important, Puckett was only striking out less than 10 percent of the time, which also was the second-lowest rate of his career.

As a team, the Twins struggled in the AL Central that season and were well out of playoff contention when the strike stopped the season.

1994 Bowman's Best #75 Red Refractor

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $200

After the success of its 1993 Finest set, Topps introduced a similar concept to the hobby a year later with its 1994 Bowman's Best line.

The Bowman's Best brand has since gone on to have several years of success, but this was the first year when it all started.

With a checklist of only 200 cards, the set features 90 veterans (like Puckett), 90 rookies/prospects, and 20 "Mirror Image" cards that show both a veteran and prospect player on them.

The company also decided to colorize all rookies and prospects with blue card fronts while the veterans were shown on red card fronts.

Finally, all 200 cards also have refractor parallels like the Puckett refractor that you see here.

1995 Topps #534

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $20

At 35 years old, Puckett was proving he still had plenty left in the tank during the 1995 season after batting .314 with 99 RBIs and 23 home runs through 137 games until a freak accident ended his season.

Disaster struck when Dennis Martinez broke Puckett's jaw with a fastball in his first at-bat of the Sept. 28 game against the Cleveland Indians.

At the time of the injury, Puckett was tied for his career high with a .379 on-base percentage and was slugging above .500 for the fifth time in his twelve years in the league.

Though he had yet to hit a triple for the only time in his career, Puckett was sitting at 39 doubles, leaving him one shy of 40 doubles for the fourth time in his career.

Puckett returned from the injury in 1996 and hit .344 during Spring Training until he woke up in late March with no vision in his right eye.

He was then diagnosed with glaucoma and underwent three surgeries to restore his vision enough to continue playing.

Although the surgeries did help him, it was not enough for him to safely continue playing for the Twins, and he retired in the middle of the 1996 season.

Later that year, he was awarded the Roberto Clemente Award for his work in the Minnesota community.

1996 Topps #50

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $50

Although Puckett unfortunately never played during the 1996 season, or ever again for that matter, he still appeared in the 1996 Topps set at card #50.

The eye appeal on this card is fantastic as Topps captured the Hall of Famer in the middle of his follow-through to produce what is arguably the best Puckett visual of any of his Topps cards.

His base card can still fetch around $50 in PSA 10 condition but the 1996 Topps base cards, in general, are much less popular than another product line that they famously released that year.

1996 Topps Chrome #19

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $100

It's hard to believe now, but when Topps first released its "Topps Chrome" line in 1996, the hobby had mixed feelings about the cards.

The brand introduced a parallel offshoot printed on chromium stock (hence the name) that featured 165 players from the base set.

At the time, some collectors liked the new look and feel of the cards, while others weren't too fond of them.

However, what is clear today is that the Topps Chrome brand has cemented itself as one of the most loved and most widely-anticipated product lines each year.

1996 Topps Chrome Refractor #19

Estimated PSA 10 Value: $200

Each of the 165 base Topps Chrome cards could also be found in a refractor parallel.

And, given their relative rarity compared to their standard Topps Chrome counterparts, they can carry a decent price premium when graded in top condition.

1996 Leaf Signature Series 

Estimated Extended Autograph PSA 10 Value: $1,000

Estimated Century Marks Autograph PSA 10 Value: $2,000

The 1996 Leaf Signature Series is credited as the first product in the hobby that included an autographed card in every pack.

Puckett's card features a beautiful, flowing autograph that takes up a good chunk of the lower part of the card that perfectly complements the fantastic image of him rounding the bases.

While most players in the set signed upwards of 5,000 copies of their cards, Puckett was among those that signed 1,000.

Additionally, Puckett and thirty other players (mostly big names) were included in a "Century Marks" parallel that have the "Century Marks" name stamped in blue foil across the top while the signature is also in blue ink.

Leaf produced just 100 copies of the "Century Marks" cards for each player making them tougher to find.

1996 Select Certified #62 Mirror Gold 

Estimated PSA 9 Mint Value: $4,500

Several cards on this list were part of sets that introduced hobby "firsts," and this card is one final example of another.

What is now commonplace throughout many sets in the hobby is credited for starting with Pinnacle's 1996 Select Certified release: the concept of multiple, different colored, limited parallels or "rainbows."

This set contained six parallels numbered in rarity according to the following lineup: Certified Red (1,800), Artist's Proof (500), Certified Blue (180), Mirror Red (90), Mirror Blue (45), and Mirror Gold (30).

Limited to just 30 copies, the Mirror Gold is the rarest and most desirable of the rainbow parallels, and in today's market, they can fetch a hefty price tag in top grade.

Kirby Puckett's Legacy

Kirby Puckett entered Cooperstown in 2001 and leaves a legacy as one of the greatest baseball players to ever play the game.

He'll forever be an icon throughout the state of Minnesota as he was one of the most beloved superstars to play professionally in the Twin Cities.

Puckett could do it all.

His six Gold Gloves and six Silver Sluggers are proof of that.

And he played with joy and enthusiasm that few players can genuinely exhibit at the highest level in the game.

Maybe most importantly of all was Puckett's ability to come through for his teammates in the clutch, as noted by his play during two World Series wins in 1987 and 1991.

Looking back on Puckett's resume, you can see that it was jam-packed with accomplishments:

• 2x World Series Champion
• 10x All-Star
• 6x Silver Slugger
• 6x Gold Glove
• 1989 Batting Champion (.339)
• ALCS MVP (1991)
• Roberto Clemente Award (1996)

Though his career was sadly cut short by an eye injury caused by a freak accident, Puckett did plenty during his twelve seasons of MLB play to cement his legacy as one of the game's greatest.