1980 Topps
Description
1980 Topps is a 726-card set released in April. This would be the final year in which Topps had a de facto monopoly on officially licensed Major League Baseball cards. It would be another 30 years until Topps would regain their de jure MLB monopoly.
As it had the last two years, Topps again double-printed 66 cards in the set; they are noted by DP in the checklist below.
The player's name appears over the picture and his position and team are found in "double pennant" design. Every card carries a facsimile autograph.
Team cards feature a team checklist of players in the set on the back and the manager's name on the front.
Cards 1-6 show Highlights (HL) of the 1979 season, cards 201-207 are League Leaders, and cards 661-686 feature American and National League rookie "Future Stars," one card for each team showing three young prospects.
The key Rookie Card in this set is Rickey Henderson.
Distribution
Wax: 36 packs per box, 15 cards plus one stick of gum per pack (MSRP: .25¢). 20 boxes per case
Wax Rack: Three .25¢ packs housed in a rack pack (MSRP .75¢)
Wax Tray: Three .25¢ packs housed in a tray (MSRP .75¢)
Cello: 24 packs per box, 25 cards plus one stick of gum per pack (MSRP: .39¢)
Super-Pack (Cello): 28 cards plus three sticks of "Super-Soft" gum wrapped separately per pack plus a baseball strach-off game piece (MSRP: .59¢)
Rack: 24 packs per box, 42 cards plus three sticks of gum per pack (MSRP: .69¢)
500 card Vending Boxes (referred to by dealers at the time as "Unopened Boxes")
Vending Cases (24 Vending Boxes) were sold to dealers by Topps for $79, minimum purchase of 5.
Reviews
Insertion Ratios
| Cards | Total Cards |
|---|---|
| Base | 726 |
Checklist
Base Set
Errors
164 Greg Pryor: No name listed on front.
387 Fred Stanley: Name on front appears in Yellow. Base (non-error) is RED
424 Yankees Team card: Billy Martin shown on front (error). Dick Howser (non-error)
547 John Wathan: Name on front appears in Yellow. Base (non-error) is RED
597 Tom Poquette: Name on front appears in YELLOW. Base (non-error) is RED
Inserts
Retail Promo Cards
This set features special promotional redemption cards that could be redeemed for an unopened pack of three standard 1980 Topps/OPC Baseball cards. Hunt's Bread did the same promotion in Canada. The promotion was limited to certain states and to certain stores.
1. Mrs. Butterworth's. With a purchase of Mrs. Butterworth's Syrup you would receive a cellophane wrapped pack containing 3 cards with a header card with single season and career major league records.
2. K-mart. While supplies lasted Kmart shoppers would receive a cellophane wrapped pack containing 3 cards with a header card with players with 3000-or-more hits.
3. Squirt Soda. With purchase of Squirt you would receive cellophane wrapped pack containing 3 cards and a header card with Active Players batting .300 or better for their career with minimum 1000 at-bats.
4. Hunt's Bread (OPC)
5. Dynamite. A magazine published by Scholastic Inc. with a 6-card panel insert bounded inside.
Team Checklist Uncut Sheet
As part of a mail-away offer, Topps offered all 26 team checklist cards on an uncut sheet. These cards enabled the collector to have an easy reference for which card(s) he/she needed to finish their sets. When cut from the sheet, all cards measure the standard size.