Tom Glavine is a player that is dear to the Atlanta Braves fans. In his 21-year career in baseball, he was named 10 times in the All-Star team while also winning one World Championship with the Braves in 1995.
That is one heck of a career for the pitcher from Massachusetts. With the sort of record he had throughout his career, there’s no wonder why his rookie cards are so popular.
And here, you’ll be able to see what the best Tom Glavine rookie cards are if you’re interested in buying.
Top Tom Glavine Rookie Cards
Here are the top Tom Glavine rookie cards that are going to be some of your best choices when it comes to investments.
1988 Topps Tom Glavine RC #779
The first and most notable card that you should know about is the 1988 Topps Tom Glavine rookie card.
As a Topps card, this was one of the first cards that people went for when it was released. If you look at the card, it’s a fairly simple one with the design and the image on the card.
If you’re someone who has a liking for retro cards and designs, then you’ll probably like this option even more. You can feel the air of the 1980s on this card with the font choices and the overall look of the card.
Overall, the base Topps card is not very expensive. You should be able to pick it up for a fairly sensible price, although that will depend on what condition you’re looking for. If you want to have a card in top condition, then you’re going to have to spend a bit more.
But there’s another Topps card of Tom Glavine that you should be aware of…
1988 Topps Tiffany Tom Glavine RC #779
And it’s the Topps Tiffany 1988 Tom Glavine card.
If you look at it, you will see that at first sight, there are no changes at all compared to the base Topps card.
The charm of the Tiffany card, instead, is in its quality and availability.
The most obvious difference that you’ll be able to see between this and the base card is the quality of the build. The colors are sharper and more vivid, and the card stock is of much better quality.
But there’s also a difference in how these cards were distributed.
Namely, the Tiffany card is rarer than the base Topps card, which will drive the prices up slightly. And if you’re looking for something extra bit special and top-quality like a top-graded card, then you’re going to have to dive even deeper into your pockets.
1988 Fleer Tom Glavine RC #539
Next up is the 1988 Fleer rookie card of Tom Glavine.
This one is right next to Topps in terms of popularity as one of the most popular card brands of the 1980s.
Now, they’re not as expensive as Topps cards today, and especially not as expensive as the Topps Tiffany cards, too. Perhaps that’s because many people prefer the look and the overall design of the Topps card, but the Fleer card here also has its qualities.
The fact that it’s easily available and not that expensive makes it a great option if you’re on a budget, but it’s also an excellent addition to your collection if you’re looking to expand it, especially if you’re a Tom Glavine fan.
The card has a frontal shot of Glavine with the darker option for the Braves jersey, and it is slightly different from the Topps image.
1988 Donruss Tom Glavine RC #644
Back in 1984, Tom Glavine was a second-round pick for the Braves but he only made his debut in 1987, which means his rookie cards come from the following season, 1988, when he started his first full season in baseball.
At the start, Glavine had a bit of a mixed patch as a pitcher. He wasn’t seen as a first option for the Braves, but more of as an option for the future. But despite the rough start, he started to come more into the life of professional baseball in the early 1990s.
Among Fleer and Topps cards, the Donruss card is a great alternative. It presents a decent option if you’re looking for something different, although it still has that frontal image that most cards back then seemed to have.
One thing that most of these 1988 rookie cards for Tom Glavine have in common is that the supply is higher than the demand (except maybe for the Tiffany card).
This means that the cards will not be very expensive, even the most popular options like your Donruss cards or Topps cards.
The good thing about that is that some of these cards can be picked up for relatively cheap, although you might have to spend a bit more if you want the higher graded cards or limited versions like the Tiffany cards.
1988 Score Tom Glavine RC #638
Now, if you do want something a tad different than the rest, then you might want to consider this 1988 Score Tom Glavine rookie card.
The most obvious difference between this card and the rest is the image on the card. It features Tom Glavine in action, which compared to most other cards that have the portrait of Glavine is different.
Then there’s also the more colorful border design, which features a mixture of red, yellow, and orange patterns.
But despite all of those differences from the rest, this card is still not very expensive and a great option if you’re on a budget. You’ll find many options for this card, which is good to know if you want to have freedom of choice.
Because of the higher print run, you’ll be able to pick this one up for a fairly low price, but if you want something slightly more valuable, you have one alternative for this card.
1988 Score Glossy Tom Glavine RC #638
And this alternative is the Score Glossy card, which is essentially the Tiffany version for the Score card.
Like the Tiffany version, it is a slight upgrade on the base card, as it has that distinct glossy finish and is of a higher quality compared to the base card.
But it’s also rarer than the base card, and some reports tell us that it’s also slightly rarer than the Tiffany card, with around 5000 copies of the Glossy card ever released.
Now, for some people, 5000 might seem quite a lot but you should know that this card was released during the infamous Junk Wax Era. That was when card companies printed far too many cards and the supply far exceeded the demand, but this Glossy card was quite rare for those times.
For this reason, this card might be slightly more expensive than the rest and the base card, and it might also be slightly tougher to find it out there.
1989 Bowman Tom Glavine RC #267
You may have noticed that this Bowman card for Tom Glavine doesn’t come from 1988, but rather from 1989.
This means that some people don’t consider this card to be a true Tom Glavine rookie card, although technically, it is one since it’s the first card released for this player by a card company, in this case, Bowman.
And as you might know, Bowman cards are some of the most popular card brands for baseball cards, so this one is a good card to own even though it comes from a year later.
Now, the image on this card is very similar to some other images we’ve just seen, with the frontal shot of Glavine and the stands in the background.
But considering that this is a Bowman card and it’s so popular, many people will buy this card regardless of that.
1989 Bowman Tiffany Tom Glavine RC #267
The Tiffany version for Bowman follows the well-known script that we’ve already seen with both Score and Topps. It’s essentially a parallel that is of a higher quality than the base card, and also rarer.
If you compare the base card to this one, you’ll be able to see the small but all-important differences between the two. Firstly, the colors are better and more vivid here as with the base card. And also the card stock is much better and more durable, so if you’re looking for a better option, it’s best to stick with this card.
The Bowman Tiffany card is often preferred because of its potential for longevity.
Even though this card is seen as the premium alternative for the base Bowman card, it’s not very expensive and quite easily available out there, too.
