The Championship Set That Isn’t
Christopher Posa
Why Your 1984 Tigers Cards Aren’t the Team That Won It All
At a recent card show, I was giving away complete Detroit Tigers team sets with every Throwback Binder purchase. It was a great way to connect with fellow collectors—and to geek out a little with fans about the Tigers' past. I mean, it IS the last time we’ve gotten to hoist that championship trophy. Bygones. But I kept getting asked the same question over and over:
“Where’s the 1984 Tigers team sets?”
Well first, I had to explain they were already gone. And, the question makes sense - on the surface. The ’84 Tigers were dominant wire-to-wire, going 35–5 to start the season and ultimately winning the World Series in convincing fashion. It’s one of the most iconic teams in Detroit sports history. But here’s the thing… the 1984 Topps….the Fleer, and the Donruss sets? They don’t actually feature that team.
Wait, what? True story. And it’s surprising how many fans kinda overlook that.
The Year on the Card Isn’t the Year on the Field
It’s one of those quirks in the hobby that trips up a lot of people: the cards produced in the same year a team wins the World Series are based on the previous season. That means when you're flipping through a 1984 Topps set, you're not looking at Sparky Anderson’s World Series winners—you’re looking at the 1983 roster that finished second in the AL East.
The players that actually took the field, popped champagne, and hoisted the Commissioner’s Trophy in 1984? They’re in the 1985 sets.
This is true across most card manufacturers—Topps, Fleer, Donruss, and others typically release their flagship sets early in the calendar year, using stats and team rosters from the previous season.
Why It Matters to Collectors
It may seem like a small detail, but it can really impact how collectors build their binders, especially if you're chasing complete team sets from your favorite title runs.
A casual collector might assume the 1984 Tigers set is the championship team, and that’s reflected in pricing, too—1984 sets not only get more attention but they also get more dollars, even though the championship players are on the 1985 checklist.
That’s part of what inspired this post. After getting asked for the ’84 team set so many times, I realized how widespread this little misconception continues to be—and how fun it is to unravel it, and chat about how the 1984 team sets are actually quite inaccurate.
A Couple Quick Examples: Darrell Evans and Willie Hernandez
If you grab a 1984 Topps Tigers team set, you won’t find Darrell Evans. That’s because in 1983, Evans was still a San Francisco Giant. He didn’t join the Tigers until 1984, and he became a huge part of that championship team.
Another example is Willie Hernandez, the 1984 Cy Young and MVP winner. Hernandez’s 1984 cards show him as a member of the team he played for in 1983: the Philadelphia Phillies!
And, there are plenty more examples but you get the point.
So, to get cards of Darrell and Willie as Tigers for that championship team, you need a 1985 Tigers team set. Of course, you could technically get Evans in a Tigers uniform from the 1984 Topps traded set but we’ll save that for another day.
So What To Do?
Well, that’s up to you. Maybe you want the 1984 Topps set because it feels like the right year. Maybe you prefer the 1985 version because it more accurately represents the championship team. There’s no wrong answer.
Personally, I love tracking down both. I especially love the 1987 Tigers team that clinched the East on the season’s final day, so I have all the 1988 team sets! You know, the ones with the stats that show Alan Trammell SHOULD have won the MVP! Bygones.
And no matter what you choose, storing and showing off your complete team sets is half the fun. That’s why I created Throwback Binders—premium, display-worthy binders designed to honor the cards (and teams) that mean the most to you.
