For as long as I can remember, there has been a vast separation between two groups in the hobby. Those that love to collect sets and base cards and those that collect and chase the hits. Most of the time, the card companies have to create products for both groups, knowing that they both have a certain place within the calendar. Personally, I am definitely partial to the hit collectors myself, as I have very few non-autographed cards in my collection, but I realize some people dont appreciate that as much.

This situation is why I believe Allen and Ginter is such a special product – it seamlessly blends both groups. It has the huge amounts of cards for one part of the hobby to collect, and some extremely high end cards for everyone else.

2013 Allen and Ginter Robinson Cano / Reggie Jackson Dual Bat Knob Booklet 1/1

2013 Allen and Ginter Pele Red Ink Auto /10

2013 Allen and Ginter Manny Machado Red Ink Auto /10

2013 Allen and Ginter Willie Mays Auto Redemption – OVERSIZED

2013 Allen and Ginter Matt Kemp Full Nameplate Cabinet Card 1/1 – I love these.

Obviously the biggest of the high end cards this year will be the Yasiel Puig autographs and other cards, which will be a huge target for many of the collectors who have latched on to his meteoric rise over the last few months. They are redemptions, which is a huge disappointment considering that I had heard there was a good possibility they would be live. However, I also know that from what we saw with Strasburg – a player operating under the EXACT same situation in 2010 – they should eventually be produced.

The non-sport autographs this year are being bolstered by a nice group of signers, including Axl Rose, which Im sure there are a lot of people that HOPE he eventually signs the cards. So far, we have yet to hear anything from Topps on the status, but this one is a redemption that I think many people should be VERY wary of considering his reputation as a flake for appearances and shows.

Im also glad to see the rip-card reserve redemptions are back for a second year, offering a FULL sized game used item as part of the redemption. Although the player selection has to be on the lower tier, its still a really cool idea. Similarly cool are the different odd relics and insert cards that tend to be on the weird side. Nothing weirder than the hair relics, which are back again as well. It continues to get more and more distant from the normal contents of the set each year, and I see that redemptions for bug cards are also going to be a part of this year’s product.

The one card that I have seen, which is puzzling indeed, is the “Select Pick” redemption, which really has no description as to what the redemption is for. Im guessing its something oversized like an arrowhead or something like that. hese have turned out pretty cool in the past, but this is a bit different. Im sure we will hear more as the days go on.

Ginter is as much about the weird as it is about the baseball, which is unsettling for a number of people that believe it stands against the true purpose of baseball cards. I disagree and point to the fact that these types of sets are always fun, especially with the funny and cool ideas that Topps has had over the years.