Up until this point, all of Yasiel Puig’s licensed cards have either been extremely tough to come by, or have been unavailable. 2013 Bowman Inception is the first opportunity for collectors to have a shot at a Puig licensed auto, and though they are redemptions, there are a lot of interested parties that want to see how they will sell.
Here are the first few up – including a 1/1
2013 Bowman Inception Yasiel Puig Base Auto
2013 Bowman Inception Yasiel Puig Green Auto /25
2013 Bowman Inception Yasiel Puig Blue Auto /75
2013 Bowman Inception Yasiel Puig Printing Plate 1/1
Although this isnt the first time a prospect has come on extremely hot, and it wont be the last. However with the Topps MLB exclusive in place, its rare that someone of this talent slips through their grasp the way Puig has since his signing a couple of years ago. It seems as though everyone has a Bowman Chrome RC or RC auto at some point in their career, but Puig is an exception to the rule with only 2 other cards.
This has led to Bowman Inception being more coveted than one could ever imagine, but also because the cards look as good as they do. Not only will they feature Puig in a Dodgers’ uniform from what we have been told, but the cards will be hard signed. Although the Bowman Lucky Redemptions have yet to be fulfilled, they should be on card as well. What is yet to be seen is how the cards will be designed, as it isnt clear if they will be like the rest of 2013 Bowman, or some sort of throwback. Either way, they have been selling like crazy, and once they go live, its likely they will increase in value if Puig stays on this streak.
Here is the thing.
Topps has had MAJOR problems with redemptions lately. Actually, Major is an understatement. This is approaching Upper Deck in 2006 level problems. Not only are the redemptions a huge issue, but the customer service is a bigger issue. Although I would guess these redemptions are priority number one, no one can be 100% sure that they will be completed. All that being said, I also believe that people have a legitimate gripe with putting down over a grand on a card that isnt live yet.
Once these start to show up, and everyone starts to see what they look like and how nice they are, Puig might actually be through his hot streak, which is a huge problem.
Either way, people will want these cards and they WILL be nice.