Tag Archives: Topps

Topps Archives Bringing Will Ferrell Autographs to Collectors

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Last year, Archives gained national attention with cards from the Major League cult classic film being added to the product. There were autographs, base cards, and a lot of fun, as many people wanted to complete the set to reclaim nostalgic feelings from their youth. The Charlie Sheen cards were the gems of the collection, as he was deeply ingrained in the national consciousness after a loud exit from his TV show.

Here are the Major League cards:

2014 Topps Archives Charlie Sheen Major League Auto 7/10 Parallel

2014 Topps Archives Tom Berenger Major League Auto

2014 Topps Archives Corbin Bernsen Major League Auto

2014 Topps Archives Chelcie Ross Major League Auto

This year, Archives is looking to take advantage of another situation, this time with Will Ferrell’s Spring Training escapade. Personally, I am more excited about Ferrell’s cards in Archives this year than I was about Major League in last year’s product. Obviously my sophomoric sense of humor plays very much into his comedic wheelhouse, with Talladega Nights and Anchorman being some of my favorite movies to watch on repeat.

From what Topps has said, there will be 10 autograph cards from each of the teams he played for during that day in spring training, and based on collector reaction, there are quite a few people who will be lining up to get one as soon as the product is released. Hell, I might be one of them.

If something like this will be happening in Archives each time the set comes out, Im on board. Celebrity content like this tends to bring people out of the woodwork, including National Focus if the card(s) are topical enough. Back when DLP was still making baseball, their "fans of the game" set was a huge draw for people who wanted to collect cards of their favorite celebrity baseball fans. If you remember back to 2009, Upper Deck actually had Kim Kardashian sign for a set named UD Icons during her relationship with Saints RB Reggie Bush. Much like Sheen, it got a lot of attention. This is right up that alley.

Bottom line, is that this is a really cool idea, and I am very interested to see how it plays out.

SCU Go Live Report: 2015 Bowman Baseball

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As mentioned previously, this is easily one of the biggest baseball releases of the year. Its always a fun mix of the first big prospect cards and autographs, and a bunch of other rookie themed cards, and it drives people to rip packs like no other. Bowman continues to be one of the more polarizing themed brands in the hobby, only because of how people feel about prospects and their place in sets. That doesnt stop people from diving very deep on this product every single year.

Check out some of the bigger hits so far:

2015 Bowman Chrome Yasmany Tomas Auto RC

2015 Bowman Chrome Rusney Castillo Green Refractor Auto

2015 Bowman Chrome Nick Gordon Purple Refractor Auto /250

2015 Bowman Chrome Joc Pederson Refractor Auto /499

2015 Bowman Chrome Kris Bryant Purple Refractor

2015 Bowman Chrome Alex Jackson / DJ Peterson Dual Auto /99

Although many find it tough to invest in a player who has yet to take a swing or throw a pitch in the bigs, it is always responsible for the biggest chase cards of the year. In fact, its not even close. The aura of the rare refractor has even permeated to other brands, other sports, even other companies. People love them some Bowman, and the Chrome makes it king.

This year's draft class has its share of bigger names, but there isnt a rookie that has national attention like we have had in the past. Sure, guys like Bryant, Pederson and others still have a huge draw, but this isnt their first rodeo. For Bryant, its his third, making these cards desirable, but not as desirable as last year. Others like Yasmany Tomas and company are looking to pick up the slack.

As for the look of the product, there is a very 2014 Finest vibe to the cards, with more of a retro looking border than the typical white frame. Although I wasnt a fan of Finest’s look, this toned down version is much better. Adding in cards like retro rookie flashback cards with hard signed autos are easily some of the cooler cards I have seen in a prospect product in a while. No joke there.

Bowman has a rep, and that rep is one that really speaks to its place among the kings of cardboard. You cannot argue that the set has one of the largest followings in Sports Cards, and its longevity is a testament to that fact. This year, Topps is going a bit outside their normal confines, and Im okay with that. It works, and works well. Im not a breaker, so I cant speak to box value, but the cards are definitely worth taking at least one shot.

2015 Bowman Release: Prospecting’s Biggest Day of the Year

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Coming Wednesday, one of the bigger releases of the year will hit shelves, maybe only below Topps Series one and a handful of other products. For prospectors, the day has arrived to start their 2015 stash, including some big names and a few under the radar guys who could turn into impact players in the bigs.

People love Bowman because its the first crack at the top rookies, many of whom are still years away from their big league debut. Its also a big chase for the top hits, as many of the most valuable baseball cards of the last 10 years have come from this or similar products over the year:

2008 Bowman Chrome Mike Trout Auto BGS 9.5

2010 Bowman Chrome Bryce Harper USA Buyback Auto BGS 9.5

2014 Bowman Chrome Jose Abreu Superfractor Auto 1/1

2013 Bowman Chrome Kris Bryant Orange Refractor Auto /25

2001 Bowman Chrome Albert Pujols Auto RC

Prospecting doesnt come without its baggage, though, as there is a large group of collectors that dont like that a player will have cards in circulation so early in their career. For those of us that grew up collecting through the 1990s, the rookie cards from Topps were always ones to chase once the players hit the show. By the time they hit the bigs now, they have already had TONS of cards, making the regular rookies less important.

Personally, im not invested one way or the other, but I love the buzz that usually comes with each Bowman’s release. Its just a fun time of year, even though I have never considered myself a prospector. When each big name comes to Bowman, it can create some major attention, including national storylines, especially for the giant sales of the rare hits in the product.

In terms of the design this year, I really like the full bleed type of approach that is being used for the autographs and the main design. There is a large area for the player and other elements to take center stage, something that has always been a big benefit to the product. Of course, it could be pieces of colored paper instead of colored refractors and the set would still sell. That’s the iconic stature this set has in the Hobby.

Love it or hate it, you have to respect its place among the top sets, even if you are just planning to sit back and watch what happens. More to come as the week progresses.

On the Radar: 2015 Topps Dynasty Baseball

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Last year, Topps put a lot of eggs in the high end basket with the first edition of Dynasty baseball. It was a huge risk due to the enormous price tag on the boxes, which only contained one card. However, once people actually saw the ridiculous cards that were coming out of the product with high frequency, the cards caught a bit of hobby fire.

Here are some of the cards which made last year’s product so incredible:

2014 Topps Dynasty Yasiel Puig Jumbo Dirty Patch Auto

2014 Topps Dynasty Clayton Kershaw Jumbo Patch Auto

2014 Topps Dynasty Hank Aaron Dual Relic Auto

2014 Topps Dynasty Mike Trout Jumbo Patch Auto

2014 Topps Dynasty Mariano Rivera Jumbo Patch Auto

2014 Topps Dynasty Miguel Cabrera Jumbo Patch Auto

Topps previewed the first image from this year’s 2nd edition of the product, which looks to be formatted in a similar to what we saw last year. I would guess that the upcoming port to football may use a similar format for that release as well. 2014 Dynasty was mostly about high end autograph subjects with some pretty incredible patches, which looks to be part of the meat of this product again. We are still waiting on more of an extensive preview to see if a bit more variety is added to the set.

Capture

Dynasty was easily one of my favorite baseball sets of the year last year, despite the simplicity of the product configuration. Each card was more beautiful than the next, and the on card autos with crazy patches finally created a format that brought ultra high end into a compatible medium for baseball. It has been a long time since someone has found a way to really produce a product in this tier that has served well for a long period of time.

If Topps wants to continue the success and keep the product fresh for 2015, they will definitely need to make some changes, outside of just adding or subtracting players from the checklist. As a few of us were discussing on twitter, chase elements like knobs, barrels and logomen could inspire a lot of different people to jump on board, and adding more top tier guys could also do a lot of good. That being said, a concise checklist is still the flavor du jour with a product like this, as diluted subjects detracts from the box break.

With Kris Bryant TEARING it up in the hobby, it should come as no surprise that Topps wants to capitalize on his hotness, especially for a set like this. Hopefully other fun additions will be coming too, as other young players have also had quite the hot start to the season. I will definitely check out some singles of the guys I collect, and I cannot wait to see the rest of the preview.

UPDATE – MORE IMAGES ADDED:

Diving Deeper into 2014 Topps Five Star

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Lost a midst the drama surrounding missing cards from National Treasures, is one of the strongest high end sets I have seen in a long time. 2014 Five Star has some amazing looking cards, and from what I have seen in person and online, the product is delivering case by case unlike many of the other high end sets that are out there.

Here are some of my favorites from the set:

2014 Topps Five Star Tom Brady Auto SP

2014 Topps Five Star Russell Wilson Silver Signature Auto

2014 Topps Five Star Peyton Manning Auto SP

2014 Topps Five Star Andrew Luck Silver Signatures Auto

Not only does it have a great and concise checklist, but it also has a very sleek design that works extremely well. Although much of the relic content has been removed from the set, it does have a lot of different things that make it up for it. Considering all rookie relics arent game used anyways, its not that big of a deal to an autograph collector like me.

The Good

Five Star has been the penultimate autograph product since Upper Deck lost its license in 2010. It has always focused on the parts of the product that cater to autograph collectors, and as a result, I have loved each and every version of the set. This year’s design is perfect for the football version of the product, as every card almost presents the player as a work of sports art.

Adding in that Topps has done away with the base, and made sure every card in the product is autographed (with few notable exceptions), takes away a lot of the needless bulk. Where NT is pumping up the cards per box with 2 dollar shitty jersey cards, Five Star is focusing on what collectors should want – on card autographs from all the top players in the game.

The checklist definitely reflects this, as Five Star is less about the scrub rookies, and more about the top tier guys and non-RCs that player collectors chase until they are blue in the face. Unlike Treasures and Exquisite, all the big rookies are live, as are on card autographs from elite subjects like Brady, Russell Wilson, Luck, Favre, and Emmitt Smith. The only big name redemptions I have seen are Marshawn Lynch and Aaron Rodgers, who will both likely not be too tough to nail down.

My favorite cards in the product are the gold and silver autographs, which have improved significantly in their pen strength since Baseball rolled out similar cards. Where silver and gold autographs usually fail, Five Star succeeds more than ever before. Although some are still misses, there are a lot of really bold autographs.

Booklet cards this year have become exceedingly rare, but when they pop out of a box, they look nothing less than stunning. I dont see a bloated rookie premiere checklist on these either, as the majority of the booklets in the product are top tier guys.

Lastly, with relic content reduced, the jumbo patch autograph cards are that much more of a chase. The design is a transfer from Baseball, and I am glad they stuck with it. The horizontal 1×2 inch swatch always looks good, and provides a lot of room to sign and a lot of room for design elements.

The Bad

I think that some of the major issues that plague this product havent changed year over year. This product is targeted more at people who collect great looking autographs, instead of the people who just want ridiculous patches, regardless of the visual appeal of those patches.

The industry’s focus on relics, even ones that are not game used, is so frustrating to me that I cant put it into words for everyone to digest. I am glad that Topps focused on improving the checklist, getting top signers on card, and forgetting about all those other things that Panini still worries about. However, I also understand that this choice makes it so that many collectors wont assign the same value to the rookie cards or non rookie autographs. Bonkers to me.

All year long people complain about stickers. So much so that every sticker based product gets its own thread on all the top message boards. Its the first thing people complain about with each new set that is solicited. “UGH STICKERS AGAIN. I HAS A SAD.” Then, when a product comes out that is hard signed, its either 1500 a box in Flawless, or a much more affordable box in Five Star. Yet, for some stupid reason, Five Star never gets to be the bride. Always the bridesmaid to Treasures, which people love because of the stupid oversaturation of event used patches.

I feel like the hobby is going in the wrong direction here, and that Five Star deserves so much more credit on the secondary market than it gets. We undervalue what it brings year after year, and even after Panini’s product doesnt deliver as promised, Five Star remains lower than I think it should be.

My one major complaint remains the lack of inscription cards, as they were my favorite cards of the year. I have already moved on to start collecting some of the other cards that have stepped up to replace the big hits, but the absence still stings.

The Ugly

This is Five Star’s second to last year in its current format. That alone is ugly enough to make me cringe. To think that come 2016, stellar sets like this will be gone is so devastating, it causes me to consider my continued place in the hobby.

Panini does a terrible job in just about every way, shape, and form. From design, to configuration, to price, all the way up to the fiasco with Flawless Jerseys and NT missing cards. They are a terrible card company, and I am sad that they will force Five Star off the map. Instead we will be left with sticker riddled National Treasures products that never deliver as promised.

Hopefully Topps will find a way to continue producing football cards, as I am not ready to say goodbye to their presence in the sport. Sets like this are just too infrequent to let go without a fight.