Preview: 2010-11 O-Pee-Chee Hockey (It's Looking WAY Better Than Last Year)

In the interest of full disclosure: I probably give the O-Pee-Chee name a little more of a pass than it sometimes deserves. Call it my personal form of Canadian patriotism mixed with equal parts nostalgia. That said, after a handful of jumbo packs, I was extremely apathetic towards Upper Deck's 2009-10 O-Pee-Chee Hockey release. The design was pukish, which for a release geared towards set building, was a kiss of death.

But from the early images for 2010-11 O-Pee-Chee Hockey, it looks like Upper Deck has things back on track. The base card design has a fair amount of white space and is probably the most modern since Upper Deck took over the brand. The picture window on the front may end up being too small for some action photos, but the Jarome Iginla shown on the initial promo materials looks very solid - it feels kind of like 2002 Topps Total or 2003 Topps Bazooka Baseball to me. The Marquee Rookies return once again. Although there's no mention of them being short printed, I'd assume they will be as in years past. In all, the base set will have a whopping 600 cards.

As far as inserts go, there's no guarantees with a guaranteed hit in every box. Overall odds have O-Pee-Chee Signatures and O-Pee-Chee Souvenirs each falling at a rate of three per case, or one autograph or memorabilia card in every other box. O-Pee-Chee Souvenirs are quad jersey cards featuring four different players. I like these odds as it emphasizes the set building as the focus of the set, rather than tossing in a bunch of hits for the sake of having them and only driving up the cost.




2010-11 O-Pee-Chee isn't rocking the boat with a lot of changes. Each pack will contain a Retro parallel. One in every four packs will have a Retro Rainbow parallel, while there will be a Black-Bordered Rainbow Retro parallel or two in every hobby box. Boxes also promise one In Action insert and nine additional inserts, although details on these are not yet available.

Packs of 2010-11 O-Pee-Chee Hockey will have six cards with 36 packs in a box. It is scheduled to be released in December, a little before Christmas.

Topps Confirms Strasburg Autograph Numbers for 2010 Topps Tribute Baseball

Topps has confirmed numbers for autographed relics of Stephen Strasburg in 2010 Topps Tribute Baseball. In total, there are 500 cards - 250 signed single relics and 250 signed dual relics (because two pieces of base are better than one). The relic pieces are pieces of a base used in Strasburg's debut with the Nationals.

The breakdown for each version is as follows:
Base - 99
Blue Parallel - 75
Black Parallel - 50
Gold Parallel - 25
Red Parallel – 1

According to Topps, cards will be available within the next three weeks. Collectors will be sent one of the five versions at random.

2010 Topps Tribute Baseball Stephen Strasburg Autographed Relic Redemption

Famous Fabrics Second Edition Offers First Card Featuring LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh (Sort Of)

Less than 24 hours after LeBron James made the emotionless announcement that he was signing with the Miami Heat to join Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, Creative Cardboard Concepts has announced they'll have a triple jersey card of the trio in Famous Fabrics Second Edition.

Famous Fabrics Second Edition Triple Memorabilia LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh

 Because Famous Fabrics is not a licensed set, it does not feature player photos.

Here's a link to the final checklist. The set consists of 5,000 one-pack boxes.

In-Depth Preview: 2010 Allen & Ginter Baseball

A couple of days ago Topps released some images for 2010 Allen and Ginter Baseball via their Twitter stream. Now they've released the initial information for the whole shebang. At first glance, the formula hasn't changed much, but this is a set that has always delivered some quirky surprises and I suspect they'll return.

The base set will once again consist of 350 cards: 260 veterans, 30 rookies, 25 historic figures and 35 champions. The checklist didn't indicate the traditional 50 short prints, but I'd be shocked if they weren't there.

Mini parallels return in eight versions. Beside your basic mini, there's:

• Allen and Ginter Back (1:5 packs)
• Black (1:10)
• No Number (limited to 50 copies)
• Bazooka Back (#'d/25)
• Framed Cloth (#'d/10 - hobby exclusive)
• Wood (#'d/1 - hobby exclusive)
• Printing Plates 

Each 24-pack box promises a total of three hits. These include relic cards, autographs, cut autographs, Rip cards and printing plates.

In the relics department, the addition to the formula are Book Cards. These are those hard-to-display hinged cards. Each card, numbered out of 10, will include two autographs and two jersey swatches. The basic Framed Relics game-used checklist contains 66 cards.

The freaky hair cards return once again with DNA Relics. The checklist is certainly an intriguing one:

• Lugwig Von Beethoven
• Andrew Jackson
• John F. Kennedy
• John Adams
• Alexander Hamilton
• Jacqueline Kennedy
• Charles Dickens
• King Edward VII
• Ronald Reagan
• Abraham Lincoln

How one goes about certifying the hair of Charles Dickens, I don't know.

Coming off the success of the Woolly Mammoth hair card and the various nature cards from Upper Deck's Champs and Goodwin Champions comes Monsters of the Mesozoic relic cards. Dinosaur fossils! These relics will be limited to ten copies each. Topps will also be continuing the Logo Man manufactured patch cards.

The Framed Autograph checklist is big, running 85 cards. Sure there's regulars like Ryan Howard and David Wright, but color me most intrigued about the autograph of "The World's Largest Collection of the World's Smallest Versions of the World's Largest Things" (that's how the card is listed on the checklist). I'm guessing it has something to do with this. Other non-Major League Baseball folks on the autograph checklist include:

• Alan Francis (Horseshoes)
• Anthony Gatto (juggling)
• Avery Jenkins (Frisbee Golf)
• David Blaine (publicity hound/illusionist who stuffs himself in boxes)
• Hans Florine (Climber)
• Hank Presswood (Negro Leagues player)
• Hubertus Wawra (Fire Eater)
• Judson Laipply (some YouTube guy whose video "The Evolution of Dance" has been watched nearly 150,000,000 times)
• Jordin Sparks ("American Idol" champion)
• Jim Zapp (Negro Leagues player)
• Ken Blackburn (paper airplanes)
• Kelly Kulick (bowling)
• Maholn Duckett (Negro Leagues player)
• Mike Parsons (surfing)
• Preston Pittman (Game Calling)
• Ryan Kennelly (Power Lifter)
• Randy Oitker (Archery)
• Ron Teasley (Negro Leagues player)
• Sig Hansen (fisherman, "Deadliest Catch")
• Shawn Johnson (Gymnast, "Dancing With the Stars")
• Summer Sanders (Swimming)
• Tyler Bradt (Kayaker)
• Tiago  Della Vega (World Record for fastest guitarist)
• Tony Hawk (Skateboarding)
• Tom Knapp (Shooting) 

I couldn't find definitive info on Dale Davis, Gary Stewart, Max Poser and Robert Scott. So if anyone wants to enlighten us, please do. Many of the autograph signers also have relic cards as well.

Rip Cards return offering the prospect of some nice goodies should the owner dare to tear. Oops, that was the tagline for Pinnacle Zenith more than a decade ago. Rip Cards will fall one per case and individual outer cards will be numbered to no more than 99 copies. Inside there's the possibility of the following:

• Red Autographs (85 cards, #'d/10)
• Mini Exclusives (50 cards)
• Mini Wood Exclusives (50 cards, #'d/1)
• Allen and Ginter Originals (30 cards)

Each box of Allen and Ginter will also have one box topper from the following:

• N43 (15 cards)
• N43 Relics (10 cards, #'d/25)
• N43 Autographs (10 cards, #'d/15)
• N43 Autograph Relics (5 cards, #'d/5)
• Cabinet (10 cards)
• Cabinet Relic Card (10 cards, #'d/1)

My personal favourite part of Allen and Ginter is the wacky inserts. I just recently finished my 2008 World Leaders set and am now looking at moving onto the National Heroes from last year's set. These inserts have always intrigued me as they're not terribly tough to find, can be found at a decent price and there's often nothing quite like them. Basic inserts fall one per pack.

This Day in History is a 75-card set that pairs a baseball player with a significant event that happened on their birthday. The 15 Baseball Highlight Sketch cards will probably look nice but are something of a yawn compared to the remainder of the inserts. Unless, of course, they're actually original sketches this year and not something copied with a 1/1 label like they were a few years ago. Other sets include Lords of Olympus (25 cards, 1:12), Monsters of the Mesozoic (25 cards, 1:12), World's Greatest Wordsmiths (15 cards, 1:24), National Animals (50 cards, 1:8), Sailors of the Seven Seas (10 cards, 1:24).

Finally, there's 10 Cut Signature cards and the return of the Allen & Ginter Code. It'll be curious to see if it takes more than a day or two to crack it this year.

2010 Allen and Ginter Baseball is schedule for a June 21 release.

In the Game Gets in the Olympic Spirit With a Hockey Set Sold Directly to Collectors

In the Game is offering a hockey set direct to collectors connected to the 2010 Olympic Winter Games. Starting Friday, Vancouver 2010 will be available at the company's online store. Those who are interested in cards from the set will have to submit a request, which will be filled in the order they're received. The print run: 10 of each card. The set is comprised of autographs, game-used jersey, game-used patch and autographed game-used cards.

Here's the checklist:

Autographs

1	Martin Brodeur	Canada	$99.95
2	Roberto Luongo	Canada	$79.95
3	Joe Thornton	Canada	$49.95
4	Dany Heatley	Canada	$49.95
5	Patrick Marleau	Canada	$39.95
6	MA Fleury	Canada	$79.95
7	Ryan Getzlaf	Canada	$39.95
8	Patrice Bergeron	Canada	$39.95
9	Eric Staal	Canada	$49.95
10	Jaromir Jagr	Czech Republic	$89.95
11	Miikka Kiprusoff	Finland	$69.95
12	Niklas Backstrom	Finland	$49.95
13	Teemu Selanne	Finland	$69.95
14	Saku Koivu	Finland	$49.95
15	Semyon Varlamov	Russia	$59.95
16	Evgeni Nabokov	Russia	$49.95
17	Ilya Kovalchuk	Russia	$69.95
18	Sergei Fedorov	Russia	$49.95
19	Marian Gaborik	Slovakia	$69.95
20	Nicklas Lidstrom	Sweden	$69.95
21	Ryan Whitney	USA	$39.95
22	Zach Parise	USA	$39.95
23	Tim Thomas	USA	$39.95
24	Scott Niedermayer	Canada	$49.95
25	Mikko Koivu	Finland	$49.95
26	Vladislav Tretiak	1980 Lake Placid	$69.95
27	Igor Larionov	1984 Sarajevo	$49.95
28	Borje Salming	1992 Albertville	$39.95
29	Mats Naslund	1994 Lillehammer	$49.95
30	Mike Modano	1998 Nagano	$49.95
31	Mario Lemieux	2002 Salt Lake City	$129.95
32	Mats Sundin	2006 Turin	$49.95
33	Joe Sakic	2006 Turin	$69.95

Game-Used Jersey Cards

1	Martin Brodeur	Canada	$59.95
2	Roberto Luongo	Canada	$49.95
3	Joe Thornton	Canada	$39.95
4	Dany Heatley	Canada	$39.95
5	Patrick Marleau	Canada	$39.95
6	MA Fleury	Canada	$49.95
7	Ryan Getzlaf	Canada	$39.95
8	Patrice Bergeron	Canada	$39.95
9	Eric Staal	Canada	$39.95
10	Jaromir Jagr	Czech Republic	$59.95
11	Miikka Kiprusoff	Finland	$39.95
12	Teemu Selanne	Finland	$39.95
13	Saku Koivu	Finland	$39.95
14	Semyon Varlamov	Russia	$39.95
15	Evgeni Nabokov	Russia	$39.95
16	Ilya Kovalchuk	Russia	$49.95
17	Sergei Fedorov	Russia	$39.95
18	Marian Gaborik	Slovakia	$49.95
19	Nicklas Lidstrom	Sweden	$49.95
20	Ryan Whitney	USA	$39.95
21	Zach Parise	USA	$39.95
22	Tim Thomas	USA	$39.95
23	Scott Niedermayer	Canada	$39.95
24	Mikko Koivu	Finland	$39.95
25	Vladislav Tretiak	1980 Lake Placid	$49.95
26	Igor Larionov	1984 Sarajevo	$39.95
27	Borje Salming	1992 Albertville	$39.95
28	Mats Naslund	1994 Lillehammer	$39.95
29	Mike Modano	1998 Nagano	$49.95
30	Mario Lemieux	2002 Salt Lake City	$69.95
31	Mats Sundin	2006 Turin	$39.95
32	Joe Sakic	2006 Turin	$49.95

Game-Used Patch Cards

1	Martin Brodeur	Canada	$89.95
2	Roberto Luongo	Canada	$69.95
3	Joe Thornton	Canada	$59.95
4	Dany Heatley	Canada	$59.95
5	Patrick Marleau	Canada	$49.95
6	MA Fleury	Canada	$79.95
7	Ryan Getzlaf	Canada	$49.95
8	Patrice Bergeron	Canada	$49.95
9	Eric Staal	Canada	$49.95
10	Jaromir Jagr	Czech Republic	$79.95
11	Miikka Kiprusoff	Finland	$49.95
12	Teemu Selanne	Finland	$49.95
13	Saku Koivu	Finland	$49.95
14	Semyon Varlamov	Russia	$49.95
15	Evgeni Nabokov	Russia	$49.95
16	Ilya Kovalchuk	Russia	$69.95
17	Sergei Fedorov	Russia	$49.95
18	Marian Gaborik	Slovakia	$79.95
19	Nicklas Lidstrom	Sweden	$79.95
20	Ryan Whitney	USA	$49.95
21	Zach Parise	USA	$49.95
22	Tim Thomas	USA	$49.95
23	Scott Niedermayer	Canada	$49.95
24	Mikko Koivu	Finland	$49.95
25	Vladislav Tretiak	1980 Lake Placid	$69.95
26	Igor Larionov	1984 Sarajevo	$49.95
27	Borje Salming	1992 Albertville	$49.95
28	Mats Naslund	1994 Lillehammer	$49.95
29	Mike Modano	1998 Nagano	$49.95
30	Mario Lemieux	2002 Salt Lake City	$89.95
31	Mats Sundin	2006 Turin	$49.95
32	Joe Sakic	2006 Turin	$69.95

Autographed Game-Used Jersey Cards

1	Martin Brodeur	Canada	$129.95
2	Roberto Luongo	Canada	$99.95
3	Joe Thornton	Canada	$79.95
4	Dany Heatley	Canada	$79.95
5	Patrick Marleau	Canada	$69.95
6	MA Fleury	Canada	$99.95
7	Ryan Getzlaf	Canada	$79.95
8	Patrice Bergeron	Canada	$69.95
9	Eric Staal	Canada	$79.95
10	Jaromir Jagr	Czech Republic	$109.95
11	Miikka Kiprusoff	Finland	$89.95
12	Teemu Selanne	Finland	$89.95
13	Saku Koivu	Finland	$89.95
14	Semyon Varlamov	Russia	$79.95
15	Evgeni Nabokov	Russia	$69.95
16	Ilya Kovalchuk	Russia	$89.95
17	Sergei Fedorov	Russia	$89.95
18	Marian Gaborik	Slovakia	$99.95
19	Nicklas Lidstrom	Sweden	$99.95
20	Ryan Whitney	USA	$69.95
21	Zach Parise	USA	$69.95
22	Tim Thomas	USA	$69.95
23	Scott Niedermayer	Canada	$79.95
24	Mikko Koivu	Finland	$79.95
25	Vladislav Tretiak	1980 Lake Placid	$99.95
26	Igor Larionov	1984 Sarajevo	$79.95
27	Borje Salming	1992 Albertville	$69.95
28	Mats Naslund	1994 Lillehammer	$69.95
29	Mike Modano	1998 Nagano	$69.95
30	Mario Lemieux	2002 Salt Lake City	$149.95
31	Mats Sundin	2006 Turin	$69.95
32	Joe Sakic	2006 Turin	$99.95

Naked Preview: 2010 SPx Baseball

Why the curious title? Upper Deck's gone and released some info on 2010 SPx Baseball but it's a little bare due to the fact that they've started this new trend of not releasing any images to go with them.

Scheduled for release at the start of May, SPx looks like it does just about every other year since 2001. The base set consists of 100 cards plus 50 SPx Materials, 30 SPx Rookie autographs and SPx Rookie Update autographs. The product announcement also mentions regular SPx Rookie Update cards numbered to 350 but it lists them as inserts. I'm checking with Upper Deck to see if they're base cards or inserts. The Rookie Update cards are meant to "celebrate" Upper Deck missing to put 21 guys like Johan Santana and Michael Young in the set a decade ago. Blowout Cards currently has box pre-sales listed at $100.

Each 18-pack box (packs have four cards) has one autograph and five jersey cards, two of which will be dual- or triple-swatch cards.

Autograph sets include (all withvaried serial numbers):

• SPx Rookie Signatures
• SPx Auto Materials
• SPx Auto Patch Materials
• Winning Materials Auto parallel
• Flashback Fabrics Auto parallel
• 2000 SPx Rookie Update Autographs

Each case will also have two SPx Rookie Signature redemptions that will be announced during the season.

Memorabilia cards include:

• SPx Materials 
• Winning Materials
• Winning Combos
• Flashback Fabrics
• Winning Trios

The following appear at a combined rate of two per case and have varied numbering:

• SPx Patch Materials
• Winning Materials Jersey Patch parallel
• Winning Combos Dual Patch
• Flashback Fabrics Dual Patch

Shadow Box inserts appear for the firt time in baseball, falling at a rate of one per case. There's two different levels: Shadow Box Stars and Shadow Box Chase to 56, which is bound to include some sort of connection to Joe Dimaggio, either by pairing him with a current player or offering something that breaks down his record hits streak.


The cross-brand Exquisite program continues with either a regular card or patch card in every case.

When SPx started as a hologram-based set in 1996 I ate it up. I bought as many one-card packs for $5 as I could afford (which wasn't much). They were thick, shiny and gorgeous. But as SPx aged, it changed into a set that focused on rookies and autographs, most of which were rather suspect for the price. I haven't been a fan of SPx since 2001. And while there's some things that have me intrigued, again, the lack of images is a major buzzkill.

I'd also be a little leary on pre-sales from Upper Deck for the next couple of weeks given this whole Konami lawsuit. If the court decides a major fine is in order and puts them to go bankrupt, then what happens to those who've placed their orders already? A ruling is due by the end of the month, which will hopefully clear things up.

But until we get some pictures, here's a couple of polar bears waltzing.

Preview: 2009 (???) Upper Deck Signature Stars Baseball

From the files of this doesn't make sense, Upper Deck has announced an addition to their 2009 baseball lineup. 2009 Upper Deck Signature Stars is set for release at the end of the month and, like every other upcoming Upper Deck baseball product save for their latest USA boxed set, I'm curious to see what it looks like.

Putting on my Little Orphan Annie Decoder Ring and a tall mug of Ovaltine, I'm going to attempt to decipher the available info.

It's priced at $90 for a 20-pack box. And remember, although the date says it's a 2009 product (that was announced in 2010), don't expect any of those MLB logos. But Upper Deck's got this one figured out by offering a competing USA-heavy product immediately after they're putting out their USA box set. Each box is slated to have a total of four autographed and game-used cards.

The set has 100 base cards, 20 Top Prospects, 65 Base Set High Series Signatures and 25 Rookie Signatures. The base set will also have a Blue Platinum parallel numbered to 170 copies.

A plus that I see is that Upper Deck appears to be adding some value to boxes by creating several different insert sets that are placed at somewhat tough but not ridiculous rates.Basic inserts include Signature Skills (1:25 packs), Signed, Sealed and Delivered (1:25 packs), and Trophy Winners (1:50 packs).

Common autograph and game-used insert sets focus largely on USA Baseball. Along with the previously mentioned High Series Signatures and Rookie Signatures, the following appear four per box:

• USA Star Prospects Game Jersey
• USA Winning Materials (/499)
• USA Flashback Fabrics Dual JerseyImpressions Signatures
• USA Star Prospect Signatures
• USA Prospects- Auto Jersey (/399)
• USA Future Watch Auto Jersey National Team (/799)
• USA Future Watch Auto Jersey 18U Team (/899)
• USA By  The Letter Autographs

There's also several sets that would be considered case hits:

• Gold Signature parallels (1/case)
  
• Team USA Patch Autographs  (combined 1/case)
  USA Star Prospects Patch Auto (/25)
  USA Future Watch Auto Patch National Team (/50)
  USA Future Watch Auto Patch 18U Team (/50)
  
• Autographs (combined 3:4 cases)
  Signature Trios
  Signature Quads
  Signature Portraits
  
• UD Black Pride of a Nation (combined 1:2 cases)
  Veterans
  Rookies
  Rookies (/1)
  
• Team USA Memorabilia (combined 1:2 cases)
  USA Star Prospects Game Patch (/25)
  USA Premier Materials National Team Cap Flags (/4)
  USA Premier Materials 18U Team Cap Flags (/1)
  USA Winning Big Materials (/10)
  USA Flashbacks Fabrics Dual Patch (/25)

Bryce Harper's autograph is scheduled to appear alongside others like Michael Saunders, Chris Tillman, Josh Reddick and Fu-Te-Ni of Taiwan. Buybacks from all the way back from 2008 USA Baseball will also be inserted.

Without images, it's near impossible to get a real feel for this set but the more I look at the inserts and the structure, the more it seems like license-free Upper Deck's version to Bowman. You've got your token veterans in the base set like Bowman but the driving force behind the flashier inserts, that will likely drive sales, is based on the youngsters. Instead of being Minor Leaguers, they're national stars.

Since there's no pictures yet, I give you Bobo the Baseball-Playing Chimp and his handsome striped shirt.

First Details: 2010 Upper Deck Baseball

The mystery of what Upper Deck's going to do without an MLB license is starting to become a little clearer. About a month ago they released preliminary details about how Exquisite inserts would be inserted in all their 2010 baseball releases. Now the breakdown of their flagship set is out, but still no pictures.

The base set will chime in at 600 cards. This is a nice size as long as there's not a lot of subsets. I'm also loving the fact packs come with 20 cards. Sixteen packs make up a box and 12 boxes per case. Each box is set to have one atograph and two game-used cards.

As far as inserts go, there's a little retro appeal with the apparent return of the Baseball Heroes line, this time showcasing Joe DiMaggio. Not surprisingly, there'll be DiMaggio cut signatures as well. 2010 marks the 20th anniversary of the Baseball Heroes line, which brought the first cerrtified autographs to baseball cards. Upper Deck is celebrating the anniversary with one 20th Anniversary art card in every box. There will also be autographed versions.

Even though we laugh a little now at 2008 Upper Deck Documentary, there's a bit of a second swing at it, sort of, in the Season Biography inserts that will fall two per pack. Each day of the season will be given a card. Hopefully the pictures will match the content. Base set gold parallels numbered /99 return once again and once again few will pursue them.

As far as new ideas go, Portraits have me most intrigued. Inserted 1:4 packs, they should be somewhat plentiful. There's also a black and white parallel for the set limited to 99. Here's hoping they're something like the V.J. Lovero portraits from 1996. Other inserts include All World, Pure Heat and throwback-themed 10th Anniversary cards of the 2000 rookie class that never had Upper Deck cards at the turn of the milennium. Expect Johan Santana and others.

The autograph program is highlighted by buyback autographs from the biggest stars 20 years ago. I'm very excited about this and hope it turns out to be like the Topps Fan Favorites sets that mixed big stars with popular characters of the game. Additional autographs will fall under the Signature Sensations banner.

In the continuity department, Gary Sheffield will join Upper Deck's A Piece of History 500 HR Club collection of game-used bat cards. Other game-used cards include basic UD Game Jersey cards and patch parallels limited to 25 copies.

2010 Upper Deck Baseball is scheduled for release the first part of February.

Is This the Worst Sticker Autograph of All Time?

Browsing on eBay, I came across this card from 2005 Playoff Prime Cuts. The card design overall is very attractive. The alternating game-used pieces show that they're just not oversized single relics posing as a dual. It's got an all-time great. And it has an autograph.  What the heck is going on with that autograph?

I've got a few beefs with sticker autographs, but a big one is the fact that often they don't hold the entire signature. This is probably the most extreme example I've seen. It looks as though a good half of Aaron's autograph is gone, a victim to the edges. Add to that a bit of apparent smudging and you've got one immensely disappointing card.

Although I understand Aaron hasn't been of the greatest health in recent years, which would affect his signatures, it doesn't excuse Playoff for letting this one out there. It's called quality control. If something isn't at it's greatest, it should be removed from distribution. I feel bad for the person who pulled the card. It'd be great without the autograph and amazing if the scribble was even half an inch higher. But as it stands, ick!

In-Depth Preview: 2009 Topps T-206 100th Anniversary Edition Baseball

By now you've probably seen some of the preview images for 2009 Topps T-206 100th Anniversary Edition Baseball. The set came out seven years ago in case you didn't. In all seriousness, the century celebration release makes more sense than the 2002 release, at least if you think round-number anniversaries are important. So what's in store for this late-season release and is it worth going after? It's still a little early for me to decide but hopefully this will help you a little.

The base set consists of 300 cards including a mix of veterans, old-timers and young bucks. As you might expect, Topps is bringing along some variations that are also shortprints. This I don't mind too much because you can put together the regular set without too much of a challenge. I'd actually like to see the checklist a little bigger to make building a set a little tougher. For those who enjoy putting together master base sets, a total of 50 variations will provide a chase component. No odds on variants have been released yet, but the subjects have.


Short Print Variations:
1    Ryan Howard
10    Andrew McCutchen
19    Mel Ott
23    Koji Uehara
28    Kenshin Kawakami
36    Jimmie Foxx
41    David Hernandez
44    Michael Bowden
49    Walter Johnson
57    Matt LaPorta
61    Derrek Holland
66    Ty Cobb
71    Dustin Pedroia
72    Rick Porcello
83    Rogers Hornsby
87    Ryan Perry
90    Alex Rodriguez
102    Hanley Ramirez
103    Andrew Bailey
107    Fernando Martinez
113    Tris Speaker
116    Chase Utley
120    Derek Jeter
129    Ichiro
130    Honus Wagner
137    Mark Teixeira
138    Elvis Andrus
142    Evan Longoria
143    Cy Young
154    Mickey Mantle
160    Thurman Munson
171    David Wright
174    Gordon Beckham
175    Manny Ramirez
177    Pee Wee Reese
181    David Price
207    Jackie Robinson
224    Roy Campanella
231    CC Sabathia
234    Grady Sizemore
237    Christy Mathewson
254    Johnny Mize
262    Tommy Hanson
268    Aaron Poreda
271    Lou Gehrig
274    Colby Rasmus
286    Tim Lincecum
287    Babe Ruth
299    Albert Pujols
300    George Sisler

The base set will also include a Bronze parallel set inserted at a rate of one per pack. Isn't the excitement over parallels in this set around the tobacco minis? Is another parallel really necessary? I'd prefer an extra base card myself.

Mini parallels return in all their many-backed glory, paying tribute to the original T-206 set that also had several different variations advertising different types of tobacco products. Mini parallels will come in the following versions:

• Polar Bear
• Old Mill
• Piedmont
• Cycle (#/99)
• Short Prints (limited to the 50 short prints)
• Gold Chrome (50 short prints, #/99)
• Silk (50 short prints, #/50)
  
• Carolina Brights (#/1, hobby exclusive)
  

Autographs and game-used relics fall two per box. Regular autographs will come in two different versions. The first is on the regular-sized card. The mix of vintage design and Topps silver foil stickers really don't have much appeal for me here. The second version sounds a little nicer - T-206 Autographs featuring tobacco-sized autograph cards held inside a classy Piedmont frame. Topps hasn't released images of these yet but due to the smaller size I'm hoping that the autographs are hard-signed like they are with Allen and Ginter.

Autographs
NFA-1 David Wright
NFA-2 Johnny Cueto
NFA-3 Evan Longoria
NFA-4 Gio Gonzalez
NFA-5 Juan Rivera
NFA-6 Ryan Braun
NFA-7 Joba Chamberlain
NFA-8 Dustin Pedroia
NFA-9 Jay Bruce
NFA-10 Jordan Zimmermannn

T-206 Autographs
FMA-1 Gordon Beckham
FMA-2 Koji Uehara
FMA-3 Ryan Perry
FMA-4 Elvis Andrus
FMA-5 Jonathan Van Every
FMA-6 Glen Perkins
FMA-7 Jordan Zimmermann
FMA-8 Daniel Schlereth
FMA-9 Chris Volstad
FMA-10 Ryan Braun
FMA-11 Nick Evans
FMA-12 Fernando Martinez
FMA-13 Shairon Martis
FMA-14 James Parr
FMA-15 Mat Gamel
FMA-16 Michael Bowden
FMA-17 David Hernandez
FMA-18 Chris Young
FMA-19 Denard Span
FMA-20 Phil Hughes
FMA-21 Jason Motte
FMA-22 Clayton Kershaw
FMA-23 Justin Masterson
FMA-24 Vinny Mazzaro
FMA-25 Gregor Blanco

A few solid names standout a little but for the most part, the autograph checklists look quite boring to me. I'd be happy to get a Braun, a Wright or a Longoria but do we really need another Mat Gamel autograph or another Clayton Kershaw?

Perhaps the most intriguing addition to this T-206 incarnation are the hobby-exclusive T-206 Cut Signature Book Cards. They combine both a buyback and a cut signature in those book things that Topps seems to love to push. Not that I'll ever have one, but how would you display these things? Additionally, you could double the hits by offering the same buybacks and the cut signatures separately. With only ten cards, all being one-of-ones, I doubt that they'd be driving sales too much.

Like the T-206 Autographs, Relic Cards come in Piedmont frames. Adding to the chase factor are Polar Bear and Old Mill parallels.

T-206 Relics
FR-1 Alex Rodriguez
FR-2 Ryan Howard
FR-3 David Wright
FR-4 Albert Pujols
FR-5 Evan Longoria
FR-6 Chipper Jones
FR-7 Carlos Beltran
FR-8 Ichiro
FR-9 Hanley Ramirez
FR-10 Carl Crawford
FR-11 David Ortiz
FR-12 Nick Markakis
FR-13 Michael Young
FR-14 Hideki Matsui
FR-15 Ryan Braun
FR-16 Robinson Cano
FR-17 Miguel Tejada
FR-18 Prince Fielder
FR-19 Cole Hamels
FR-20 James Loney
FR-21 Brian McCann
FR-22 Ty Cobb
FR-23 Jimmie Foxx
FR-24 Jackie Robinson
FR-25 Babe Ruth

Although it's been about five years since I've been excited about regualr game-used bat and jersey cards, the checklist here is very good. Sure, Miguel Tejada game-used cards are easier to find than his age on his birth certificate but you've got several legends to make up for it.

Not surprisingly, Topps will be inserting T-206 buybacks. Printing plates will also be included for both the regular-sized cards and the tobacco mini parallels.

Although 2009 Topps T-206 100th Anniversary Baseball is a trip into familiar territory, it's territory that has about as much history in the hobby as any other. I'm personally not totally sold on it overall enough to go after it by more than a single box but I can definitely see this being a fun impulse pack buy. Seeing as how the original set stretched from 1909 to 1911, I wonder if Topps has plans to stretch this release out? And, no, I'm not trying to plant any ideas.

2009 Topps T-206 100th Anniversary Baseball is set for a late-November release. So even with a delay, it should be in stores in time for Christmas lists.

In the Game Pays Tribute to 1972 with 1972 - The Year in Hockey

A few months back, hockey manufacturer In the Game offered collector's a unique opportunity to pick a future set. An online vote was conducted where participants selected the year they thought was most important for hockey history. The winning year was 1972, synonymous with Canadians for the dramatic Summit Series victory versus the USSR. While the USA and USSR were embroiled in the Cold War over Nuclear weapons and such at the time, for Canadians the real cold war was played on the ice with pucks and sticks replacing bombs and tanks.

Today ITG offered a first look at 1972 - The Year in Hockey, which will combined old school set building with plenty of hard-signed autographs.

1972 also marked the first year in which the rival WHA set up shop and began play. It was a new era of expansion and global recognition for the sport.1972 - The Year in Hockey will consist of a 200-card base set featuring players from the NHL, WHA and international play.

Autographs will all be done on-card and the checklist is extensive. ITG plans to have around 150 signers for the set and judging by the preview you can expect two find a mix of superstars as well as lesser-known fan favorites. ITG also promised some signers from the USSR team, which one would expect to be relatively tough to find. Autographs will be inserted at a rate of 1:7 packs (two or three per box).

ITG also plans for several game-used inserts: Game-Used Number, Forever Linked, Scoring Leaders, Trophy Winners, First All Star Team, Second All Star Team and Quest For The Cup.

My New Pet Rock

Over the years of collecting Montreal Expos, I've always enjoyed getting autographs. I've scaled back somewhat since the team moved to Washington and no longer actively go after autographs of guys I've already got. That being said I made an exception a few weeks back when I snagged this:

 

I know I've already got a couple of Tim Raines autographs but this one caught my attention. Sure it has a white swatch and it's numbered out of 30, but what I'm digging is the addition of his nickname "Rock." It's a simple thing that makes this card much more unique than a lot of the other generic signatures I've got.

Raines was a beast on the base paths 25 years ago. I'm convinced that if Rickey Henderson wasn't a bigger beast, we'd see Rock in Cooperstown eventually. But like his former teammate Andre Dawson, I don't think there's going to be an Expo in the Hall of Fame to join Gary Carter anytime soon.

A Swift Kick in the Nuts: 2008 Upper Deck Sweet Spot Baseball

For men, there's few feelings worse than a kick to the crotch. In fact, I can't think of anything right now. I'm just having flashbacks to the time when I was taking a break playing from a round of tennis sitting on a ledge and watching my friend practice serving. And with one swift swing of his racquet I watched the ball quickly land right at the top of the tee with just the right amount of top spin. From there the world went into slow motion. When it regained speed again I was on the ground, curled up in a ball with tears dripping down both my cheeks and a sharp pain in my stomach.

So let's see how much of a kick in the nuts my spontaneous pack of 2008 Sweet Spot Baseball was.

Price: $24.99 (Cdn.) for eight cards (so, a little over $3.00 per card).

 

  

  

 

The verdict:

This is why I don't buy the fancy packs. Sure, the players on the base cards are all pretty good (actually, I'm really digging seeing Jason Bay on the Red Sox) but the promised "hit" is a plain gray Markakis jersey.

Also the base design mixes the full bleed photography of 2008 Upper Deck Baseball with the embossed stiching of Upper Deck's old Ovation sets and finishes it off with the gold medallion from the 1995 Ultra Baseball parallels. Mashed potatoes, cherry pie and chocolate covered almonds all taste great but you don't go mixing them together. The same theory should apply here as well.

It's been probably a decade since I bought anything "high end" like this - if $25 is nowadays - and it'll be another decade at least most likely before I splurch again. I would have much rather had five packs of Goudey and had a small stack to put toward my set. Oh, well. Sometimes a kick in the nuts is nothing but your own fault.