[ZachB26]

Hey Everyone-

I am just returning to the hobby after about 15 years. I am interested in the Bowman products and am not sure which s regarded as the best in terms of fun and potential value (prospects, chance for big hits)

Cost aside which would you buy a case of:
Bowman
Bowman Chrome
Sterling
Draft Picks and Prospects
Platinum

Any input or suggestions would be appreciated! Thanks.

[Blury1]

I seem to have more luck with platinum getting autos

[aktlingit]

It depends on the year as well. Are you talking about 2012 and older products since they are available? Or waiting for 2013 products?

For 2011, I liked Draft Picks and Prospects and did fairly well. No huge hits for me but lots of solid hits. Wasn't as thrilled with Bowman and Bowman Chrome as there was really only one player at the time you were hoping to get (Harper). Sterling was fun to break but the fun is over a lot faster. I didn't buy boxes of Platinum, only some packs here and there so not a good judge on it.

For 2012, I again liked Draft Picks and Prospects and did fairly well. Bowman and Bowman Chrome were strong and I enjoyed the fact there were more players of interest (Harper, Darvish, Cespedes, etc). Sterling was absolutely horrendous to me, I may never buy Sterling again. The cards were very nice looking and I know there's risk but I got zero color, meaning every card I got was the base rendition of it (approximately a $300 box with a $100 return isn't exactly up to snuff to me). Others obviously hit it big but my experience was so bad lol Didn't buy much Platinum this year either.

For 2013, I'm probably going to forgo Sterling and use that money on Platinum. Will still pickup around the same amount of the other products I normally get each year.

[djohn]

I personally go with Bowman Chrome. I actually liked 2011 Bowman Chrome, while Harper was the big chase I pulled a Lawrie auto and got nearly $2k for it. There are also Trout rookies in the base set which also have refractor parallels, so there are plenty of great chase cards in there and not just Harper.

[tate31nym]

Haven't pulled anything amazing but I do enjoy the Platinum and they're easy to trade.

[friedmana27]

platinum and chrome are my favorite on this list

[joba the clark]

I would do anything where you get Bowman Chrome Autographs in it. Meaning Bowman, Bowman Chrome or Bowman Draft. The Bowman and Bowman Draft are available in Jumbo boxes which are more expensive but they are worth it. You pay around $180 for a jumbo box but you get 3 autographs instead of 1 Autograph from the regular boxes as well as shots at Jumbo exclusives like Purple refractor and printing plate autographs. I would stay away from Sterling. I like Platinum but the values of the cards are low compared to Chrome and the boxes are in the same price point. 2012 Bowman Chrome was the first release to offer a shot at more than 1 prospect autograph per box. Every 3rd box is supposed to have a 2nd auto. If you decide on Bowman you need to figure out which autographs you would like to have a shot at and make sure they are in that set. For instance Oscar Taveras autographs are only in 2012 Bowman, they are not in Bowman Chrome and Bowman Draft. You can get checklists online if you google them. But most importantly good luck with whatever you decide to go with!!!!