02.28
By Chris Olds | Editor
It’s back, and it looks to be packing more punch than ever.
Well, at least with an autograph card of boxer Manny Pacquiao.
Topps unveiled on Monday evening the first look at 2011 Allen & Ginter, the sixth installment of the popular baseball card series with the retro tobacco card design and the world’s greatest athletes in several sports.
Set to arrive in mid-July, Ginter will include what Topps is touting as the “most-exciting and wide-ranging autograph list in its history.” Each 24-pack hobby box will include three hits — a selection of framed mini autographs, Relics and more that has been found in recent years. The base set will consist of 350 cards (six cards per pack) with 270 veterans, 30 rookies, 15 historic fugures and 35 world’s champions — the staple of the “other sport” inclusions since 2006.
A new line of inserts will be included, featuring such things as “Animals in Peril,” Uninvited Guests” and “Flora of the World” along with diecut cabinet cards that form a map of the United States.
Also back will be the Ginter Code.
But, as with its debut set in 2006, the real power of Ginter comes via its autograph checklist. Among this year’s inclusions?
Former Notre Dame football coach Lou Holtz.
“Raging Bull” boxer Jake LaMotta.
Tennis mouthpiece John McEnroe.
LPGA great Annika Sorenstam.
That’s just for starters.
See more — including images — after the jump.
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02.28
We’re a little behind awarding our three end-of-2010 SuperCollector prizes, but here goes with No. 1 …
We’ve awarded our specially slabbed Kobe Bryant 2009-10 Court Kings autograph — No. 8/24 — to Michael Larsen.
What made his collection — which got a little bit of real estate in Beckett Sports Card Monthly No. 312 (The Autograph Issue) — so special?
He’s a Peja Stojakovic collector who owns more than 100 Peja cards that are 1/1, along with more than 300 autographed cards as well. Want something even more interesting?
“Although I don’t chase them,” he notes, “I have 47 cards that are serially numbered to his jersey number (16/XXX).”
We’ll have our picks for our hockey and football winners very soon.
I have the ultimate Peja Stojakovic collection. I currently have close to 300 autographed cards and too many jerseys, serially numbered, inserts, parallels, and base cards to count. Although I don’t chase them, I have 47 cards that are serially numbered to his jersey number (16/XXX).
I have 102 one of ones, including 57 printing plates and 45 non-printing plate one of ones. 11 of the printing plates are autographed. I have the complete set of 4 printing plates (black, cyan, magenta, and yellow) for 2 cards. I have 3 logoman NBA logo one of ones and 8 Etched in Time one of ones from 04-05 Upper Deck Hardcourt. I also own 6 of the 10 Lettermen cards from 03-04 Flair Final Edition, 2 of the 3 Tag Men cards from 05-06 SP Game Used, and all 3 of the Tag Men cards from 06-07 SP Game Used.
In addition to cards, I have several autographed pictures and 4 full sized autographed jerseys. I have met Peja a couple of times at local signings while he was with the Kings.
I have attached a couple pictures of my favorite cards, but I have most of the more valuable part of the collection scanned at the following address:
http://s98.photobucket.com/albums/l264/miglla/Peja%20Collection%20NFT/
Thought I would finally officially share my collection with the rest of the hobby.
Thanks,
Michael Larsen
02.28
By Susan Lulgjuraj | Contributing Editor
Minor League baseball players are back on eTopps cards this week. Topps kicks off the series off with two of the most talked about prospects in the game.
The week’s allocation include Los Angeles Angels farmhand Mike Trout and Minnesota Twins infield prospect Miguel Sano.
Trout’s cards are limited to 799 copies are are $5.50 each. Sano’s cards are limited to 740 and run $3.50.
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02.28
By Chris Olds | Editor
TRISTAR unveiled its latest baseball card release, 2011 Pursuit, recently and it appears that the format for last year’s boxed set release is back for another season.
Set to arrive on April 15, Pursuit will include a 75-card base set made up of promising prospects along with 18 additional bonus cards per box. Six of those will be autograph cards limited to 111 or fewer copies. Five of those will be parallel cards limited to 99 or less, five of those will be short-printed cards and two will be 2011 Obak preview cards.
The product is not licensed by any league or governing sports entity, so the photographs will be airbrushed or be high school uniforms, depending on the player’s level. There will be 92 total cards in the set (Nos. 76-92 being SPs) with some of the notable prospects to be found inside including: Mike Trout, Jameson Taillon, Manny Machado, Christian Colon, Dustin Ackley, Wil Myers, Brandon Belt and Jonathan Singleton to name a few.
The Obak preview set is highlighted by Whitey Ford, Taillon, Rich “Goose” Gossage, Cap Anson, Bobby Thomson and Billy “White Shoes” Johnson.The Obak autograph cards will all be signed on-card.
While there will be plenty of autograph cards to be found (again, six per set), the real highlight here are the five-autograph cards that feature exactly what you might think — five autographs on the front of each card. A few of the groupings? How about a “catching stars” card with Johnny Bench, Frank Cervelli, Buster Posey, Carlos Santana and Matt Wieters? Or how about an “outfield futures” card with John Mayberry, Jay Bruce, Jason Heyward, Austin Jackson and Desmond Jennings? In all, there are 10 five-auto cards to be found.
As with past TRISTAR products, the print run will be limited. There are only 75 serial-numbered cases of the product to be found.
See more images from the set after the jump.
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02.27
By Chris Olds | Editor
Edwin “Duke” Snider, a Hall of Famer who was once one of the kings of New York when it came to talkin’ baseball in the 1950s, died on Sunday. He was 84.
Snider hit 407 home runs during his 18-year big-league career with the Dodgers, Mets and Giants. He played 16 seasons for the Dodgers, making his debut for Brooklyn in 1947. He powered the Dodgers to their only World Series crown in Brooklyn in 1955 — a year in which he hit 42 home runs and drove in a league-leading 136 RBIs — before making the move to Los Angeles where he helped win another Series in 1959.
Snider, an eight-time All-Star, was elected into the Hall of Fame in 1980, the year after Willie Mays and six years after Mickey Mantle. “Willie, Mickey and The Duke” each patrolled center field in New York during the 1950s. Though Snider wasn’t a first-ballot Hall of Famer, he did hit 40 or more home runs five consecutive seasons and led all major-leaguers in home runs and RBIs during the 1950s. He finished his career playing a season apiece in New York and San Francisco, ending with a .295 average, 2,116 hits and 1,333 RBIs.
On cardboard, “The Silver Fox” made his debut in the 1949 Bowman set. His lone Rookie Card is one that can fetch as much as $1,000. In all, he appears on just 2,755 cards with a total value of $62,397.66 — an average value of $22.65 per card of those priced in the Beckett.com database. Snider appears on just 999 different certified autograph cards and 1,135 memorabilia cards.
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02.25
Join Beckett Basketball’s Chris Olds and Rob Springs as they rip into a pair of 2010-11 Playoff Contenders Patches Basketball from Panini America in this latest edition of Box Busters.
What will they find inside? Watch and find out.
02.24
By Chris Olds | Editor
Topps Attax is returning to the baseball diamond once again in 2011 but this time, Topps says the trading card game will be a little different.
There will be more cards in every pack, a new game format, a new design, new packaging, a “new marketing plan” and, in short, it’s “a whole new ballgame,” according to the company.
Attax will arrive in April with $7.99 starter kits that will consist of a 29-card deck, two foil cards and one ToppsTown card. Attax also will be found in “hanger packs” — jumbo/rack packs for the typical card collectors. Each of those contains 24 batter cards, three pitchers cards and a Mascot card. In addition, each will include a Stadium card, a foil batter card, a ToppsTown and a rules sheet and playmat. There also will be 24-pack standard pack boxes as well.
Really, though, it appears that the rules and game-play are the biggest changes — there’s now a specific baseball-focused format for the game rather than a blanket format similar to Attax in other sports.
To see more of the cards, click below.
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02.23
By Susan Lulgjuraj | Contributing Editor
By now, most collectors know it’s the 60th anniversary for Topps baseball trading cards. Now, the rest of the country will find out.
Topps kicks off a media blitz this week when legendary baseball player Hank Aaron appears on The Late Show with David Letterman tonight. He gives Letterman a one-of-a-kind David Letterman card with a diamond embossed on to the card. These are the types of cards collectors can get in the Diamond Giveaway dig game.
Several media outlets will have stories on the 60th anniversary and Aaron’s appearance including USA Today, New York Post and New York Daily News. Former Chicago White Sox slugger Frank Thomas will join Aaron this week as Topps spokesmen to promote the diamond anniversary.
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