First look: Will you go buggy for 2009 Goodwin Champions baseball cards?
Upper Deck released the basic product breakdown and preview images for its upcoming Goodwin Champions baseball set, a new release that delivers much of the oldschool aesthetic that many collectors crave, along with some interestingly odd inclusions that touch on other collecting fields.
The set, scheduled to arrive in September, will include current and retired baseball stars alongside stars from other sports such as horse racing, surfing and martial arts among others.
The product will include advanced DNA memorabilia cards — entomology cards (see the butterfly card above), Landmarks cards and Thoroughbred Hair Cut cards that include hair from well-known horses such as Smarty Jones, Afleet Alex and Funny Cide — one in every 12-box case. (Not sure how the bug-phobic might react to finding them in their packs, but we’ll examine that when we get there.) The Landmarks cards will include elements from notable locations — coal from the Titanic wreck and salt from the Dead Sea among others.
Every 20-pack box will include two memorabilia cards and one autographed card as well as a selection of standard cards from the basic set, which is comprised of 150 regular cards, 40 short-printed cards, 20 super short-prints and 42 high series mini SPs.
According to Upper Deck, there is one one mini card per pack (some have rarer foil versions), while three out of every four packs will have an additional insert or short print card inside. Also available will be original 1888 Goodwin Champions buyback cards — including Hall of Famers Cap Anson and King Kelly.
Other inserts include Printing Plates, mini or foil mini cards (along with Black Bordered Gypsy Queen Backs, Mini Foil Black Bordered Magician Back, limited to only eight cards) as well as Citizens of the Day and Citizens of the Century cards.
Chris Olds has collected sports cards and memorabilia since 1987. Before coming to Beckett Media, he wrote about the hobby for the Orlando Sentinel on his blog, SportsStuff, and for the San Antonio Express-News and The Tuscaloosa (Ala.) News. Do you have a comment, question or idea? Send e-mail to him at colds@beckett.com.
