Join Beckett Baseball’s Chris Olds and Brian Fleischer as they rip into a pair of 2011 Topps Allen & Ginter boxes in this latest episode of Box Busters.

What will they find inside? Well, one box over-delivers … but you’ll have to watch to find out how.

Join Beckett Baseball’s Chris Olds as he rips into a pair of 2011 Topps Allen & Ginter blaster boxes in this latest episode of Ripping Retail.

What’d he find? Watch and find out …

Beckett Baseball’s Chris Olds was at Nick’s Sports Cards where he witnessed a collector rip open two boxes of 2011 Topps Allen & Ginter baseball.

What did he find? Watch and find out …

By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor | Commentary

First, there were cut autographs of former U.S. Presidents, but now in 2011 Topps Allen & Ginter there’s another first.

Well, sort of. Here’s what Topps had to say Wednesday about its 200 George W. Bush autographs in Ginter:

“Our 2011 Allen & Ginter product will continue Topps’ historic tradition of chronicling heroes both on and off the playing field,” said Topps VP, Mark Sapir.  “We’re thrilled to announce that this year’s set will include limited edition autographs of our country’s 43rd President, George W. Bush – marking the first time ever that a living President has made their autographs available in a trading card product.”

The first time ever that a living president has signed for a card product.

Well, maybe a baseball product, but a few collectors (and others) were quick to point out that two other presidents had signed for card companies in the past — George H.W. Bush and Gerald Ford.

Bush — and his wife, Barbara — both signed for Donruss‘ 2008 Americana II (above). Meanwhile, Ford signed for a University of Michigan football set, Michigan TK Legacy, which was released in the 2000s (below).

First card signed for Topps? Yep, and that’s what our story said (but not the quote).

First card signed by a living president for a card company’s product? Nope.

The unfortunate part of the wave of national mainstream media attention that will undoubtedly help sell some cards?

Most outlets took their word for it.

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor | Commentary

If you’ve seen some of the Relics being found by collectors in 2011 Allen & Ginter from Topps, you might have been surprised.

By what?

Plaid swatches. Plaid on manager Joe Maddon. Plaid on first baseman Carlos Pena. Plaid on outfielder B.J. Upton.

These Relics come from the Rays’ BRaysers from late last season, which the team wore on road trips as a way of showing their team unity. The team also wore caps with plaid bills last season and apparently the gimmick caught on elsewhere as the team played well after instituting the formal-wear.

While many of Topps’ past gimmick cards have been New York-centric, it’s good to see a nod to some of the unusual nuances found elsewhere in baseball and to see colorful Relic cards with ties to the game instead of plain white swatches.

Who knows? Maybe all those fans who wanted plaid last fall will want to start collecting baseball cards, too.

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor

While this year’s Allen & Ginter baseball card set from Topps isn’t set to hit until Wednesday, that hasn’t stopped the cards from already appearing on eBay as of Saturday morning.

While no “big” cards have yet been found (the only top autograph card is a redemption), here’s a selection of cards that will give you a better idea of what’s in store …

We’ll have more on this one when it arrives.

See images after the jump.

(Click on the image for a full view of the card.)

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

By Chris Olds | Baseball Editor

This year’s Allen & Ginter baseball card set from Topps doesn’t arrive for about two more months, but we’ve got a new tease of what you’ll find inside the packs thanks to sports artist Dave Hobrecht.

As you might have seen in The Art Issue of Beckett Sports Card Monthly, which is in stores now, he has produced 25 pieces for the Baseball Highlight Sketches set found in the product. While there were four exclusive card previews in that issue, here are a few more — this time featuring Roy Halladay, Stephen Strasburg, Matt Garza, Trevor Hoffman and Ubaldo Jimenez. They’re not the final cards, just the final artwork that will be featured in the product.

See them all after the jump.

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an e-mail to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.