By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor

This year’s National Sports Collectors Convention is little more than a month away and the latest teaser of show-exclusive cards has arrived.

It’s from Topps and it’s the company’s VIP set, an offering of cards modeled in the famed 1952 design but with a twist.

It’s showing some legendary names in earlier uniforms than most of us remember seeing before on cardboard — Mickey Mantle with the Class C Joplin Miners for example.

Each VIP will receive a four-card pack of the cards but there are at least five cards made this year. While there are two Mantle cards, there also are Jackie Robinson, Babe Ruth and Willie Mays cards to be found, too, each with early career uniforms and teams shown.

The NSCC is set for Aug. 1-5 in Baltimore — look for more details in the next issue of Beckett Sports Card Monthly arriving soon.

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.