2016 Topps Finest Baseball brings the noise, just like it always has

By Ryan Cracknell | Hobby Editor

For 24 straight years, Finest has been pushing the limits of loud. The brand is kind of like the house music of the hobby. It’s not for everyone, but its thumping feel brings comfort and appeal to those who like it more pulsating than traditional. 2016 Topps Finest Baseball has a mix of familiar elements and some totally new designs.

Hobby boxes once again come in the form of two mini boxes, each with six packs. A master box promises a pair of autographs.

See also: 2016 Topps Finest Baseball Checklist

Base Set

The 2016 Topps Finest Baseball base set has 100 cards. It’s all current players done on chrome-style stock. The checklist mixes rookies and veterans.

Joining the 100 players in the main base set are ten short prints.

As for Refractor parallels, there are lots. The main 100 cards have:

• Refractor
• Prism
• Purple
• Blue
• Green
• Gold
• Orange (/25)
• Red (/5)
• Superfractor (1/1)

All except the basic and Prism Refractors come with serial numbers.

Base cards also have Printing Plate parallels.

Short print Refractors include Orange (/25), Red (/5) and Superfractor (1/1).

Autographs

A couple of years ago, the vast majority of autographs in Topps Finest were rookies. While they’re still a major part of the product, 2016 Topps Finest Baseball continues the shift towards signatures from a greater number of veterans and retired players.

Finest Autographs take an almost parallel approach to the base set as far as design goes. Signed on-card, both rookies and veterans are included.

Finest Firsts Autographs highlights players appearing in their first Finest set. These are also hard-signed.

Both Finest and Finest Firsts Autographs have numbered Green, Gold, Orange (/25), Red (/25), Printing Plate and Superfractor (1/1) parallels. Finest Autographs also come with Blue Refractors.

Finest Greats returns as a case hit. This part of the protect features all retired players. Besides the base versions, there are Gold, Orange (/25), Red (/5), Printing Plates and Superfractors (1/1).

Finest Originals Autographs are buybacks of original Topps Finest Baseball cards with the addition of an on-card autograph.

Inserts

Finest Careers debuted last year as a tribute to Derek Jeter. It returns as a die-cut case hit, this time commemorating the career of Ken Griffey Jr. Parallels include Orange (/25), Red (/5) and Superfractor (1/1). There are also autographed versions numbered to 5.

Franchise Finest is a new insert set with one top player from every MLB team.

Jumping back a couple of decades is 1996 Finest Intimidators. Current and retired players are featured with the old design.

Both Franchise Finest and 1996 Finest Intimidators have autographed versions as well.

While much of the attention for the set will be paid to the signed versions, Finest Firsts also comes as a basic insert set.

Although originally solicited in a traditional manner, a big distribution change was made shortly before its release. Topps MVP stores still received what they pre-ordered. However, the remainder of the product was shifted in an online exclusive available direct from Topps.

2016 Topps Finest Baseball at a glance:

Packs per box: 12 (two six-pack mini boxes)
Cards per pack: 5
Boxes per case: 8
Set size: 100 cards
Release date: May 18, 2016

What to expect in a hobby box:

• Autographs – 2