2019 Topps Heritage High Number Baseball features a 225-card base checklist. The last 25 cards in the checklist are considered High Number Short Prints, and have lower print runs than the typical base cards.

About a quarter of the checklist (50 cards) is also available in six different Chrome parallels. All of them, other than the Purple Hot Box Refractors, are serial-numbered, including the base Chrome. Yes, in previous years the Chrome parallels were a lot tougher to pull and limited to just /999. Recently, Chrome parallels have become much more common, with much higher print runs.

As has become commonplace for Heritage releases, there are also a long list of variations to hunt for. Luckily for us, the 2019 release did include variation labels under the card numbers. Previously these cards were not labeled, and at times took some research to identify.

Now to everyone’s favorite … the hits! Each box should have one relic or autograph card, but true to form, autographs are tough pulls. They land just once in every 3-4 boxes. Good luck!

This release features a very strong rookie class. Rookie cards of Pete Alonso, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Austin Riley and Fernando Tatis Jr. are found in this one!

2019 Topps Heritage High Number Baseball Box Break 

Cards per pack: 9
Packs per box: 24
Price paid: $90

• Shop for 2019 Topps Heritage High Number Baseball hobby boxes on eBay | Amazon
• Shop for 2019 Topps Heritage High Number Baseball cards on eBay | Amazon

Box topper:

Original Hoyt Wilhelm 1970 Topps. Can’t complain about a vintage Hall of Famer!

Pack 1 highlights:

Clay Buchholz, Christian Walker and Khris Davis Now and Then (1:8 packs)

Odd to see Buchholz in anything but a Red Sox uniform. He pitched 236 major league games in his career, with 206 of those for the Sox.

Pack 2:

Brett Gardner and Carter Kieboom Rookie Performers (1:8 packs)

Pack 3:

Bryce Harper and Franklin Barreto High Number SP (1:3 packs)

Pack 4:

Troy Tulowitzki and Sonny Gray

As of this posting, the 36-year-old Sonny Gray has put up a 12-1 record with a 2.48 ERA so far this season!

Pack 5:

Fernando Tatis Jr. RC, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. RC and Steve Pearce Award Winners (1:8 packs)

Pack 6:

Matt Harvey and Hector Neris High Number SP (1:3 packs)

Pack 7:

Carlos Correa Clubhouse Collection Bat Relic (1:40 packs)

As you should expect when opening Heritage, this box’s hit was a relic card. Autographs are tough!

Pack 8:

Merrill Kelly RC, Austin Riley RC and Zack Greinke Now and Then (1:8 packs)

Pack 9:

Yasiel Puig and Ryan Braun Now and Then (1:8 packs)

Pack 10:

A couple of catchers; Kurt Suzuki and Russell Martin

Pack 11:

Brendan Rodgers Rookie Performers (1:8 packs)

Pack 12:

Curtis Granderson and Fernando Tatis Jr. Action Image Variation RC (1:26 packs)

Image Variations are very highly collected, especially rookie cards. This Tatis is about a $20 card! These cards are labeled with “ACTION” under the card number on the back, making them easy to spot.

Pack 13:

Andrew McCutchen High Number SP (1:3 packs)

Pack 14:

Byron Buxton, J.T. Realmuto and Shohei Ohtani Award Winners (1:8 packs)

Speaking of value, obviously Ohtani values have skyrocketed! This second-year insert sells for around $20 as well!

Pack 15:

Michael Brantley and Hank Aaron The Hammer’s Greatest Hits (1:24 packs)

Pack 16:

Adam Wainwright, Craig Kimbrel and Dominic Smith High Number SP (1:3 packs)

Pack 17:

John Means RC, Manny Machado and Alen Hanson High Number SP (1:3 packs)

The High Number SP checklist isn’t exactly star-studded. Ichiro and McCutchen are the main draws in the 25-card checklist.

Pack 18:

Pete Alonso Rookie Performers (1:8 packs)

Pack 19:

Eduardo Escobar and Gio Gonzalez Chrome Refractor /569 (1:85 packs)

Pack 20:

Yusei Kikuchi RC and Ichiro Suzuki High Number SP (1:3 packs)

Pack 21:

Max Fried and Aaron Judge Scratch-Offs (1:24 packs)

The Scratch-Offs inserts are in homage to the original 1970 Scratch-Offs booklets that were randomly inserted into packs over 50 years ago!

Pack 22:

Alex Bregman Award Winners (1:8 packs)

Pack 23:

Brian McCann and Tayron Guerrero High Number SP (1:3 packs)

Pack 24:

Tyler Glasnow, Nick Markakis, Pete Alonso RC and Bellinger/Muncy Combo (1:20 packs)

Lastly, the Markakis card back. A much better player than most people realize!

Considering the expected relic card, this rip went pretty well! Lucky to pull a star for the Image Variation, and a rookie card at that. Also took some luck to find an Ohtani insert card.

Want more installments of Shane Salmonson’s Cheap Wax Wednesday? Check out his other breaks in the archives.

Protect Your Collection With:

• Penny Sleeves — Amazon | eBay | Fanatics
• Top Loaders — Amazon | eBay | Fanatics
• Binders — Amazon | eBay
• 9-Pocket Card Pages — Amazon | eBay

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