Topps celebrates Stephen Strasburg’s return with additions to 2011 Bowman Sterling
By Chris Olds | Beckett Baseball Editor
Topps knows how big of a deal its exclusive player Stephen Strasburg was for baseball — and the hobby as a whole last year — before his injury.
Simply put, he sold a lot of baseball cards.
Now that he’s back from a career-threatening arm injury and ready to make his first start in more than a year for the Washington Nationals tonight (weather-permitting), Topps is hoping for one more thing from their exclusive signer — that he’ll cap his sophomore season with four strong starts and … sell a lot of baseball cards.
Where might that be? In the forthcoming 2011 Bowman Sterling.
The company announced on Tuesday that it will be adding 25 redemption cards for autographed cards featuring photography from his return game — his first since Tommy John Surgery last year, an injury that dramatically ended his meteoric rise into the MLB spotlight as a rookie.
Also to be found in Sterling, which will arrive in December, will be 25 redemptions for an autographed baseball as well as a 1/1 card good for the chance to meet Strasburg sometime soon.
Strasburg has appeared on very few autographed cards in 2011 — just two cards totaling 35 copies in 2011 Topps Heritage — so collectors haven’t seen much of his ink this year.
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.