2020 Topps Heritage Baseball Hobby Box Break & Review

Posted on March 4, 2020 by sportscardinfo

Collector Type: Set/On-card autograph aficionados

In the words of Darth Vader – “You don’t know the power of the dark side.” We all knew this day was coming. It was only a matter of time until the 1971 Topps Baseball design came around to be used for Heritage. I love this design. Its one of my favorite vintage sets. With those dark black borders it makes it one of the most condition sensitive sets of all time. Key cards from the original set include Hall of Famers such as Nolan Ryan, Willie Mays, Ernie Banks, Reggie Jackson, Brooks Robinson, Thurman Munson, Roberto Clemente, and Johnny Bench to name a few. Guys like Dusty Baker, Steve Garvey, Ted Simmons, and Bert Blyleven all have their rookies in the ’71 Topps Baseball set.

A hobby box will yield (24) packs with (9) cards per pack. Each box comes with (1) relic or (1) autograph. A box topper should also be awaiting you on top of the packs.

2020 Topps Heritage consists of a whopping (500) cards. The last (100) #401-#500 are SPs. Parallels include Flip Stock (Hobby) #’ed/5, and White #’ed/50 (Hobby). Traditionally, Black Border cards are #’ed/50 but given the base set already has a black border Topps needed to switch that parallel to another color. (350) cards have French Text parallels. (132) cards have Mini parallels #’ed/100. (100) have Chrome parallels which can be broken down into Purple Hot Box (Hobby/Blaster), Refractor #’ed/571, White #’ed/71, Gold #’ed/5 (Hobby), and Superfractor #’ed 1/1.

Photo variations play a major role in many Topps products. For some reason I always get the feeling that the ones found in Heritage command more demand. Its amazing to see the amount of money a collector is willing to pay for a variation compared to an autograph of that same player from the exact product. I heavily advise checking for them. You can use the CMP code or as it is the case with Heritage many variation types are printed right on the back.

Base – #13
Base SP – #27
French Text – #40
Error – #44
Missing Signature – #45
Throwback – #46
Action Image – #47
Silver Team Name – #48
Nickname – #49

Autographs include Real One Autographs, Real One Dual Autographs, Real One Triple Autographs, Senators Final Season Autographs, and Cut Signatures.

Autograph Relics include Clubhouse Collection Autograph Relics, Clubhouse Collection Dual Autograph Relics, and Flashbacks Autograph Relics.

Relics include Clubhouse Collection Relics, Clubhouse Collection Dual Relics, Clubhouse Collection Triple Relics, Clubhouse Collection Quad Relics, 1971 Mint Relics, and 1971 U.S. Postage Stamp Relics.

Inserts include 20 Giants Seasons, 20 Giants Seasons Buybacks, 1971 Bazooka Numbered Test Minis, 1971 Topps Play Baseball Scratch-Off, 1971 Topps Baseball Tattoos (Retail), Baseball Flashbacks, New Age Performers, News Flashbacks, Then and Now, and 2020 MLB Sticker Collection Previews.

Box Toppers include 1971 Topps Greatest Moments, 1971 Topps Super Baseball, 1971 Topps Super Baseball Autographs, and 1971 Topps Originals.

My favorite cards remain the Real One Autographs. Combining on-card autographs with a treasure trove of classic Topps designs is a winner in my book.

Heritage has a lot of depth to it. There are tons of really rare hits that you could pull, but that shouldn’t be the #1 reason for busting a box. A Clubhouse Collection Relic is most likely going to be your hit. You might have to open a few boxes to even find an autograph. Take your time in opening it. Know what to look for, and don’t rush. This is one of the most nostalgic sets of the year. Enjoy the card collecting experience.

Checklist

Here is what I pulled:

Relic