Card of the Day: A.J. Hinch 2018 Topps Archives Fan Favorites Auto

Expos ’19 Topps Archives Auto Contest Winner Announced

Congrats to y2jbrak on being the lucky winner of the Coco Laboy 2019 Topps Archives 50th Anniversary of the Montréal Expos Auto.  Once y2jbrak sends me their mailing address, I will ship this card ASAP.  Thanks!

Card of the Day: Mike Lieberthal 2019 Topps Archives Fan Favorites Auto

Expos ’19 Topps Archives Auto Contest! – NOW CLOSED

This contest is for a Coco Laboy 2019 Topps Archives 50th Anniversary of the Montréal Expos Auto.  Good luck!!!

Contest Details:

• This contest will end Friday, September 13, 2019 @ 8:00 p.m. EST.
• To enter, please leave a comment in this post.
• You can enter once per day.
• The winner will be selected at random.
• Please provide a valid e-mail address when entering.
• U.S. residents only.
• The winner will receive an e-mail when the contest is over.
• The winner has one week to send me their contact information or the contest will be held again.
• Once the contest is over, I will need the winner’s mailing address so I can ship them this card for FREE!!!

Card of the Day: Jessica Mendoza 2019 Topps Archives Fan Favorites Auto

2019 Topps Archives Baseball Hobby Box Break & Review

Well… wasn’t that an entertaining box to rip open.  Its the retro product of all retro products.  I’m talking about Archives.  Once again Topps utilizes classic designs from the past to create cards of today’s veterans, stars, rookies, and retired/Hall of Famers.  The collection of notable and obscure players combined with all of the on-card autograph goodness has been a “Fan Favorite” for years.

A hobby box of 2019 Topps Archives will cost about $90 as of this writing.  (24) packs come in a hobby box, and you’re guaranteed (2) on-card autographs.

If you’re looking to put the set together it consists of (300) cards.  Designs from 1958, 1975, and 1993 are featured throughout the set.  When it comes to the cards printed with the 1975 design be sure to watch out for the ones missing the facsimile signature.  Also be on the lookout for 1993 Topps Gold cards.  Both of these are subset parallels that aren’t easy to pull (1:207 packs).  Other parallels include Purple #’ed/175, Silver #’ed/99, Blue #’ed/25 (Hobby), and Gold #’ed 1/1.

Base High-Number cards are like short prints and range from #301-#330.

Please check the card backs as you’re ripping through those packs.  (10) photo variations are in here.  Base cards featuring the 1958 design have CMP codes that end in #053.  Base cards featuring the 1975 design have CMP codes that end in #058.  Base cards featuring the 1993 design have CMP codes that end in #064.  No matter the design, if you pull a photo variation the CMP code will end in #070.

Along with well-known names in baseball like Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Sandy Koufax, Archives always comes with a slew of what I call obscure players.  These are guys who had successful careers in baseball, but just don’t have that many autographed cards.  In fact, Archives can sometimes be the only product where they have autographs.

Autographs come in the following forms – Fan Favorites Autographs, 1978 Topps Record Breaker Autographs, 1994 Future Star Autographs, 50th Anniversary of the Montréal Expos Autographs, Ichiro Retrospective Autographs, Topps Magazine Autographs, and Topps Originals Autographs.

Inserts include 1975 Mini, 1994 Topps Future Star, 50th Anniversary of the Montréal Expos, Ichiro Retrospective, Topps Coins (Blaster box), and Topps Magazine.

I’m always interested to see if any Phillies players from the past received the Archives autograph treatment.  This year one did.  Former Phillies catcher Mike Lieberthal has a Fan Favorites autograph.  Very cool!  When I began watching the Phillies he was their starting catcher.  I even met him during a few autograph signings in Harrisburg, PA.  During his playing career he had some autographed cards issued.  But nothing recently.  Its great to see his name popup again.

Another area of interest to me are the 50th Anniversary of the Montréal Expos inserts.  Some of these players use to play for the Harrisburg Senators AA team.  The first professional baseball game I went to see was in Harrisburg.  Including guys like Cliff Floyd and Rondell White bring back a lot of memories.

Curious to known whether or not the Topps Magazine was real.  It was.  Topps Magazine ran from 1990 to 1993.  Fun to see this make a comeback in cardboard form.

I say this every year, but I’m going to continue to do so until it happens.  Current Phillies radio broadcaster and former pitcher Larry Andersen needs to have an autograph in here.  Its the perfect product for him to be in.

Tons of nostalgic designs and on-card autographs.  Awesome box!

Checklist

Here is what I pulled:

Autos

• Ken Griffey Jr. Fan Favorites Auto
• Coco Laboy 50th Anniversary of the Montréal Expos Auto

Parallels

• Lucas Giolito Silver #’ed/99
• Lou Gehrig Purple #’ed/175
• Ichiro Retrospective #I-15 Green #’ed/99

Base High-Numbers

• Luis Urias 2019 Rookie #325
• Pete Alonso 2019 Rookie #330
• Kyle Wright 2019 Rookie #329
• Josh Hader 1975 Highlights #313
• Kris Bryant 1975 Highlights #318
• Derek Jeter 1975 Highlights #311
• Chris Sale 1958 Sport Magazine All-Star #305
• Javier Baez 1958 Sport Magazine All-Star #303
• Nolan Arenado 1958 Sport Magazine All-Star #307

Inserts

• Pedro Martinez 50th Anniversary of the Montréal Expos
• Lourdes Gurriel Jr. Future Star
• Pete Alonso Future Star
• Ichiro Retrospective #I-4
• Ichiro Retrospective #I-8
• Cal Ripken Jr. Topps Magazine
• Ronald Acuña Jr. Topps Magazine
• Shohei Ohtani Topps Magazine
• Aaron Judge Topps Magazine
• Barry Larkin Topps Magazine

2019 Topps Archives Signature Series Baseball (Active Player Edition) Hobby Box Break & Review

“Wouldn’t this card look nice with an on-card autograph?”.  That’s the question Topps answers each year with the release of Archives Signature Series.  That goes for the Active Player and Retired Player Edition.  I’ve had quite a bit of luck with this brand before.  In 2017 I pulled a Mike Trout autograph #’ed 1/1.  Last year I got a Starling Marte autograph #’ed 1/1.  No duds for me.  Now I didn’t get another 1/1 autograph this time, but it is a decent card of a pitcher doing well this year.

Buyback autographs are what keep the heart of this product beating.  Each box contains (1) encased buyback autograph of a currently active MLB player.  Just under (100) different MLB players have autographs in here.  Many with multiple cards.

For those of you unfamiliar with what a buyback autograph is, here’s a little refresher.  Topps will buy up a ton of cards they issued in the past.  They then get players to sign those cards.  Topps then foil stamps the cards with the “Archives Signature Series” logo.  The cards are then placed in BCW holders for their protection.

A single box will cost just under $50.  If you think that’s too expensive for one card, I’d recommend sticking to picking up singles on the secondary market.  Its amazing how far an on-card autograph on a simple base card can go.  Lots of past Topps designs are improved with an on-card autograph.

Very simple and to the point.  I’ve always said cards with a simple design are the most attractive.

Wondering if your favorite player has cards in here?  Take a look.  The amount of cards per player and the serial numbering varies.

Here is what I pulled:

Auto

• Michael Soroka 2015 Bowman Draft Buyback Auto #’ed/79

Angels ’18 Topps Archives Fan Favorites Auto Contest Winner Announced

Congrats to Nick M on being the lucky winner of the Adam Kennedy 2018 Topps Archives Fan Favorites Auto.  Once Nick M sends me his mailing address, I will ship this card ASAP.  Thanks!

Angels ’18 Topps Archives Fan Favorites Auto Contest! – NOW CLOSED

This contest is for a Adam Kennedy 2018 Topps Archives Fan Favorites Auto.  Good luck!!!

Contest Details:

• This contest will end Friday, November 23, 2018 @ 8:00 p.m. EST.
• To enter, please leave a comment in this post.
• You can enter once per day.
• The winner will be selected at random.
• Please provide a valid e-mail address when entering.
• The winner will receive an e-mail when the contest is over.
• The winner has one week to send me their contact information or the contest will be held again.
• Once the contest is over, I will need the winner’s mailing address so I can ship them this card for FREE!!!

2018 Topps Archives Baseball Hobby Box Break & Review

OMG!  Darth Vader played baseball with Babe Ruth?  That’s exactly what went through my mind when I found out that Mr. Mertle (James Earl Jones) from The Sandlot also voiced Darth Vader from Star Wars.  Its funny the things you find out as a kid, and don’t initially put together at first.  The same thing happened when I discovered that Batman and Beetlejuice were both played by Michael Keaton.  It was a total mind blower!

Nostalgia is wildly popular in today’s world of sports cards.  No brand better represents that than Archives.  The 2018 version of Archives focuses heavily on the 1959, 1977, and 1981 baseball set designs.  (300) cards make up the base set.  An additional (20) cards are tacked on the end, and numbered 301-320.  These come in the form of 1959 Topps Combo, and 1977 Topps Turn Back the Clock cards.

The base set 1-300 has a slew of various parallels.  First off you have the basics – Purple #’ed/175, Silver #’ed/99, Blue #’ed/25 (Hobby), and Gold Foil #’ed 1/1.  Then come the subset parallels that are a bit more difficult to spot.  Cards in the 1959 design can have a no signature or Venezuelan (Grey Back) parallel.  1977 cards have a no signature parallel.  Finally, 1981 cards can be found with an alternative Topps logo.

Photo variations do have a part in 2018 Topps Archives, but they only apply to (9) cards.  1959 – Aaron Judge #31, Shohei Ohtani #50, and Kris Bryant #100.  1977 – Amed Rosario #108, Clayton Kershaw #150, and Derek Jeter #200.  1981 – Roberto Clemente #201, Ernie Banks #202, and Bryce Harper #300.  Simply check the CMP code on any of these players.  If any of them end in #326, you’ve got yourself a photo variation.

Archives is all about the autographs.  Every hobby box should have (2).  Along with all the big name rookies and legends, Archives is known for having autographs of obscure retired players who you just don’t see that much.  In some cases this is the only product you’ll ever see them have autographs.  I’ve said this for a long time, but as a Phillies fan it would be great to see Larry Andersen receive an autograph in here.  This is the perfect product for him to popup in.  Phillies pitcher and card collector Pat Neshek got some autographs.  He’s had autographs before, but not for a long time.

2018 marks the 25th anniversary of The Sandlot.  Its been a long time since I’ve seen it, but that movie is very good.  Autographs from key cast members can be pulled.  These have been crazy popular.  I’m surprised we didn’t get one of James Earl Jones.  This isn’t the first time Topps has made cards commemorating a classic baseball movie.  In the past they’ve done Bull Durham and Major League.  A League Of Their Own should be next.  Think of all the celebrities who were in that – Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, Madonna, Rosie O’Donnell.  What other baseball movies would you like them to make cards for?

Inserts come in the form of The Sandlot commemorative cards, Topps Rookie History, 1981 Topps Future Stars Trios, 1993 Coming Attraction, and 1980s Coins (blaster).

Here is what I pulled:

Autos

• Adam Kennedy Fan Favorites Auto
• Rhys Hoskins 1993 Coming Attraction RC Blue Auto #’ed/25

Parallels

• Clayton Kershaw Topps Rookie History Green #’ed/50 – I believe this is an error.  Green is suppose to be #’ed/99, while Blue is #’ed/50.
• Luis Castillo Purple #’ed/175
• Monte Irvin Silver #’ed/99

Inserts

• Dave Winfield Topps Rookie History
• Mike Piazza Topps Rookie History
• Nick Williams 1993 Coming Attraction
• Clint Frazier 1993 Coming Attraction
• Dominic Smith 1993 Coming Attraction
• Miguel Andujar 1993 Coming Attraction
• Acuna/Albies/Gohara 1981 Topps Future Stars Trios
• Robles/Stevenson/Fedde 1981 Topps Future Stars Trios
• Hays/Sisco/Scott 1981 Topps Future Stars Trios
• Hamilton “Ham” Porter The Sandlot
• Timmy Timmons The Sandlot
• Benny “The Jet” Rodriguez The Sandlot