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Product Highlight: 1998 Upper Deck SP Authentic Baseball

Boxes can be expensive.  Sometimes an older product might take care of that pack busting itch for a much lower cost.  Just because that new box guarantees ten hits doesn’t mean you’ll come close to pulling something anywhere near what you paid.  One hit from an older set could easily be better than ten from that newer product.  Then again, making money shouldn’t be your #1 concern.  Cards are for fun, not investing.

If you’re looking for an affordable box from the 1990s that has an autograph checklist which hasn’t dwindled too much, I’d suggest 1998 Upper Deck SP Authentic Baseball.  Upper Deck introduced the high-end SP brand in 1993, but in 1998 they changed the name to SP Authentic.  This is mainly due to each box containing an autograph.

The 1998 SP Authentic set consists of (198) base cards.  They’ve got a foil-photo in the middle which is then surrounded by an all-white border.  Magglio Ordonez is the most notable rookie.  David Ortiz has a somewhat popular second year card.  As far as inserts go, there really is only one – Sheer Dominance.  These come in Silver, Gold #’ed/2000, and Titanium #’ed/100.

Autographs are the main attraction.  Glancing over the checklist you’ll notice its fairly solid.  Of course there are some duds, but what product doesn’t have those?  Key autographs include Alex Rodriguez, Chipper Jones, Gary Sheffield, Ivan Rodriguez, Ken Griffey Jr., Mike Mussina, Mo Vaughn, Nomar Garciaparra, Paul Molitor, Roberto Alomar, Roger Clemens, Scott Rolen, Tony Gwynn, Todd Helton, and Vladimir Guerrero.  Every Chirography autograph is signed on-card.

Upper Deck included various Trade Cards for oversized 5″ x 7″ jersey cards as well as full size autographed memorabilia.  If this were 1998, you could redeem them.  Given that they’re decades old, I highly doubt you would receive anything for them today.

On the bottom of the box Upper Deck lists how many of each Trade Card was made, and the approximate retail value of that item.

• Ken Griffey Jr. Signed Mariners Jersey #’ed/30 – $399
• Ken Griffey Jr. Signed Glove #’ed/30 – $449.95
• Ken Griffey Jr. Life Size Standee #’ed/200 – $29.95
• Ken Griffey Jr. Oversized Jersey Card #’ed/125 – $50
• 5″ x 7″ Ken Griffey Jr. 300th Home Run Commemorative Card #’ed/1,000 – $10
• Robin Ventura Signed Baseball #’ed/50 – $89.95
• Raul Mondesi Signed Baseball #’ed/100 – $89.95
• Albert Belle Signed Baseball #’ed/100 – $89.95
• Brian Jordan Signed Baseball #’ed/50 – $89.95
• Roberto Alomar Signed Baseball #’ed/100 – $89.95
• Tony Gwynn Oversized Jersey Card #’ed/415 – $50
• Greg Maddux Oversized Jersey Card #’ed/125 – $50
• Alex Rodriguez Oversized Jersey Card #’ed/125 – $50
• Gary Sheffield Oversized Jersey Card #’ed/125 – $50
• Jay Buhner Oversized Jersey Card #’ed/125 – $50

Browsing over this price list is fun.  I certainly wouldn’t use it as an official guide though.  There is no way to know if everything on that list was even redeemed.  Quantities could be lower.

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Card of the Day: Bert Blyleven 1991 Upper Deck #571