Frank Thomas ’17 Topps Luminaries Redemption Card Received

In the middle of November, I opened a box of 2017 Topps Luminaries Baseball.  Waiting inside was a redemption for a Frank Thomas Autographed Letter Book Card #’ed 1/1.  As soon as it was pulled, I redeemed it.

At 5:01 a.m. on 12/28/17 I received an e-mail from Topps informing me that my card had been shipped.  According to the tracking number it was scheduled to be delivered the same day.  By lunch time it had arrived.

This card kicks butt.  Booklet, on-card autograph, and game-worn jersey letter patch.  It didn’t really matter to me which letter they used, but I’m glad Topps chose the “T”.

When it comes to redemption cards, you never truly know how long it will take to get your card.  Everyone’s experience can differ.  Personally, I’ve never had to wait that long with Topps products.  Historically they’ve been fast and efficient for me.  The Topps website easily lets me track my redemption cards, while I find their communication skills flawless.  No problems at all.

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Card of the Day: Ronnie Brown 2009 Topps Unique Letter Patch

Card of the Day: Brad Lidge 2009 Topps All-Star Letter Patch

Card of the Day: Ryan Howard 2008 Topps All-Star Letter Patch

Q & A – Signed Letter From Sy Berger

Question:  I have a letter addressed to me from Sy Berger when he worked at Topps.   I was a kid asking him for some info.  It is a typewritten letter signed by Sy Berger.  I also have the envelope.  It is from March 1965.  How can I find out if it’s worth anything?  I would appreciate any suggestions.  Thanks.

Answer: Wow!  That is a really cool find.  Sy Berger is one of the most influencial people that has ever worked within the trading card industry.  He is most notably remembered for designing the 1952 Topps set.  Berger does have one autographed card, which can be found in the 2004 Topps Fan Favorites set.  Those usually sell for $10.00 to $20.00.  Within the last few years Topps has been selling extension contracts of athletes in which have Berger’s signature on it.  I picked one up for $30.00.  Sometimes you’ll see checks up for sale containing his signature, but the sellers usually start them with a very high price and they never sell.  If I had to put a value on your signed letter, I would say $50.00 to $70.00.  With that being said, it probably will be hard to sell because its not authenticated by a third party.  If I were you, I’d keep it.  That is a really cool collectible that shows how the hobby use to operate way before the internet came along.  Back in 1965, kids were still putting baseball cards in their bike spokes.

 

An Interesting Fan Letter

 

Many collectors do TTM (Through The Mail) autograph requests to athletes in hopes that their mailbox gets filled with signatures.  This is a practice that has been going on for years, and is one of the oldest ways to obtain autographs of your favorite players.  This afternoon I found an interesting relic up for sale on eBay.  It is a letter written by a fan of “Shoeless” Joe Jackson asking for his autograph.  This isn’t the first time a letter like this has popped-up for sale, but this one caught my eye because of the postmark on the envelope.  After asking the seller what the postmark said, I found out it was from 1953.  I find this strange because Joe Jackson died in 1951.  Since Jackson was uneducated, his wife would sign a lot of things for him, but I still think its odd for people to ask for his signature after his death.  If the person writing the letter was such a fan, don’t you think they would have known he was dead?  

On a side note, if a major card manufacturer were to produce a cut signature of “Shoeless”, I have the feeling we would experience the same drama that was brought to the hobby a few years ago when Topps produced those “game model” bat cards of Josh Gibson.  A lot of people would be doubting that it really was Jackson’s signature, but instead his wife’s.

Q & A – 2008 UD Masterpieces Football Missing Card Numbers & Errors?

 

Question:  I have been putting together the 2008 Upper Deck Masterpiece football set numbered 1-110.  I printed the check list off of Upper Deck’s web site and found that the set is skip numbered, but could not figure out a rhyme or reason that they did this.  I was curious if you knew why?  The numbers that they skipped are 45, 59, 70, and 100.  I have noticed that there are some errors on cards like just printing the artists name instead of “Artist: XXXX”( #84 Tom Brady) and that they capitalized Artist on the base cards but when it came to the time warps and SP Rookies they did not.  Then again maybe I am looking into things way too much or it was Upper Deck’s mistake in trying to get the cards to the public in haste after it was pushed back.  Any light you could shed on the subject would be appreciated.

Answer:  Those missing card numbers from the checklist indicate that those specific cards were never produced.  The word “Artist” being capitalized on some cards, and not on others is probably and error on Upper Deck’s part.  Upper Deck Masterpieces is a “set builders” product, meaning when you have a lot of cards with multiple parallels to produce, there are bound to be some mistakes made.  Sometimes these mistakes truly happen by accident, and other times I believe card manufacturers do it on purpose to create a buzz about their product.  Thanks for the question, and please keep reading Sports Card Info.