Welcome to the Big Leagues, Kid!

It’s not too often that I review a new product here on the blog. But sometimes the set year isn’t the only thing that can take me back to the good ole days. This is one of those times. We are living in a time when it’s easy to get wrapped up in serial numbers, autographs, jersey swatches and printing plates. And those are great things to chase when the price is right and the checklist is good. I was very excited to pull the Bellinger/Seager Dual Auto redemption from my Museum Break a couple of weeks ago. And one of my favorite products every year is Leaf Army All American, which is completely made up of those 4 features listed above.

But I, like most collectors my age, can trace my love for cardboard back to a much simpler time. I’m talking about a time when Diamond Kings, Dream Teams and basic Rated Rookies were the hits we were all chasing. My zest for the hobby was born when I was just a kid, around 11 years old. And sure, there are some collectors who started as adults, but most of us picked up our first cards when we only cared about the picture on the card and not whether the serial number matched the jersey number making it a @watchthebreaks eBay fail 1/1.

The hobby has changed A LOT since the days I spent making trades on the playground at Mitchell Middle. The industry has exploded with new innovations and it is about much more than just cards in 2018. In fact, most collectors consider it a bust if they open a pack and they get “just cards”. But every now and then, you just have to slow down and strip away all the cracked ice and purple prizm and just enjoy the cards for what they are. You have to always reserve a place in your soul for the reason you’re a part of this crazy circus to begin with. You have to remember your collecting roots or you will get completely swept away by the latest and greatest Target exclusive that can only be found at triple markup online.

There are a few things that I always think about when I am sorting through junk wax sets. There are things that are just burned into my memory from the beginning of my journey through the land of wax that can always help me center myself when I feel like I’m losing my grip on self control. I don’t know why they’ve stuck with me for 30 years but I know they are always there. They can be triggered by the sight of a border design or the mention of a name that has faded from my daily memory but still means so much. I owe my entire hobby life to those memories because I still chase the high that I got from opening packs as a kid. As minor as they seem today, they certainly serve a purpose in my life today.

I think about the 1990 Fleer Mark McGwire that I opened on Halloween night. My “GaGa” bought me a pack of cards instead of giving me some terrible candy corn and I always remember sitting in the living room floor, with my costume still on, ripping that pack to reveal Big Mac in his throwing motion. I can’t explain why it is such a vivid memory; I can just feel that moment when I’m looking through ’90 Fleer. And it feels so good, like all of my worries and cares are gone for a moment. I know this probably sounds a bit dramatic for some of you but it’s 100% legitimate.

I think about the time I traded a short stack of hot prospects like Kevin Maas, John Olerud and Phil Plantier for a Ken Griffey Jr. autograph that I knew couldn’t be real but also couldn’t pass up on the 1% chance that it was. Of course, it wasn’t real but I still have it in the exact same protector that it came in through the trade. I remember sitting in my friends room, looking at the card, thinking that there was no way he’d actually trade it. But also thinking that there was no way it was actually real. What 14 year old could really pass up a Ken Griffey Jr. “autograph”, real or not??

I remember looking up 1989 Score in my first Beckett. I had a unique way of opening those packs back then. The number on the back of Score was at the top of the card so I would slide the front card up just enough to see the number and find it in the price guide. I wanted to see the $2-$3 in the magazine before actually seeing the Gary Sheffield RC. It was much like the way I try to reveal hits today, with seeing small parts of the card before the big reveal. I don’t know why it’s always Score in my memory other than the fact that it was a vertical back and easy to keep the player info hidden.

I especially remember when errors were mistakes made by the companies. They tried to catch these mistakes and get them corrected before the market was flooded with goof ups. There was the Dale Murphy ’89 Upper Deck Reverse Negative, ’90 Donruss Juan Gonzalez reverse negative, the infamous ’89 Fleer Billy Ripken and the entire 1990 Pro Set Football debacle. Mistakes were made in printing due to the sheer volume of cards they were pumping out in some cases but it was so fun to pull one of those and think that you had something rather rare and unique for the time. Of course, now companies make intentional errors to harken back to the good ole days but it’s really not the same.

Which brings me to the modern set that I want to review here in this post. 2018 Topps Big League just released last week and is supposed to be a basic, stripped down collection of baseball cards. They are aimed at kids in the hobby but should also pick up a following from the old school collectors who are looking for something devoid of the hubbub that can come with shiny parallels, retail exclusives and refractor autographs. This is a modern day set with a throwback feel to the vintage or junk wax era. There are hits to be found, as well as some of those intentional errors, but the backbone of the set is the 3 x 5 piece of cardboard with a player image on the front.

The set size (400) is a little larger than usual for the modern day hobby and could give set collectors a little challenge if they want to piece it together. The boxes are relatively cheap ($40) and have 24 packs with 10 cards in each pack. There are no hobby box guarantees other than a gold parallel in each pack. But there is a chase element with Rainbow Foil (1:30 packs), Black and White Images (1:60 packs), Red Foil (1:3,020 packs), Errors (unknown) and Autographs (1:114 packs) sprinkled throughout the landscape. The relative long odds of these pulls make them much more special to pull and could also help with value in the long term.

With this configuration, Topps has made a solid effort to bring the hobby to the kids while inserting some value in the set as well. Other sets have tried to do this but have fell short because of a total lack of excitement in the checklist and a zero percent chance of pulling something that has value. I was a kid once and I still wanted to find cards that were worth something. I didn’t want a card with eye black that I could peel off and wear like one of the many gimmicks Triple Play has introduced over the years. If I were a kid today, I’d want a card of Ozzie Albies that didn’t include some pennant that you pull off and stick over his head. I’m hoping that Topps Big League has hit on something with this new entry but it’s hard not to be skeptical after all the recent attempts to bridge the gap between kid collectors and product value.

Let’s give this set a look and see if it’s a hit or a swing and a miss!

In what may seem like a minor issue, I really like the packaging. It reminds me of Gypsy Queen and Heritage but it’s still foil.

The base design is clean. I prefer a border to the full bleed of the flagship product. I like full bleed for Stadium Club because the photos are so great. But I think traditional cards should have a border.

I like how the bat extends beyond the border in some of the photos. This Cody Bellinger is a good example.

There is a solid mixture of horizontal photos in the set like this Dansby Swanson.

There are three player stat leader cards at the beginning of the 300’s in the checklist.

There are some sweet veterans to be found in the latter part of the checklist. These players include Nolan Ryan, Hank Aaron, Jeff Bagwell, Ted Williams, John Smoltz and others.

There is a section of cards that is dedicated to “Ballpark Landmarks”. These are pretty unique and cool.

The base checklist closes out with the RC’s and they are all here. I pulled Acuna, Ohtani, Gleyber, Andujar and others.

The gold parallels are found 1 per pack. There is a gold parallel for every card in the base checklist.

Players Weekend Image Variations are found 1:3 packs so they are not scarce but they are sharp looking.

Ministers of Mash is a 10 card insert featuring the games best hitters.

One of my favorite inserts, the sketch card, makes its way into Big League as well with this set called Star Caricatures. If I am not mistaken, Mike James is responsible for some of these beauties!

This Pedro Martinez is the Rainbow Foil numbered to 100. These are found 1:30 packs.

I pulled one Black and White Parallel numbered to 50. These are found 1:60 packs so this is definitely considered a hit!

If you like baseball cards, you’ll like this set. But you’re really going to have to like baseball cards. You can’t be in search of funky color parallels or autographs if you want to enjoy this box. I think the design is simple but effective, the cost is excellent for a hobby box, there are some true chase cards that aren’t guaranteed in each box and the checklist has all the names you’ll want to find. The set will be great for kids but isn’t childish either. The sketch cards are real art and not cheap and cartoony. The Ballpark Landmarks are cool and give you a look at stadiums you may not otherwise see. And if you pull an autograph here, which is possible, it is truly an above average hit. I expect the set to evolve and progress in the future but this is a very solid first effort. What say you?

J-Dub

Scoring Scale

1. Let me be the sacrificial lamb so you don’t have to buy these cards.  Just read the post and thank me later.

2. There is worse but there is much better – not worth the effort though.

3. Middle of the road – I wouldn’t talk you into buying these but I certainly wouldn’t talk you out of them.

4. You should probably go out and buy a box and enjoy the rip – I did!  It has some downside but worth the ride.

5. Stop reading and find a box to buy and get to Breaking!  What are you waiting on?

One thought on “Welcome to the Big Leagues, Kid!”

  1. It just so happens that I REALLY LOVE baseball cards and I like the base design very much. If I ever get some $$$ to buy some more cards in 2018, I’d pass other sets up for these. I still don’t think they’re cheap enough to interest kids though.😞

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