If you're headed to the MLB All-Star Game, Topps will be there, too, with some new cardboard for your collection.

The company revealed its plans for event-related promos on Tuesday in advance of next week's Midsummer Classic as part of MLB's Play Ball Park -- formerly known as MLB FanFest -- that starts Friday in Cleveland and runs until next Tuesday.

Topps will have wrapper redemptions, set bonuses, a signing guest and more during the show.

Continue reading →

Have you seen the latest cool or interesting items on eBay? If not, you just might see some of those here every week as we're launching a weekly version of our eBay Buzz pieces that pop up from time to time. We’ll spotlight some items that have a story or just wow us with how much interest it might have — and we’re not just talking baseball cards, either.

--

A UNIQUE TOUCH 
The Item: Juan Soto 2019 Topps Museum Collection bat barrel nameplate 1/1
The Price: $2,999.99 Buy-It-Now (or make offer)
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: His full name is Juan Jose Soto Pacheco and it's "Soto Pacheco" that he has chosen to put on his bats. You can get a good look at one right here (click to zoom), though the MLB Authentication sticker (albeit unreadable) should be enough to make worries lessen. This is one simple personalized touch that shows how game-used bats (and premium bat cards) can be a lot more interesting. This card is an example of the big stuff that is possible in boxes of Museum Collection, though as a 1/1 card this one is no longer potentially in a box if you grab one.
Similar Pieces: 2019 Topps Museum Collection autos on eBay
The BlowoutCards.com Hunt: Click here for 2019 Topps Museum Collection boxes

Keep reading for four more interesting items in this week's roundup ...

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing Today: Pulling a Babe Ruth auto, Tyler Skaggs, The National, inside a Ronald Acuña Jr. collection and more in today's edition.

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The pack: 2019 Topps MLB Sticker Collection jumbo pack
Where to buy: Check retail (past sticker releases here)

Packs per box: 50
Stickers per pack: 4
Stickers per box: 200
Base (backs) set completion: 184 of 223 (83 percent)
Duplicates: 16

Continue reading →

Here's a look at the top five players on this week's Baseball America Top MLB Prospects Hot Sheet and their seasons so far. It's a little something to help those who might want to dabble with prospecting -- some basics on their baseball cards alongside a highlight line from those more scouting-minded. We may not do this every week, but we'll check in on BA's top crop from time to time for the remainder of the season.

1. Wander Franco, SS, Rays — Class A MiLB Charlotte Stone Crabs
Baseball America’s highlight line: “After scorching the Midwest League for half a season, the Rays promoted Franco to high Class A on June 25. In five games, he has walked as many times (four) as he’s swung and missed. He’s also scored as many times as he’s swung and missed. He’s got six more hits than he has swings and misses. He’s younger than every player on this year’s USA Baseball's Collegiate National Team, and he’s already in the Florida State League. If the start to his tenure with Charlotte is any indication, he’s going to have no trouble reaching Double-A just after turning 19 years old."

CARDBOARD BASICS
Approximate card total (so far): 360
First Chrome auto: 2019 Bowman 
One auto to consider: 2018 Elite Extra Edition
Buzz’s card take: Nearly half of his cards are autographs yet there's still plenty of demand -- and if you somehow don't know his name the ship has sailed on sleeper/bargain cards. He's easily among the top prospects in baseball and Baseball America had him fourth heading into this season. He's hitting .335 with 17 doubles, five triples, eight homers and 35 RBI in 67 games this season -- not quite as strong as last season in rookie ball at 17. The age is the thing here and if he improves quickly as he advances at a young age he's worth the big bucks being paid for his cards. The good news is that there's a lot to choose from if you're hunting them. I didn't find that highlight line to be all that overwhelming -- I get it, he doesn't swing and miss -- but his stats also weren't as crazy as I had expected when I checked them.

Keep reading for the rest of the top five ...

Continue reading →

There's no crying in baseball ... but there will be Funko Pop! toys.

A League of Their Own -- Penny Marshall's 1992 landmark film about the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League -- will have its first Funko toys soon.

Just two toys make up this first wave as teased by the Everett, Wash.-based company on Monday.

Continue reading →

Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ...

The Card: 2018 Topps Home Run Challenge Silver #HRCAJ Aaron Judge (/59)
The Reason Graded: Aaron Judge recently returned from injury for the first time since April and that prompted me to lead things off with this rare card I recently got slabbed. I only have this card because I managed to predict one of his homers not long after he returned from injury last year after missing more than a month and a half. Injuries have mounted for his popular slugger the last two years, but I figured this card, given its scarcity, was one worth a slab.
The Grade: BGS 10

Reality Check: The pop report is a little iffy on this one -- there could be others not slabbed* -- since the checklist isn't complete on their site for this set this is merely a guess. (Pop report and checklists typically sync up.) I have gotten very few 10s in the last few years, but I thought this would be a contender and it was. Other Judge cards from this set -- there are at least three before this one -- are a lot rarer. Meanwhile, this appears to be the only Judge (of any color) from this set that's been slabbed.

Keep reading for the rest of this month's new grades and additions.

Continue reading →

There were almost as many runs scored in Saturday's London Series game as there are Topps Now baseball cards today.

They're not all from the game that the New York Yankees won 17-13 over the Boston Red Sox but a number of them are, including Relics from two English icons who got VIP access at the game and gifts from both teams, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. 

It's not the first time that public figures have been in the mix -- a Chicago Cubs White House visit in 2016 comes to mind -- but it just might be the first where a Relic is involved. A 29-card day also just might be a record for the real-time cardboard program.

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2018 Topps Holiday Box baseball cards
Where to buy: Click here

Packs per box: 10
Cards per pack: 10
Cards in this box: 98
Base set completion: 
92 of 200 (46 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Aaron Judge, Jose Altuve, Corey Seager, Francisco Lindor, Ichiro Suzuki, Alex Bregman, Buster Posey, Nolan Arenado, Paul Goldschmidt, Bryce Harper, Noah Syndergaard

Rookie Cards (24) – Ozzie Albies, Shohei Ohtani, Rafael Devers, Gleyber Torres, Alex Verdugo, Clint Frazier, Tyler O'Neill, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Amed Rosario, Francisco Mejia, Jack Flaherty, J.D. Davis, Dominic Smith, Garrett Cooper , Christian Villanueva, Scott Kingery, Chris Stratton, Mikes Mikolas, Fernando Romero, Joey Lucchesi, Tyler Mahle, J.P. Crawford, Nick Kingham, Austin Hays

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing Today: New breaks, big pulls, The National, the London Series and more in today's edition.

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2019 Topps Stadium Club baseball cards (blaster)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby)

Packs per box: 8
Cards per pack: 5
Cards in this box: 40
Base set completion: 
32 of 300 (11 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Mookie Betts, Jose Altuve, Dansby Swanson, Miguel Cabrera, Francisco Lindor, Felix Hernandez, Carl Yastrzemski, Rod Carew, Tony Gwynn, Fred McGriff

Rookie Cards (5) – Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (SP), Luis Urias, Kyle Tucker, Patrick Wisdom, Steven Duggar

Continue reading →

What: 2019 Bowman Platinum baseball cards
Arrives: Now ... only via Walmart
Box basics: Two autographs per 20-pack mega box
Checklist: Click here
Order: Click here (when available)

What's buzz-worthy: Platinum is back with the familiar format used in recent years -- a mega box as well as blasters are among the options once again.

See a gallery and more ... below.

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing Today: A.J. Hinch visits Topps, MLB pulls, new NFL cards and more.

Continue reading →

What: 2019 Panini Chronicles baseball cards
Arrives: Aug. 21
Box basics:  Three autographs and one memorabilia card per six-pack box (16 boxes per case)
Order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: Panini once again will test the waters of several familiar brands -- and introduce a few new ones, too -- for baseball fans all in one place with a focus on this year's strong rookie class.

Keep reading for more info and a full gallery of images released so far.

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2019 Topps Museum Collection baseball cards
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (packs, boxes, cases)

Packs per box: 4
Cards per pack: 5
Cards in this box: 20
Base set completion: 
11 of 100 (11 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Base cards – Mike Trout, Ernie Banks, Ichiro Suzuki, Corey Seager, Joey Votto, Christian Yelich, Yadier Molina, Andrew Benintendi, Khris Davis, Bo Jackson

Rookie Cards (1) – Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

Continue reading →

What: 2019 Topps Triple Threads baseball cards
Arrives: Sept. 18 Oct. 23
Box basics: Four hits in every two-pack box (18 boxes per case via two inners)
Checklist: Click here
Order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: Triple Threads returns for another season of high-end hits with stars from the past and present all presenting themselves in a format that collectors have ripped year after year since 2006.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

Continue reading →

Have you seen the latest cool cards from a new release? With so many options for collectors of all kinds arriving every week it's possible you haven't. That's where Buzz comes in -- well at least on one brand you'll see here from time to time in what we're calling Buzz's Pick Six. Simply put, here are six cards from a new arrival that seemed interesting to this collector and we think they might interest you, too.

This week's release: 2019 Topps Stadium Club baseball cards

--

A BIG CHALLENGE
The Set: 2019 Topps Stadium Club jumbo box-topper set
The Price: Moderately challenging
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: A new inclusion this year are box-topper cards and the challenge is that there are 50 of them -- one per box. Do the math and you'll need somebody ripping into four cases to land them all, assuming clean collation. Why do I like these? The larger size (roughly 4-by-6) give you a little better look at some cards that just don't read as well at standard size. One example? The Jackie Robinson you see here -- note the details with the dugout, the faces in the crowd and more -- and then think about how getting an autograph might have been different back then, especially with this being from Robinson's first day at spring training with the team on March 6, 1948, according to Getty Images. With 50 jumbo cards in the set and a lot of classic images -- and it not being an impossible project -- this could be popular. While the prices should drop over time, they may not always be immediately available, so I'd recommend picking off what you think are the best ones early.

Keep reading for five more interesting items in this week's roundup ...

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing Today: The National and some simple hobby questions/debates for you to chew on in today's edition.

Continue reading →

Have you seen the latest cool or interesting items on eBay? If not, you just might see some of those here every week as we're launching a weekly version of our eBay Buzz pieces that pop up from time to time. We’ll spotlight some items that have a story or just wow us with how much interest it might have — and we’re not just talking baseball cards, either.

--

FREAKISHLY PRICED ... BUT THEY SELL
The Item: Giannis Antetokounmpo 2013-14 Panini Prizm Purple Die-cut Prizms (34/49)
The Price: $39,999.95 Buy-It-Now 
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: Believe it or not, this is not even close to the priciest eBay auction for the new NBA MVP and his first-year rarities. Why is this one so steep? It's rare and it's a one-of-a-kind card within a print run of 49 copies -- it's No. 34, his uniform number. A total of 41 active eBay auctions have asking prices of $10,000 or more for a Giannis card. The highest? A mere $189,999 -- see the link below for what that is. Are people buying? Hit the completeds -- the answer is yes. Nothing has hit the $100,000 mark but they are getting close -- and those were back in April and May ... pre-MVP. It's enough to make you shake your head ... and then admire the market ... and then buy a box or case to rip.
Similar Pieces: Giannis Antetokounmpo autos on eBay
The BlowoutCards.com Hunt: Click here for 2013-14 NBA boxes

Keep reading for four more interesting items in this week's roundup ...

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2019 Topps Heritage baseball cards (blaster box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (a few formats)

Packs per box: 8
Cards per pack: 9
Cards in this box: 71
Base set completion: 
65 of 400 (16 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Dustin Pedroia, Boston Red Sox World Series Champions, Max Scherzer

>>> For variation details, click here

Rookie Cards (7 cards, 16 rookies) – Kyle Tucker, Cionel Perez, Heath Fillmyer, Brad Keller, Edmundo Sosa, Adolis Garcia, Jeffrey Springs, Jose Trevino, Kevin Newman, Kevin Kramer, Kolby Allard, Touki Toussaint, Kyle Wright, Framber Valdez, Josh James, Dean Deetz

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing Today: NBA award-winners, busting a "Trading Cards" pack, big pulls and The National in today's edition.

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and break down the results here. Like this and want to see more -- or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2015 Panini Contenders baseball cards (blaster box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com

Packs per box: 7
Cards per pack: 6
Cards in this box: 42
Base set completion: 
19 of 99 (19 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notable pulled on base cards: Michael Conforto, Dansby Swanson, Tony Gwynn, Mike Schmidt, Will Clark

Continue reading →

Here's a look at the top five players on this week's Baseball America Top MLB Prospects Hot Sheet and their seasons so far. It's a little something to help those who might want to dabble with prospecting -- some basics on their baseball cards alongside a highlight line from those more scouting-minded. We may not do this every week, but we'll check in on BA's top crop from time to time for the remainder of the season.

1. Deivi Garcia, RHP, Yankees — Double-A Trenton Thunder
Baseball America’s highlight line: “Garcia continued one of the best seasons by a pitching prospect by spinning a masterpiece against Richmond. He struck out the first eight batters and was in complete control the rest of the way. The performance boosted his strikeouts per nine innings to 15.1, the best in the minors among qualified starters. It also tied the Trenton franchise record for strikeouts in a game, which was set by Adam Warren in 2010."

CARDBOARD BASICS
Approximate card total (so far): Just MiLB team set cardboard 
First Chrome auto: Still to come
One auto to consider: Still to come
Buzz’s card take: You may remember seeing this guy here about a year ago and nothing has ultimately changed on the cardboard front. He's just 20 and rising in the minors so that cardboard should be coming at some point. He's 3-4 with a 3.02 ERA and a ridiculous 100 strikeouts in 59-plus innings pitched this season so there should be some serious demand once that first ink hits. His few MiLB team sets should be watched right now, too. (There's next to nothing on eBay right now for him.)

Keep reading for the rest of the top five ...

Continue reading →

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing Today: Patrick Mahomes' boo-boo, chats about card-trimming, card-faking, auction-shilling and plenty more in today's edition.

Continue reading →

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2019 Topps Series 2 baseball cards (Walmart blaster)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby/jumbo)

Packs per box: 8 (seven standard, one commemorative patch pack)
Cards per pack: 14 per standard
Cards in this box: 99
Base set completion: 
85 of 350 (24 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Base cards of note – Cody Bellinger, Andrew Benintendi, Mike Soroka, Andrew McCutchen, Christian Yelich, Jose Altuve

Rookie Cards (15) – Carlos Tocci, Willians Astudillo, Rowdy Tellez, Cionel Perez, Adam Cimber, Caleb Ferguson, Myle Straw, Trevor Richards, Kyle Wright, Jose Briceno, Aramis Garcia, Jeffrey Springs, Bobby Poyner, Josh James, Bryse Wilson

Continue reading →