MLB Players Weekend is nearly upon us and it's a chance for MLB to loosen things up on the uniform front with new colorful looks for its teams complete with nicknames on players' jerseys just for fun (and marketing/merchandising, of course).

The spectacle of this one also will have cardboard and the first to come will be 2017 Topps Now MLB Players Weekend team sets that will focus on five players per squad from the games. There also will be performance bonuses that potentially translate into extra cards.

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Topps will make sure a collector suits up for one of Minor League Baseball's tastiest franchises next year.

The company announced on Thursday that its Make Your Pro Debut contest that allows a collector to join a team for a day will take its talents to Fresno, Calif., where the winner will don the uniform of the Fresno Grizzlies' promotional alter ego -- the Fresno Tacos -- next April on Taco Tuesday.

The contest's scratch-off code cards will be found in hobby boxes of 2017 Topps Heritage Minor League, which arrives next month. Winning code holders will be asked questions and then Topps will choose a winner based off of those answers.

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A new Panini America program will give buyers from its website early arrivals as well as exclusive parallels.

The "Panini 1st Off The Line" program will include a small volume of extras and cards will arrive between 24 and 48 hours before the traditional release date if buyers use the company's website.

The experiment begins with 2016-17 Immaculate Collection basketball, which will include an Emerald parallel (/5) when it ships in advance of the Sept. 27 release date.

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Goldin Auctions has a new director of marketing and business development -- and he comes from the trading card portion of the industry.

Jim Stefano will take on the role, according to Goldin Auctions founder Ken Goldin.

Stefano had spend the last four years as the senior director of product development at Panini America in Dallas, Texas. He previously worked seven years at Fleer/Skybox as its VP of product development and before that with Score Board and TRISTAR Productions.

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The Fanatics Authentic Team now has a new member.

It's New York Yankees rookie slugger Aaron Judge and he'll be joining a team that already includes reigning National League MVP Kris Bryant and Los Angeles Dodgers rookie slugger Cody Bellinger. It doesn't mean he won't be signing for fans or baseball card companies -- they just now know the place he signs for directly when they can't land him at the ballpark or in a pack.

“I love signing for fans, especially Yankee fans, they are the best in the world,’’ Judge told the New York Post. “Now that I’m with Fanatics, I’ll really be able to get my autograph out. They got some pretty cool pictures of me, I’m not going to lie, I’m looking forward to getting those out.’’

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Topps National Baseball Card Day is this Saturday -- and it's a day to make some memories. That's exactly what collector/blogger Ben Aguirre Jr. got when he took his kids, Alexa (age 7) and Antonio (age 5) to South Bay Sports Cards in Sunnyvale, Calif., last year.

Today's the day -- it's Topps National Baseball Card Day.

Now is your chance at some free baseball cards that you won't find anywhere else other than at your local card shop. That's because today is an annual event that helps draw new fans into the hobby and gives veteran collectors some new stuff to check out.

There are six-card packs of NBCD baseball cards available free with a visit to a participating store, while a $10 purchase will yield a Mike Trout bonus card. The full checklist for this promotion can be seen here -- spoiler -- and it includes Aaron Judge, Bryce Harper and Carlos Correa autographs in some packs. (Topps also will be using the hashtag #ToppsBaseballCardDay on social media for those who go and want to show off their new baseball cards, too.)

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Topps National Baseball Card Day is this Saturday -- and it's a day to make some memories. That's exactly what collector/blogger Ben Aguirre Jr. got when he took his kids, Alexa (age 7) and Antonio (age 5) to South Bay Sports Cards in Sunnyvale, Calif., last year.

Mark your calendars, baseball fans -- this Saturday is your chance at some free baseball cards that you won't find anywhere that day other than at your local card shop.

That's because that day is Topps National Baseball Card Day, an annual event that helps draw new fans into the hobby and gives veteran collectors some new stuff to check out all in one place for free.

There will be six-card packs of NBCD baseball cards available free with a visit to a participating store, while a $10 purchase will yield a Mike Trout bonus card. (The full checklist for this promotion can be seen here -- spoiler -- and it includes Aaron Judge, Bryce Harper and Carlos Correa autographs in some packs.) Topps also will be using the hashtag #ToppsBaseballCardDay on social media for those who go and want to show off their new baseball cards, too.

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Via @Goldberg ... Not sure if I've EVER taken a photo with 2 crazier dudes!!! 

National Sports Collectors Convention marches on inside the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center as we finish things up today. That comes after a big Day 4 (gallery here) and the Panini VIP Party, Day 3 (massive gallery here), Day 2 (massive gallery here) as well as the preview night (gallery here).

Now it's time for Day 5 -- the finale -- with the last lineup of signers and plenty of action on the floor of a show that, by many accounts, has been busier than normal this year. You'll never know what big items you'll see and there will be items you'd never imagine finding because, well, you probably didn't know they existed.

Keep reading for more and to see a gallery that will grow throughout the day as the doors open shortly.

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Via @PaniniAmerica: Lonzo Ball has entered the Green Room at @PaniniAmerica #PaniniVIP Party!

National Sports Collectors Convention marches on inside the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center as we hit the weekend. Day 3 (massive gallery here), Day 2 (massive gallery here) as well as the preview night (gallery here) have come and gone but today should be a doozie

Now it's time for Day 4 with the biggest lineup of signers and plenty of action on the floor of a show that, by many accounts, is busier than normal this year -- and we'll know for sure today as Saturdays are the peak. You'll never know what big items you'll see and there will be items you'd never imagine finding because, well, you probably didn't know they existed.

Keep reading for more and to see a gallery that will grow throughout the day as the doors open shortly.

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National Sports Collectors Convention marches on inside the Donald  E. Stephens Convention Center as Day 2 (massive gallery here) as well as the preview night (gallery here) have come and gone.

Now it's time for Day 3 with a massive slate of signers and plenty of action on the floor of a show that, by many accounts, is busier than normal. You'll never know what big items you'll see and there will be items you'd never imagine finding because, well, you probably didn't know they existed.

Keep reading for more and to see a gallery that will grow throughout the day as the doors open shortly.

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Topps and New Era are bringing the cards to the caps.

Two baseball card sets -- 2017 Topps and 1987 Topps -- get some of their design touches added to caps in a new line from New Era that will be available in some MLB ballparks and other stores beginning next week. All teams will be had in caps that have their visors branded using memorable elements from the card sets as well as a Topps logo on the side.

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The BlowoutCards.com booth -- awaiting the National Sports Collectors Convention crowds.

The calm before the storm is here.

On-floor preparation for this year’s National Sports Collectors Convention is nearing its finale as the booths fill up inside the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, Ill. What you see here is the view of what will become Booth No. 854, the home of BlowoutCards.com for the show, which begins Wednesday evening and runs through Sunday evening.

But that’s not the only early scene seen so far …

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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: Big pulls, 2017 Allen & Ginter, storage tips -- and real fake news hits the hobby.

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After resolving an apparent autopen problem with a small number of Panini Prizm cards, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott sat down with Panini America this week for a new project.

Signing a bunch of his football cards.

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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: Panini Rewards bonus for Dak autopen holders, new breaks, worst trades, The Walking Dead, WWE breaks, the National & more.

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A big deal has turned into a new deal.

Panini America officials have met with Dallas Cowboys QB Dak Prescott to discuss his autopenned cards in 2016 Panini Prizm and the parties walked away with a solution to replace the mechanically reproduced autographs as well as a new long-term autograph deal.

Keep reading for the full statement from Panini.

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PSA has a couple of fan-friendly things to consider at this year's National Sports Collectors Convention if you're headed to Chicago.

If you visit the company's booth, you can enter for a shot at winning one of three game-used bats, pose for a photo with the bat you prefer for your own baseball card, and have it placed into a PSA slab -- free.

"The National Sports Collectors Convention is like the Super Bowl of the hobby, and each year we challenge ourselves to go bigger and better," said PSA President Joe Orlando. "So, this year we’re giving away Frank Thomas, Derek Jeter and Kris Bryant signed bats, all game-used and totaling over $10,000 in value. Each bat is graded a PSA/DNA GU 10. And that’s just the beginning of what will be available at the PSA booth."

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National Baseball Card Day is back.

Topps' hobby shop event is set for Aug. 12 and participating stores in the United States and Canada that Saturday will have free six-card packs available for visitors.

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Newly graded cards from PSA will arrive with a new look to their flips inside the slabs.

A new "lighthouse logo" is the centerpiece with it reflecting light and also connecting to the red trim of the paper insert is joined by "fugitive ink" in the background.

So why the change?

“As the market grows, it is imperative that we continue to look for ways to improve our services and the quality of our products," said a statement from the company. "This includes enhancing the security features on the holders and labels used during our authentication/grading process. The newly-incorporated security features represent the single largest leap forward during our 26-year history. The new PSA label not only offers vastly superior technology and capabilities; it has also received a stylistic makeover as we look to take our leading brand well into the future."

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Panini America will continue to be the home for NBA cards.

The companies' exclusive trading card licensing deal that began in 2009 has been extended for an undisclosed number of years.

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A future NHL star's autographed hockey cards will only be found in one place in future years thanks to a new deal announced on Friday.

It's Nico Hischier and he'll only be signing for Leaf Trading Cards. 

"Working with Nico, along with Allain and Jordan from RSG Hockey, has been an exciting and rewarding process," said Leaf CEO Brian Gray. "To see an agency thinking outside the box and aggressively marketing their athletes is refreshing in a traditional sport like hockey. Nico is now part of that movement in the hockey world."

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Panini America's NBA team has a new player.

Damian Lillard signed a multi-year exclusive deal for autographed trading cards and memorabilia with the company and it was revealed on Monday.

"Damian is absolutely one of the most popular and exciting players in the NBA today and his star is on the rise," said Panini America CEO Mark Warsop. “He’s a bona fide superstar and a perfect fit to join the exclusive fraternity of Panini Authentic exclusive athletes. We’ve thoroughly enjoyed watching him blossom since entering the NBA. Now we get the opportunity to work closely with him to the benefit of his countless fans and collectors."

Lillard's first signed cards will appear in 2016-17 National Treasures, which arrives this week, and autographed memorabilia can be had via alongside other exclusives Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, John Wall and Blake Griffin.

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Emmitt Smith's memorabilia cards found in boxes of 2016 Panini Flawless football cards arriving today will include an added piece of authentication and information unique to his cards thanks to a new partnership between Panini and his company, PROVA Group.

Each card will have a SmarTag that will tell the owner what jersey the piece came from as part of a database linked to a smartphone app.

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Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson may be the most-electrifying man in sports entertainment, but his new line of Under Armour training shoes are giving him a run for his money.

They're dubbed the Rock Delta and the first wave of the shoes is sold out from the company after just one day.

Because of this, the company now has a second wave available on pre-order set to arrive in mid-August and for now there's a pretty strong market for the shoes on eBay.

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Topps Now was a game-changer last season for baseball cards and it's been a big enough hit that "Fred" and friends now have an intern.

You might know him.

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