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: 2020 Topps Series 1 baseball cards 
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com
First Buzz preview with checklist/SPs/more: Click here

Packs per box: 8 (seven standard, one medallion card pack)
Cards per pack: 14
Cards in this box: 99
Base set completion: 
82 of 350 (23 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Mike Trout, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Christian Yelich, Keston Hiura, Buster Posey, Eloy Jimenez, Bryce Harper, Anthony Rendon, Cody Bellinger, Shohei Ohtani

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.

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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 Donruss Optic baseball cards (Mega Box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com

Packs per box: 10
Cards per pack: 4
Cards per box: 40
Set completion: 
10 of 100 (10 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Base cards – Mickey Mantle, Frank Thomas, Jose Altuve, Francisco Lindor, Nolan Arenado, Manuel Margot, Chris Archer, Jonathan Gray, Yadier Molina, Brian Dozier

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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: 2020 Topps Series 1 baseball cards 
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (a few formats)
First Buzz preview with checklist/SPs/more: Click here

Cards per pack: 67
Base set completion: 
57 of 350 (16 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bryce Harper, Francisco Lindor, Mike Soroka, Washington Nationals team card

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.

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The newest Topps On Demand set of the year is here and it's one that carries with it a dramatic and nearly colorless look at Major League Baseball.

It's the 2020 Topps MLB Black & White and it includes a 75-card base set and more

Packs of this one are $60 and include a one-in-two chance at an autograph with 25 base cards and five parallels/inserts also inside when bought directly via Topps.com. The format is the same as it was for this one last year.

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If you're a Funko Pop! collector and a baseball fan, you might be busy collecting 'em all this summer.

Nearly 20 toys were revealed for the 2020 MLB Funko Pop! lineup and they include some of the biggest young stars in the game today as well as a few established veterans.

Just three teams have players represented more than once, meaning almost half of the MLB franchises have a star found here.

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Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys.

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OFF-SEASON SLABBING
The Card: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 2019 Topps Chrome RC (PSA 9)
The Price: About $15
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: The pop report on this one is flip-flopped like a lot of new modern cards -- it's got more than 1,500 PSA 10s but just over 150 PSA 9s out of nearly 1,700 graded ... not the norm, really. Nonetheless, I still didn't mind it in this grade for this price. The short-printed Series 2 card that carries the same photo as this one is a tougher grade -- those corners can be chippy -- but rather than sub my own there and hope for a PSA 9 I just decided to go this route on Chrome. I'll probably do more when they present themselves or perhaps submit others at some point. (I'll have a big submission I already made batting lead-off in a future Making The Grade, too.) My gut feeling is that this super-rookie didn't live up to the massive hype we had envisioned last year -- so 2020 could be one that is dramatic for his cardboard ... one way or another.
Grab a box right here: 2019 Topps Chrome 

Keep reading for more interesting items ...

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What: 2020 Bowman Sterling baseball cards
Arrives: Aug. 14
Box basics: Five autographs per five-pack box (12 boxes per case)
Checklist: Click here
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Bowman Sterling is back for another go as an auto-per-pack product with five parallels in every one of them as well as a mix of prospects, rookies and veterans all in one colorful place once again.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

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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: 2020 Topps Series 1 baseball cards 
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com
First Buzz preview with checklist/SPs/more: Click here

Packs per box: 8 (seven standard, one medallion card pack)
Cards per pack: 14
Cards in this box: 99
Base set completion: 
82 of 350 (23 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Rafael Devers, Alex Bregman, Miguel Cabrera, Carlos Correa, Max Scherzer, Ramon Laureano, Clayton Kershaw, Mike Yastrzemski, Christian Yelich, Shohei Ohtani, Keston Hiura, Cody Bellinger

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.

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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: 2020 Topps Series 1 baseball cards 
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com
First Buzz preview with checklist/SPs/more: Click here

Packs per box: 24 (plus one 1985 Chrome pack)
Cards per pack: 14 (four in Chrome)
Cards in this box: 336
Base set completion: 
310 of 350 (89 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Fernando Tatis Jr., Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Pete Alonso, Eloy Jimenez, Mike Soroka, Ramon Laureano, Austin Riley, Mike Yastrzemski, Michael Chavis, Nick Senzel, Tommy Edman, Jeff McNeil, Chris Paddack, Juan Soto, Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, Masahiro Tanaka, Matt Olson, Luis Castillo, Ronald Acuña Jr., Mike Trout, Aaron Judge, Bryce Harper, Cody Bellinger, Manny Machado, Gary Sanchez, Buster Posey, Anthony Rizzo, Kyle Schwarber, Andrew Benintendi, Jacob deGrom, Clayton Kershaw, Anthony Rendon, Carlos Correa, Gleyber Torres, Shohei Ohtani, Justin Verlander, Alex Bregman, Christian Yelich

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.

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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 High Number baseball cards (blaster box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby)
First Buzz preview, SPs & checklist: Click here

Packs per box: 8
Cards per pack: 9
Cards in this box: 72
Base set completion: 
64 of 200 (32 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Bryce Harper, Curtis Granderson, Byron Buxton

Rookie Cards (13) – Pete Alonso, Eloy Jimenez, Nick Senzel, Josh Fuentes, Connor Joe, John Means, Pedro Avila, Drew Jackson, Richie Martin, Jason Martin, Corbin Martin, Merrill Kelly, Nick Anderson, Ryan Helsley (SP)

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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: Kobe Bryant 1996-97 Upper Deck #58 Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: I actually bought this card more than a year ago and thought I had it waiting in my stash of cards to present here at some point but, after doing some searching, realized that I never took a photo of this iconic 1990s card and it had been waiting for its time to appear. Unfortunately, we know why this NBA legend has been on the minds of many sports fans out there this week so here we are. I picked up this Rookie Card back then since it was a decent grade for a decent price -- just $9 -- and I didn't ever pull one way back when. It doesn't have any obvious flaws on the front, so it looks much better than its grade, too. (Sub-grades on the back of this slab are all 9 or higher except for an 8.5 on corners and one corner shows why.) The shocking news of this week has created a frenzy of interest for Bryant's RCs and autographs -- and a card in this same grade (not an elite grade, really) sold for $200. Mine will remain in my stash.
The Grade: BGS 9

Reality Check: The pop report on this card is a lot stiffer than I had expected with this being the most-common grade and fewer than 600 checking in higher. I had expected there to be more but I suspect the pop reports on this card could change a lot in the coming months -- and it will be interesting to see if any ever reach BGS Black status. Bryant has a number of RCs -- more than 20 -- and this one is unique in that it doesn't show him in his Lakers uniform. The debate as to whether Bryant's cards will hold values in comparison to what people are paying right now is an interesting one over on the Blowout Forums where there are a number of discussions. I think this is a scenario that may defy common collecting logic -- I'd think that anything is possible in this case and there are a lot of buyers right now who will pick up cards and stash them away forever, leaving a smaller volume of stuff available for everyday collectors to grab on eBay and other market hot spots. Finding unopened boxes won't be an option for a lot of his Rookie Cards that people want to track down, either.

Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.

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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 Update baseball cards
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby/jumbo)

Packs per box: 8 (seven standard, one commemorative patch pack)
Cards per pack: 14
Cards in this box: 99
Base set completion: 
86 of 300 (29 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Base cards of note – Ronald Acuña Jr., Mookie Betts, Justin Verlander, Josh Donaldson

Rookie Cards (31) – Notables include Pete Alonso (2), Austin Riley, Will Smith, Cavan Biggio, Eloy Jimenez, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Fernando Tatis Jr., Nick Senzel, Brendan Rodgers, Michael Chavis, Carter Kieboom

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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: 2020 Topps Series 1 baseball cards

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SMALL SURPRISES AND STRONG PHOTOS 
The Card: Big Air Big Hair ... Card No. 298
The Price: Cheap but fun.
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This is a textbook example of how some of the basic inclusions in this one -- either team cards or checklists -- can have fun photos that help make the simple inclusions a little more interesting. This is something that some brands do often and with deliberate appeal -- think Stadium Club -- but flagship Topps has done this more in recent years and the results are getting a little better. One touch on this card that some might notice? The new (old) logo for the Brewers will be found in this series. It also doesn't hurt that one of the strong sophomores, Keston Hiura, is here, too. This won't be an expensive card at all -- it's just a nod to remember that fun stuff adds value in other ways and we might all remember that more often ... a good photo can make a good card, too.

Keep reading for five more interesting items in this one ...

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What: 2020 Topps Finest baseball cards
Arrives: June 24
Box basics: One auto per six-pack mini box with two minis per master (eight masters per case)
Checklist: Click here
Order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: Finest is back for another season on the ballfield with a familiar format but a number of new inclusions and players, too.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

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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 that seemed interesting to this collector and we think they might interest you, too.

This week's six-pack: Autographs on my mind right now ...

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GRAB THEM EARLY BIRDS ...
The Card: Lamar Jackson 2018 autos (any)
The Price: They're not cheap at all right now -- this slightly damaged one is $569.99 (or best offer)
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This isn't the best time to shop for early autographs of this game-changer, but he's a perfect example of how a ton of newcomers (or returners) to collecting with deep pockets along with people buying to hold and then sell stuff out of high-end not-readily-available boxes are helping create some crazy cardboard markets out there for hot players. And yet I'd say that this card ... with some edge damage ... is still actually priced as a bit of a steal. Jackson has put on a show this season and I'd say that any of his 2018 autos should be given a hard look but with more attention given to rarer stuff with on-card ink preferred or at least cleanly signed specimens if you're considering stickers. Why? He's got big potential right now both in what's left for this season and in future campaigns -- and somebody has to compete for the big hobby dollars once people can't grab the elite Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes cards out there. Check out the 2018 NFL boxes here for your shot to pull his ink. If you don't want to pay as much, just shop for his 2019 stuff -- it's still stiffly priced but not as tough as rookie-year cardboard.

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

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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 Bowman's Best baseball cards (hobby box)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com

Packs per box: 12
Cards per pack: 5
Cards in this box: 60
Base set completion: 
22 of 70 (31 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Prospects set completion: 
10 of 30 (33 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notable base cards – Ronald Acuña Jr., Walker Buehler, Bryce Harper, Shohei Ohtani, Anthony Rizzo, Justin Verlander, Nolan Arenado, Christian Yelich, Jacob deGrom

Rookie Cards (3) – Will Smith, Justus Sheffield, Kyle Tucker

Prospect cards (10) – Adley Rutschman, Wander Franco, Bo Bichette, Riley Greene, Corbin Carroll, Taylor Trammell, Nolan Gorman, Forrest Whitley, J.J. Bleday, Josh Jung

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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 Gallery baseball cards (blaster box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for collector's box)

Packs per box: 8 (seven standard, one Artist Proof pack)
Cards per pack: 4
Cards in this box: 32
Base set completion: 
25 of 150 (17 percent)
Duplicates: 0

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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: Baseball Power Cube baseball repack (MJ Holding)
Where to buy: Retail outlets ($19.99)

Packs per box: 5 ... and plenty more
Cards per pack: Varies by brand

Notables on base cards – See gallery for key pulls

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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 High Number baseball cards (blaster box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby)
First Buzz preview, SPs & checklist: Click here

Packs per box: 8
Cards per pack: 9
Cards in this box: 72
Base set completion: 
65 of 200 (33 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Austin Meadows, Byron Buxton

Rookie Cards (15) – Fernando Tatis Jr., Keston Hiura, Skye Bolt, Justus Sheffield, Braden Bishop, Cal Quantrill, Kyle Zimmer, Griffin Canning, Jake Bauers, Eric Stamets, Connor Joe, John Means, Josh Fuentes, Ryan Helsley (SP)

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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 Update baseball cards
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby/jumbo)

Packs per box: 8 (seven standard, one commemorative patch pack)
Cards per pack: 14
Cards in this box: 99
Base set completion: 
88 of 300 (29 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Base cards of note – Mookie Betts, Cody Bellinger, Albert Pujols, Alex Bregman, Nolan Arenado, Justin Verlander

Rookie Cards (28) – Pete Alonso (3), Austin Riley, Will Smith, Cavan Biggio, Eloy Jimenez, Braden Bishop, Lane Thomas, Skye Bolt, Pedro Avila, Cole Irvin, J.D. Hammer, Austin Allen, Merrill Kelly, Adam Haseley, Nicky Lopez, Matt Festa, Kevin Cron, Taylor Clarke, Dylan Moore, Oscar Mercado, Elvis Luciano, Griffin Canning (2), Thomas Pannone, Kyle Dowdy, Richard Lovelady

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If you hadn't noticed, our first wave of Black Friday boxes with discounted prices have dropped right now right here as BlowoutCards.com is bringing a wave approach to today's sales.

There are four more waves of discounted boxes to come later in today's big sale ... so keep watching.

Here are five boxes/cases that caught this collector’s eye in this first wave.

2015 Bowman's Best MLB eight-box hobby case
Best returned after several years on the bench, bringing a new wave of prospects and rookies with a total of four autos per box via a mini-box format. While a number of prospect releases from this timeframe have blown up, this one is still more on the affordable side while also including some solid names among the parallel rainbow as well as on the autograph front. Among autographs possible here? Andrew Benintendi, Anthony Rizzo, Bryce Harper, Buster Posey, Blake Snell, Carlos Correa, Dansby Swanson, Francisco Lindor, Jose Altuve, Kris Bryant, Kyle Schwarber, Max Scherzer, Mike Trout, Rafael Devers, Trea Turner, Walker Buehler, David Ortiz, and more. It's a good mix of prospects and more with 32 autos per case and plenty of color and inserts, too.

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What: 2020 Topps Sterling baseball cards
Arrives: July 22
Box basics: Two autographed Relics -- or one auto Relic and a 1/1 Relic -- per box (eight boxes per case)
Checklist: Click here
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: After a decade in the dugout, the high-end Topps Sterling returns with a mini-box/master box format that delivers big and more atop of that.

Keep reading for more as well as a full gallery of images.

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 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 Gallery baseball cards (collector's box)
Checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (when available)

Packs per box: 21 (20 standard, one jumbo box-topper)
Cards per pack: 5
Cards in this box: 102
Base set completion: 
90 of 150 (57 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Ronald Acuña Jr., Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Bryce Harper, Aaron Judge, Blake Snell, Alex Bregman, Josh Donaldson, Max Scherzer, Christian Yelich, Kris Bryant, Joey Votto

Rookie Cards (40) – Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Cavan Biggio, Fernando Tatis Jr., Brad Keller, Mike Yastrzemski, J.D. Hammer, Jacob Nix, Cedric Mullins, Sean Reid-Foley, David Fletcher, Josh James, Garrett Hampson, Harold Ramirez, Jake Bauers, Michael Chavis, Josh Naylor, Brandon Lowe, Bryan Reynolds, Jalen Beeks, Dennis Santana, Kevin Newman, Elvis Luciano, Brendan Rodgers, Ryan Helsley, Bryse Wilson, Lane Thomas, Christin Stewart, Dakota Hudson, Will Smith, Kolby Allard, Ryan Borucki, Cole Tucker, Nate Lowe, Steven Duggar, Chance Adams, Willians Astudillo, Shawn Anderson, Kyle Tucker, Rowdy Tellez, Taylor Ward

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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: 
63 of 400 (16 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Boston Red Sox World Series Champions, Max Scherzer, Bryce Harper, Yu Darvish, Josh Donaldson, Anthony Rendon, Ryan Braun, Christian Yelich

>>> For variation details, click here

Rookie Cards (7 cards, 16 rookies) – Kolby Allard, Touki Toussaint, Kyle Wright, Framber Valdez, Josh James, Dean Deetz, Edmundo Sosa, Adolis Garcia, Daniel Poncedeleon. Dakota Hudson, Ryan O'Hearn, Meibrys Vitoria, Chris Shaw, Aramis Garcia, David Fletcher, Taylor Ward

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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 Holiday baseball cards
Checklist: Click here
Where to buy: Initially at Walmart; (here when available)

Packs per box: 10
Cards per pack: 10
Cards in this box: 100
Base set completion: 
91 of 200 (46 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Juan Soto, Justin Verlander, Carlos Correa, George Springer, Anthony Rendon, Shohei Ohtani, Aaron Judge, Bryce Harper, Trea Turner, Ozzie Albies, Nolan Arenado, Giancarlo Stanton, Corey Seager, Albert Pujols, Noah Syndergaard, CC Sabathia, Anthony Rizzo, Blake Snell, Matt Chapman, Christian Yelich

Rookie Cards (22) – Fernando Tatis Jr., Eloy Jimenez, Will Smith, Mike Yastrzemski, Spencer Turnbull, Trent Thornton, Luis Arraez, Nate Lowe, Austin Allen, Griffin Canning, Corbin Martin, Jeff McNeil, Taylor Clarke, Ryan Helsley, Nick Anderson, Nicky Lopez, Thairo Estrada, Ryne Harper, Jon Duplantier, Brendan Rodgers, J.D. Hammer, Harold Ramirez

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