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

What's Buzzing Today: Impressive 2016 Topps The Mint breaks, 2017 Topps Heritage debuts, 2015-16 Panini Preferred breaks, Dansby Swanson & more.

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Bowman Platinum is apparently making a comeback.

How do we know this?

Topps released a final checklist for the baseball brand on Wednesday -- and that makes it a likely candidate to be arriving very soon as a Topps.com exclusive. Update: Make that a Walmart exclusive.

It will arrive on Aug. 24 with a parallel rainbow that includes Purple (/250), Green (/99), Orange (/25), Black (1/1) and printing plates (1/1) parallels as well as Ice parallels only available two per "value box."

Update 2: There will be two autographs per 20-pack box, while blaster boxes (value box) will have seven packs and a four-card Ice parallel pack. Fat packs will include 12 cards.

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This Red Sox slugger has been in some elite company this season and his cardboard continues to pick up momentum.

His name is Mookie Betts and he smacked another homer -- a three-run shot -- last night in Baltimore to up his season total to 28. That comes off the heels of a three-homer game Sunday that put him side-by-side with Ted Williams as the only Red Sox players with a pair of three-homer games in the same season.

It's sparked a wave of Topps Now cards -- and pricey Relics that sold out near-instantly -- but it's not the only cardboard that Betts has that's now in more demand.

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Topps' most-expensive baseball card box ever arrives tomorrow and The Mint aims to “raise the bar for premium card collecting.”

And the first few cards to trickle onto eBay looks like there could be something to that.

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Topps Bunt brought baseball cards to the digital realm in 2012 -- and Topps Crossover is bringing them back.

Topps revealed Crossover on Tuesday with an announcement on its website. Every Tuesday, Topps will list a Crossover card set on its site that can be ordered for just one week -- cards that had been found only in the digital realm. And they won't just be baseball, either.

“We are constantly hearing from physical trading card collectors and users of Topps’ apps how great it would be to get printed versions of the digital cards.” said Jeff Heckman, Director of New Product Development and Ecommerce marketplace. “We have taken that feedback to heart and decided to launch Topps Crossover.”

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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: 2016 Topps Chrome baseball cards (blaster box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com

Packs per box: 8 (seven standard packs plus one Sepia Refractor pack)
Cards per pack: 4
Cards in this box: 32
Base set completion: 
20 of 200 (10 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Kris Bryant, Matt Harvey, Paul Goldschmidt, Prince Fielder

Rookie Cards (3) – Raul Mondesi, Joey Rickard, Frankie Montas

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Alex Rodriguez's time as a New York Yankee on the field is over, but the auctions have just begun.

Steiner Sports is auctioning off one of the jerseys worn by A-Rod on Friday night as well as other memorabilia from the 6-3 victory as part of a "Farewell No. 13!" sale.

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When Topps revealed its plans for The Mint, it was dubbed as a release that takes its baseball cards to high-end levels not seen before and one that “will raise the bar for premium card collecting.”

Now that the final 2016 Topps The Mint checklist is here, we'll know how high.

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What is believed to be one of the earliest St. Louis Cardinals jerseys worn by future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols is on the auction block via Goldin Auctions.

Issued with a letter from the St. Louis Cardinals Cardinals Care Community Fund, this No. 68 jersey was used in his spring training with the team in 2001, though it's tagged as a 2000 jersey. It's signed on the back with that autograph further authenticated by JSA.

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The next high-end baseball card brand in the land arrives on Wednesday with 2016 Panini Immaculate Collection from Panini America and the first part of the arrival came on Thursday with the final checklist for the brand.

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What: 2017 Topps Series 1 baseball cards
Arrives: Feb. 5
Box basics: One autograph or Relic per 36-pack box (12 boxes per case); One autograph and two Relics per 10-pack jumbo box (six boxes per case)
Checklist: Click here to view.
Gallery & SP info: Click here to view.

What's buzz-worthy: The newest edition of the Topps baseball brand -- the flagship brand for the hobby -- arrives with a modern look and plenty of new looks that break away from some of the formulas from recent years.

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

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One of the hobby's more unique-looking brands and quickest rips arrived today with some fun potential and a relatively small checklist primed for some sweet pulls.

It's the 2016 Topps Strata baseball.

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Here's the design for the 2017 Topps baseball card set as released by Topps on Tuesday morning.

A full First Buzz preview story on 2017 Topps Series 1 can be seen here.

[polldaddy poll=9493532]

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Follow Buzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz or send email to BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com. 

>> Click here to buy cards on BlowoutCards.com

National Baseball Card Day is this Saturday.

The hobby shop event will have participating stores in the United States and Canada giving away free six-card packs to visitors. It's a promotion that hasn't been done since 2008.

A bonus card of Kris Bryant will only be available with purchases. It can be seen above.

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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: 2016 Bowman Inception baseball cards 
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com

Packs per box: 1
Cards per pack: 5
Cards in this box: 5
Base set (rookies) completion: 
1 of 15 (7 percent)
Duplicates: 0

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The newest Mr. 3,000 already has the cardboard to prove it.

Ichiro Suzuki's triple off the wall in the seventh inning Sunday at Coors Field in Colorado made him just the 30th player in MLB history to join the 3,000 Hit Club and today he's the first to have the feat nearly instantly commemorated on cardboard with a Topps Now card.

There is one standard card and five game-used base Relics -- a standard card limited to 99 and then four parallels made to as rare as a single copy for $999. (Update: Each of the base Relics was sold out within 30 minutes, with the print run generating $46,318.16 in sales based on the posted prices. Update 2: A record 11,550 copies of the standard card were sold.)

Topps Now, of course, is Topps' real-time cardboard platform where notable moments are only available for 24 hours via Topps.com and are made to order. After that window closes, the cards will no longer be made and can only be found on the secondary market.

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Alex Rodriguez's playing time with the New York Yankees is coming to an end on Friday.

How many games he might play between now and then is up in the air with a road trip to Boston, but the end as a player is definitely at home on Friday with an advisory role signed through next season if he wants it. However, he insisted that he's "not a coach" and stopped short of saying he'd never play again. Yankees GM Brian Cashman said he'd have an open door if he wanted to play elsewhere.

It's been a long journey with cardboard that looks back to his high school days, time with USA Baseball and throughout his years with Seattle, Texas and New York.

A-Rod is four home runs short of 700 -- and that makes one wonder if it's not a possibility. What do you think? Tell us in our poll, with a comment below or on Twitter.

[polldaddy poll=9491980]

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Follow Buzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz or send email to BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com. 

>> Click here to buy cards on BlowoutCards.com

Now that the National Sports Collectors Convention is completed for today, the spotlight selectively turns to this year's Panini VIP Party, which will include some big-name guests, big-name signers and some big-name cardboard.

Black boxes, Gold packs, autographs and more are the mementos of the event, but the memories are made with the interactions between the collectors and the stars.

We'll help take you behind the rope virtually right here with a gallery of images from tonight's event.

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Pearl Jam has three dates to come lined up in some notable baseball stadiums this month and that combination of concerts and landmark MLB parks means one thing.

Baseball cards.

It also means some pretty sweet concert posters like the one above by artist Steve Thomas, but it's the band's 60-card set of "baseball cards" with a distinct 1991 Topps style complete with wax-paper packaging that are sparking interest online.

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The National Sports Collectors Convention has everybody busy, but Buzz isn't too busy to make sure that this one gets out there.

It's the 2016 Topps Strata baseball checklist for the product that arrives on Wednesday.

Click here to view the final 2016 Topps Strata checklist as released by Topps.

Follow Buzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz or send email to BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com. 

>> Click here to buy cards on BlowoutCards.com

The National Sports Collectors Convention is just getting going and for those not at the show there will be plenty to see here and elsewhere online to get a glimpse at all of the action.

Buzz wants you to get in on the action from afar by offering up this 2016 Topps Tribute autograph of Hall of Famer (and NSCC signer) Frank Thomas that was recently pulled in a Buzz Break.

Want your shot at the card? Simply leave a comment on this post telling us your favorite Hall of Famer. Include your email (in the spot where it asks for it) and also include your Twitter handle (so Buzz can follow you and also potentially contact you there if you win).

We'll pick a winner from all entries received by Monday. (Yes, you can enter if you're at the show ... and don't worry if you don't see your comment immediately. They are held before approval.)

Follow Buzz on Twitter @BlowoutBuzz or send email to BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com. 

>> Click here to buy cards on BlowoutCards.com

The mystery is over.

Topps revealed the three Mystery Redemption Autograph subjects in 2016 Topps Finest on Tuesday night and they're three rookies you might have heard of.

And there's a pretty sweet twist.

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The 37th National Sports Collectors Convention is nearly here and, while Atlantic City, N.J., will be the center of the collecting universe, we have to note that the BlowoutCards.com booth (No. 1,220) will be the epicenter of the show at 3 p.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

Why?

Well, some of those boxes -- and cases -- in our 18 pallets of stuff out on the show floor are part of the largest Blowout giveaways yet in our history at the show. (And show veterans should already know how big they've been in the past ... this time we're stealing the show.)

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There are many products making their debut tomorrow and at the National Sports Collectors Convention and one of the more-watched ones might be 2016 Topps Chrome.

It's got a big rookie autograph checklist with quite a few notable names and a design that seems like it will be primed for a good-looking rainbow.

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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 five threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing Today: The Andrew Miller deal, a big Noir break, more big breaks, The National and a big Bryce Harper stash.

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