Product Recommendations??

[drubacca117]

Heya Baseball Talk Forums! I am new to baseball collecting, having just started collecting again a year ago, and just started collecting baseball again a month or so ago. I finished up the Topps Series 1 base set with just 2 boxes, so I am looking for my next product.

Collecting an entire set isn't super important, but it would be nice for it to be attainable. I'm not super in to prospects either (so do I count Bowman out?... haha!). I haven't been this excited about Opening Day in 15 years, but I don't know any of the prospects, and a box of auto's / GU's from people that may never even make it to the MLB isn't exciting.

So, I suppose the point of this post is... What products might be right for me? I know Topps is the only company with the MLB license, but Donruss looks kinda cool. What low-mid end products might be right for me (high end doesn't interest me much, I am on a budget and splitting money between baseball and football)?

Thanks for reading, hope to get some replies!

[key2win]

Topps Heritage Baseball seems like a popular product if you like the old school vintage retro feel of cards, but they have a ton of variations, errors, etc.

2014 Topps Heritage Baseball Variation Short Prints and Errors Guide

2014 Topps Heritage Baseball Checklist, Set Info, Boxes, Reviews, More

[drubacca117]

Thanks for the reply Kerwin! I have heard a lot of praise for Heritage! I have heard others complain about needing short prints to complete the set, but I personally don't consider those part of the "base set". Thanks again!

[revghost]

You're gonna need to break at least three hobby boxes to get a complete set of Heritage. One box won't get you close, it's a 425 card set without short prints, 500 cards with.

[drubacca117]

Yeah, I've heard that revghost, and they don't make a jumbo box to get a person closer! I don't mind buying more than one box, but the lack of guaranteed hits in baseball products perplexes me... Oh well, no worries on that front.

Thanks for the reply!

[revghost]

Different products offer more hits. I'd go with Donruss, each box yields 2 autos, 1 relic, and a handful of parallels. The base set has a clean design, and singles have done well on eBay, etc. The base set is small (200 cards) so you should be able to complete it with 2 hobby boxes. Some of the inserts went a little overboard with the nostalgia, cramming too many elements in to the design, but overall, looks like a fun, cheap break. If you're wanting a really cheap break, go with Opening Day. Easy set to build, and they added GU this year. Pretty lacking in the hits department though.

As far as guaranteed hits in baseball, well, I see what you're getting at I guess. I think there is an overabundance of football products though, I couldn't imagine trying to keep up with all of the different Panini releases. Again though, I'm a refractor/parallel collector to an extent, and don't care much for GU hits, I feel like manufacturers have gone stupid with putting out 'event worn' memorabilia cards just to offer guaranteed hits in products.

[revghost]

Also, Panini's baseball products are getting better, despite the lack of logos.

[jwgreen68]

With Heritage production being cut this year, its neither an easy or inexpensive set to build.

[drubacca117]

Thanks for the recommendations! Is there maybe a product coming out in a few months that I should wait for? I know Topps Series 2 isn't too far away... And after reading about Bowman / Bowman Chrome, it appears that they may not be SUPER prospect oriented (to the point that it might alienate people that don't want to go prospecting) .

[revghost]

Bowman and Bowman Chrome are going to give you a ton of prospects, half of what you pull will be prospects. I know there are some new inserts to chase in Bowman Chrome, but you're still going to be left with a stack of prospects, probably 2 or three prospect refractors, and two prospect autos, maybe 1 prospect auto and a rookie auto, but most likely 2 prospect autos. A few months away, I'm pretty sure Archives will be fun to break this year. Archives focuses on nostalgia, vets and HOF'ers with rookies as a sort of afterthought. Series 2 is always a big seller, should be more so with the Tanaka RC and possibly an Abreu RC, so that's something to consider. One thing I will say for the Bowman Products, outside of the prospect base (technically they're inserts) is that the prospect autos sell well, especially the refractor parallels. If you can get Bowman or Bowman Chrome right when it releases, you can recoup a lot of what you put in to your wax purchase. Archives has a relatively makeable set, even with SPs, which can be bought reasonably. Series 2 will echo Series One, you'll have a similar mix of SP's, I'm curious to see if the Sparkle Sps carry over, those were a big value add for people that bought a decent amount of S1. But Bowman will continue to be the 'Home of the Prospect/RC', so while they may add some chase cards that include veterans, know that they are first and foremost a brand that focuses heavily on prospects and RCs. With a heavier lean toward the prospects.

[drubacca117]

Ah, I see... the product breakdowns I was reading didn't make it seem quite that bad... haha! Looks like I will satisfy my need to bust packs with Heritage for now, and move on to Series 2 and Archives later on.

Thanks for the help revghost, and everyone else!

[jwgreen68]

I would add that Allen & Ginter and Gypsy Queen are fairly popular also. GQ gives that nostalgia look of the late 1800's, similar to the tobacco cards of that era. Not a lot of hits to chase but a fun set nonetheless.

[drubacca117]

Yeah, I like the look of Gypsy Queen... There are a bunch of sets I like, but I am supposed to be saving for football season!... haha