Topps Pro Debut is a Big League Product

When it was announced that Topps would be the exclusive producer of Minor League Baseball trading cards for the 2010 season, I was a little skeptical. It is my firmly held belief, proven by experience, that the more companies there are competing in a free-market, the better the results. My worries deepened after Topps released their Baseball Series 1 in January, with some disappointing card designs.

Fortunately, Topps Pro Debut exceeded all of my expectations, and truly hit Minor League Baseball cards out of the park. As fond as I have grown for TriStar cards in the past few years, 2010 Topps Pro Debut may be the best designed and executed Minor League Baseball set ever.

The set offers cards of some of the best prospects in baseball, including Casey Kelly, Jesus Montero, Pedro Alvarez, Drew Storen and Brett Wallace. The photography is exceptional and the cards feature the same sleek and clean design as the 2010 Topps Major League cards.

Here is the 2010 Topps Pro Debut Casey Kelly...

But what really sets 2010 Topps Pro Debut a cut above any other recent Minor League baseball card set is the Futures Game relic cards. These cards boast enormous cuts of game-used jersey from the top prospects in the game and are a must have for any player collector.

Unfortunately, while the set does include great cards of some of the top prospects, it does not include cards of all of the top prospects. Collectors will be sad to note that Topps Pro Debut does not offer cards of any players who did not play in affiliated Rookie, A, High A, AA or AAA league baseball in 2010. As a result, you will not find cards for late-signing 2009 draft picks like Stephen Strasburg, Dustin Ackley, Brandon Tate or from top Cuban-defectors like Aroldis Chapman and Jose Iglesias.

While I understand that contract limitations may have prevented Topps from producing NCAA and Team USA uniform cards of those players, they could have used photos from the Arizona Fall League for Strasburg, Ackley and Iglesias, and Cuban team photos, like those found in 2009 Topps WBC products, for Chapman and Iglesias. Now that Topps is the exclusive producer of Team USA cards beginning this season, I hope that the 2011 Topps Pro Debut set can offer cards from all of the top prospects, and not just those who played in affiliated summer ball.

In addition, while the majority of Topps Pro Debut features great game-action photography, some cards are less exciting and look 2008 TriStar Prospects Plus-esque. For example, the 2010 Topps Pro Debut Stephen Fife looks just as un-inspired as his Prospects Plus card.

Overall, 2010 Topps Pro Debut is an excellent set. The game-used relics alone make the set a success and the prospect cards are sure to be great investments. Congratulations Topps, and I certainly look forward to Topps Pro Debut becoming a staple set for years to come.

If you are busting wax, you're probably wasting your money

The blogosphere is full of collectors complaining that big-ticket products like Topps Triple Threads and Bowman Sterling are ripe for disappointing buyers. What gets less attention is the fact that low-end products are just as much a poor way to spend your money, no matter what you're hoping to get out of them.

Let's discuss the reasons why people bust a box:

1. Game-Used and Autographed Cards.
2. Hot Rookies.
3. Set Collectors.

For every one of those reasons, you can get what you want, guaranteed, for cheaper on eBay any day of the week.

For the purpose of this discussion, let's use 2010 Topps Series 1. According to Topps, each Hobby Box contains 1 Autograph or Relic Card and each Jumbo Hobby Box contains 1 Autograph and 2 Relic Cards. On March 11, a Topps 2010 Series 1 Hobby Box was selling for $68.90 while a 2010 Topps Jumbo Hobby Box was selling for $107.99 on Blowoutcards.com.

Let's consider how valuable those Autograph and Relic Cards are. Over the past few weeks I have been assembling a collection of 2010 Topps Peak Performance Relics cards of my favorite Boston Red Sox players. Here is what I paid for them on eBay, including shipping.

2010 Topps Peak Performance Jersey (Red) Jonathan Papelbon: $3.18
2010 Topps Peak Performance Jersey (Red) David Ortiz: $4.50
2010 Topps Peak Performance Bat Kevin Youkilis: $4.34
2010 Topps Peak Performance Bat Dustin Pedroia: $4.24
2010 Topps Peak Performance Autograph Daniel Bard: $8.25

As you can see, for a mere $24.51 I have assembled almost as many "Hits" as could be expected from buying two boxes of 2010 Topps Jumbo Hobby Boxes for $215.98. And better than that, I got to choose the team and players that I like most.

"Okay, okay," you say, "We get it, you can get the "relics" and autographs we want for a song on eBay, but what about the rookies, we want rookies."

Let us look at the price of 2010 Topps Rookie Cards then. As of 7:21 P.M. EST on March 11, 2010 you can Buy It Now:

#2 Buster Posey RC, 1.50 or best offer, free shipping.
#64 Drew Stubbs RC, 1.00, free shipping.
#105 Madison Bumgarner RC $1.00, free shipping.
#196 Ian Desmond RC $1.00, free shipping.
#292 Tommy Manzella $1.00, free shipping.
#312 Tyler Flowers $1.00, free shipping.

"But," you say, "I am a set builder and I want the whole set." Fine then, be like me and buy the entire Topps Series 1 330-card set from twcbjr on eBay for the Buy It Now price of $19.90, including shipping.

Moral of the Story: Don't be a schmoe, let some other sucker bust the wax and just sit back and scoop up the cards that you really want on eBay for a fraction of the cost. This is the Pessimist Card Collector Zone, Because I'm Definitely Looking Out for You!

Update: I have added to my Red Sox Peak Performance Game-Used Collection with a Kevin Youkilis Game Work Blue Jersey for $3.99. Here it is...