It's been a long time since Topps was the only game in town and loyal collectors fidgeted through the winter waiting for the card giant to release the coming season's cards. But it's still an exciting time for collectors when Topps Baseball hits the shelf, and that time seems to be coming faster every year.
Topps Series One arrived at local shops last Thursday, nearly five months before Opening Day.
Series One consists of 240 cards, including the first Topps card of Ryan Christianson, the Mariners' first-round draft pack in June. Other Mariners in the early release include Jay Buhner, Russ Davis, Edgar Martinez, Alex Rodriguez and Brian Hunter. Noticeably absent is Ken Griffey Jr., who may be sporting a new uniform when Series Two rolls out near the end of spring training.
Topps has reprinted Hank Aaron's 23 regular-issue Topps cards as part of the set. The reprint cards break down into regular versions of the 11 Aaron cards produced in even-numbered years and Chrome versions of the 12 Aaron cards produced in odd-numbered years. Regular Aaron reprints are seeded one per 18 packs, Chrome reprints are seeded 1:72, and Chrome Refractor parallel cards are seeded 1:288. The ultimate chase cards are reprints autographed by Aaron, one per every 4,361 packs.
Topps plays the insert game as well as any manufacturer, and the new set has inserts to burn. In addition to the Aaron cards, six other insert subsets can be pulled from Series One packs, including a reprint of Mark McGwire's 1985 rookie card (1:36 packs) and a 10-card ``Perennial All-Stars'' subset featuring Griffey and Rodriguez (1:18).
Moderately priced at about $1.35 a pack, the Topps cards have been selling briskly at local shops but competition is on the way. Upper Deck 2000 releases today.
BALLCARD ADVICE: If you're bullish on baseball cards but skeptical of dealer claims that even Rey Quinones rookie cards are good investments, you may want to spring for a subscription to Baseball Card Analyst. Published in Spokane by Mitch Bernardi and John Carden, BCA is a slick, 16-page newsletter full of market analysis and tips on cards to buy, sell and hold.
Bernardi and Carden launched BCA in October to fill a perceived void in the market for unbiased information about cards. While they stress that they are not investment advisors, they are quick to offer opinions about cards they believe are undervalued.
In the November issue scheduled for mailing this week, they recommend three in particular: Sammy Sosa's 1990 Leaf rookie card, Mark McGwire's 1985 Topps rookie card and the 1998 Donruss Signature Series card featuring Sandy Koufax. They predict that the Sosa card, currently trading at about $80, will rise to about $110 by the end of the 2000 season and the McGwire card will surge from $160 to $220. They also see plenty of room for growth in the Koufax card. It's the only certified card autographed by the Hall of Famer and is ``clearly undervalued'' at $110.
One of the publication's most interesting features is the BCA Index - ``basically the Dow Jones Industrial Average of the baseball card market.'' The index charts the market performance of 30 popular baseball cards from the 1940s through the '90s and is updated monthly. Of the 30 cards, six feature pitchers and 24 hitters, and 12 of the players are still active.
In the four years from 1995 to 1998, the BCA Index rose just 4.8 percent annually. This year, spurred by the McGwire-Sosa home run race in '98 and a booming Internet market for cards, the index was up nearly 39 percent through the end of October.
In addition to the BCA Index, the newsletter features a monthly market report with news about auction results, on-line sales, new releases and the like; a list of monthly featured cards with pricing history; and the BCA Portfolio of recommended cards in various price ranges. A one-year subscription (10 issues) costs $20.97 and can be ordered through BCA's toll-free line at 877-886-8400.
SIGNING FEES: A sampling of mail-order autograph fees as advertised in this week's issue of Sports Collectors Digest (prices are for flat items and do not include shipping and handling):
Paul Molitor ($55), Luis Aparicio ($25), Lou Brock ($45), Maury Wills ($18), Joe Morgan ($30), Pete Rose ($45), Rickey Henderson ($65), Ozzie Smith ($35), Chipper Jones ($46), Steve Carlton ($33), Tom Seaver ($35), Johnny Unitas ($38), Bo Jackson ($44), Joe Montana ($62), Peyton Manning ($60), Magic Johnson ($95), Randy Johnson ($60), Don Larsen ($15), Bucky Dent ($20) and Tom Tresh ($10).
Nick Rousso writes weekly on sports collectibles. He can be reached at nickrousso@aol.com
