Dateline: 01/07/98
While we took a week or two to relax over the holidays the products kept rolling right out. I went to my local cardshop this week to start catching up, and noticed that the trend we ended the year on has continued into 1998. That trend, of course, is autographs. It seems that the large majority of all new releases have them and they are getting much easier to find.
Back in December we saw Donruss release 97 Donruss Signature Series. With a high pack price you're guaranteed to find an autograph in each pack. Last year I wasn't wild about Signature Series because (and maybe I just had bad luck) it seemed that a majority of the autographs I found were of very minor players. This year maybe my luck has changed, but I believe it's a better product. The Significant Signatures insert set has autographs of baseball legends including many Hall of Famers. It also seemed as if at least every other pack I opened had a starter for a major league team whose name any fan would recognize. For $12-$15 per pack you might not be able to afford much, but pick up a pack or two if you can.
The "Big Hurt" only signed 200 Notable Nicknames in Donruss Signature Series
Upper Deck kept the ink flowing with two new releases. SP Top Prospect Baseball is back for the first time since 1995 and so are the signatures. At a rate of better than one per box you won't find any of Michael Jordan this time, but young stars like Travis Lee, Paul Konerko, and Ben Grieve make nice finds. The first thing you'll notice if you find one of these autographs is what a simple, classy card UD has created. I'd like to see more manufacturers copy their style.
Over on the gridiron Upper Deck has changed it's SP line to SP Authentic. With at least one autograph per box (although they are redemption cards), you'll find many NFL stars including Dan Marino, Troy Aikman, and Warrick Dunn. You've also got a chance to get combination cards like Joe Montana/Jerry Rice and memorabilia cards that can be traded in for signed items of Marino, Montana, and more. I'm not a fan of redemption cards, but if I find a Marino Authentics card I'll be all too happy to send it in.
While the three sets above use autographs as their main draw, it's getting tough to find a new set that doesn't find some way to get some ink involved. Studio Hockey managed to fit in three autographs along with 8x10 portraits and inserts. Skybox includes Autographics in each new basketball and football product continuing it's successful insert that helped start this trend last year.
At Topps it's getting to be expected that almost every new product has an autographed insert. The most recent release is Bowman's Best Football which finds ten NFL stars signing regular, refractor, and atomic refractor cards at various odds. Their popular Co-Signers have been a part of the Stadium Club line this past year and will continue in 98.
At a time when manufacturers are turning to limited, numbered inserts, one of one parallels, and other tricks to keep their products selling, it seems to me that most collectors would prefer to find an autographed card over a card stamped with a number by a machine. I'm not saying I wouldn't have loved to find a Masterpiece Ken Griffey Jr., but I know that I would have sold it while I'd be much more inclined to hold onto a card he signed.
What do you think about the autograph trend? Why not let everyone know on our new bulletin board? It's free and easy to use. While you're there you can look for trading partners or let everyone know who you've got to trade.
That's all for our first week of 1998, but stay tuned for some exciting events this year as we work to make Sportscard Report the first place you go for the latest word about sportscards online.
CHAT