2016 Gypsy Queen Will Offer Same Nostalgic Appeal

Gypsy Queen baseball continues to supply nostalgic appeal to collectors, with its detailed drawings of current stars, rising rookies and Hall of Famers. The detail displayed in this set has been intricate and sometimes fascinating since Topps resurrected the 19th century cigarette brand in 2011.  While it’s proven popular with collectors, even established brands need to innovate.  We’ll find out next spring if Topps succeeded but some preview information and images give us a hint at what’s coming.

Topps says the product will contain all on-card autographs and no redemption cards.

2016 Topps Gypsy Queen is scheduled for release April 6.    Price range for a hobby box should be in the $100 to $125 range, depending on the retailer. A hobby box will contain 24 packs, with 10 cards to a pack. Of those 10 cards, one will be a mini.

2016 Topps Gypsy Queen Basics

The base set will consist of 300 base cards and 50 short prints. Each card also will have a mini version. Parallels for 100 of the base cards will include purple paper framed, new green paper framed cards and hobby exclusive 1/1 black paper framed cards. A new MVP Mini set of 25 subjects will feature retired and active MVPs from previous seasons.

Topps is promising two autographs and two relics per hobby box. In addition, hobby boxes will include a box loader with 10 mini cards that are variations of the minis that will fall one to a pack. The mini card variations will be part of a special 100-card set. Parallels will include purple, gold and red (numbered to 5). Leather and clear parallels will be 1/1s.

Autograph Content

Autograph cards will feature on-card signatures of veteran players, rookies and retired greats. Each will have parallels in green, gold, red (numbered to 5) and black (1/1). Mini MVP autographs, exclusive to the box of variations in the hobby box, also will be included and will have 1/1 black parallels. Hobby exclusive mini autographs will feature on-card signatures and will be numbered to 25. There also will be a black parallel numbered 1/1.

Relics and Inserts

There will be a diverse sampling of relic cards in this year’s Gypsy Queen set. Game-used bats and uniforms of veteran players and retired stars will be featured, along with gold parallels. Red parallels will be numbered to 5, and a hobby-exclusive black button parallel will feature a button from a game-used jersey.

Mini relic cards will be framed and also will display game-used bat and uniform pieces. Parallels will be in gold, red (numbered to 5) and black (1/1).

Making its debut in this year’s set will be Jumbo Patch Relic cards, a multi-colored game-used jersey patch numbered to 10. There also will be a 1/1 black parallel.

Another new addition — and hobby exclusive item — is the Ancient Era Remnants.

These are miniature buybacks from the 1920s through the 1950s and will feature athletes, celebrities and cultural events from those decades in a collectible Gypsy Queen-style plastic frame.

Laces Around the League will display a piece of a game-used baseball that will include a part of the ball’s stitching. These cards will be numbered to 5. Prime Bat Relics are 1/1 cards that will contain a piece of a game-used bat.

Original Art Path cards are hobby-only 1/1 cards that will be drawn like an original Gypsy Queen portrait and will include a game-used patch.

Autographed Relic Cards will combine a game-used jersey swatch with an on-card signature. Red parallels will be numbered to 5, with a black button parallel numbered to 1/1.

Hobby-exclusive auto patch book cards will contain a multi-colored patch on one side of the book and an on-card signature on the other. Collectors might also pull a 1/1 black parallel version of this card.

Inserts will include a pair of returnees and a new addition. Glove Stories honors the amazing catches made throughout baseball history. Printing plate parallels, numbered 1/1, are also sprinkled throughout boxes. Walk-Off Winners feature game-ending hits from the 2015 season and also in baseball history. It also will have a 1/1 printing plate variation.

The new insert is called Power Alley, and it highlights the home run totals of the active and retired all-time home run leaders. All of the totals will be current through the 2015 season. Like the other two inserts, there will be 1/1 printing plates.

You can check out 2016 Topps Gypsy Queen on eBay via this link.

2016 Topps Gypsy Queen Checklist

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About Bob D'Angelo

Bob has been a sportswriter and copy editor for more than 35 years and a blogger for a decade. He is celebrating his 50th year of card collecting, and still counts his 1965 Topps Mickey Mantle as his favorite. You can reach him at [email protected].