Old designs get a new twist once again when 2020 Topps Archives baseball arrives this summer.
Archives will draw heavily on the 1955, 1974 and 2002 Topps look with other winks at the 1960 Topps All-Star Rookies, combo cards and 1976 Traded cards. There’s also a newly-designed poster in each hobby box featuring big name players, their cities and their nicknames.
2020 Topps Archives Basics
Archives hobby boxes will have 24 packs with eight cards in each. Each case will have ten boxes. Each box promises two autographed cards along with a Nickname Mini-Poster.
The base set will include 300 cards, portraying active veterans and rookies along with former greats on the ’55, ’74 and ’02 designs.
Base Set Parallels will include:
Purple Parallel -#’d to 175
Silver Parallel -#’d to 99
Red Parallel -#’d to 75
Blue Parallel -#’d to 25 – Hobby Exclusive !
Gold Foil Parallel -#’d 1-of-1
There will be a mini version of the 100 card portion of the 1955-style base cards, too.
Box Toppers
The Topps Nickname Mini-Posters that are packed in each box will feature current and former stars and their nicknames in front of a composition background. Some may be autographed.
Inserts
The Nickname Posters will also have card inserts, with current and former players on the checklist.
Other inserts include 1990-style rookies, featuring this season’s top projected first year players. They’ll have three parallel versions:
Black Parallel -#’d to 99
Pinstripe Parallel -#’d to 25
Gold Foil Parallel -#’d 1-of-1
In anticipation of the upcoming game at the Field of Dreams in Iowa between the New York Yankees and Chicago White Sox, there’s a Cornfield Variation insert which plays on the 1989 Topps designs. Those, too, will have the Black, Pinstripe and Gold Foil parallels.
Topps digs into a 60-year-old release for two other inserts: Combo Cards and All-Star Rookies will each have four parallels to look for:
Black Parallel -#’d to 250
Silver Foil Parallel -#’d to 50
Red Foil Parallel -#’d to 25
Gold Foil Parallel -#’d 1-of-1
Topps says the 1976 Traded cards will highlight some of the most memorable trades from past years.
Autographs
Fan Favorites Autographs are the standard signed cards in Archives each year. They return with these parallels in the mix:
Purple Parallel -#’d to 150
Silver Parallel -#’d to 99
Blue Parallel -#’d to 25 – Hobby Exclusive
Gold Parallel -#’d 1-of-1
Fan Favorites Premium Autographs -#’d to 50
Other autographs will come on the ’55 Minis, with each numbered to 20 as well as the Rookie All-Star and Combo cards. The Rookie All-Stars will have Silver Parallel (#’d to 99); Blue (#’d to 25) and 1/1 Gold parallels. The Combo autographs will have Blue and Gold parallels. Both will be hobby box exclusives.
Autographed versions of the 1976 Topps Traded Autographs will include:
Red Parallel -#’d to 99
Gold Parallel -#’d to 50
Black Parallel -#’d 1-of-1
Cornfield cards and 1990 Topps Rookies Autographs will also have autographed versions including:
Pinstripe Parallel -#’d to 27
Black Parallel -#’d to 3
Gold Foil Parallel -#’d 1-of-1
Look for Topps Originals Buyback Autographs numbered to 10, featuring original Topps cards, signed by the players and then gold foil stamped to be pedigreed to the 2020 Archives set.
Release date for 2020 Topps Archives Baseball is currently set for August 19.
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