Gypsy Queen returns in late March with some design changes, a slightly more expensive price for hobby boxes, and new parallels for collectors to chase.
A hobby box will contain 24 packs, with eight cards to a pack. As has been the case with other products announced for 2019, dealer cost is up–GQ will cost dealers about $7 more per box than last year. At retail, you can probably expect boxes to open at around $100-$110.
Topps is promising two autographs and will debut a three-card chrome topper pack in every hobby box. Refractor parallels will be available in indigo (numbered to 150), gold (50), red (5) and SuperFractor (1/1), along with autographed versions numbered to 25.
Base Set
The 2019 Topps Gypsy Queen base set will consist of 300 cards and the design will be slightly different. Whereas the main image of the 2018 set blended into the borders with a feathering effect, the 2019 version will use framing to contain the main art work of the player. The player’s name will appear in smaller letters at the bottom of the card in a ribbon-like nameplate configuration. The distinctive “GQ” logo will be centered above the nameplate, shifting over from the bottom left-hand corner spot it occupied in 2018. The team logo and the player’s position will flank the player’s name in each corner of the card.
Parallels will include missing nameplates, indigo (numbered to 250), hobby exclusive black & white (50), red (10) and black (1/1). The base set also will have short-printed cards and black 1/1/ parallels that feature former major-league greats.
Inserts
For the second straight year, Jackie Robinson Day image variations will be part of an insert set. These cards will feature players wearing the uniform No. 42 that Robinson made famous with the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1947 to 1956. There also will be 1/1 black parallels.
Making its debut this year are Player’s Weekend variations, which showcase stars wearing their team’s weekend jerseys. Fortune Teller Mini cards return, with provocative predictions for the 2019 season on the back of each card. Tarot of the Diamond inserts return for the second straight year. These cards draw their inspiration from old tarot decks and feature players in colorful art designs.
Autographs
Two autographs in a hobby box will be a big draw for collectors. Gypsy Queen Autographs feature on-card signatures and have parallels in indigo (numbered to 50), a hobby exclusive black & 
white (numbered to 50) and black (1/1).
The Fortune Teller cards have hard-signed cards, along with the Jackie Robinson Day Variations and mini rookie autographs numbered to 99. These three subsets have 1/1 black autograph parallels, while the Jackie Robinson Day has a black & white parallel that is fittingly numbered to 42. The mini rookie autos have parallels numbered to 50.
Subsets that combine autographs and relics are featured in low-numbered subsets. Autograph Garments, featuring a signature and a jersey or bat relic are numbered to 50, while the Autograph Patch Book features one player in a three-panel setup and is numbered to 20.
Bases Around the League Autograph Relics feature an on-card signature and pieces of game-used bases from an Opening Day game in 2018. The cards are numbered to 20.
Pull-Up Sock Autograph Relics are numbered to 10 and sport autographs and swatches of colorful socks of major-leaguers. There are also 1/1 black parallels.
The company is also promising some “unannounced parallels and hidden gems” that will reveal themselves when the product is released.
See Gypsy Queen cards on eBay here.
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