In a segment that aired on MLB Network Thursday morning, Kris Bryant was announced as card No. 1 in the upcoming 2017 Topps Series 1 baseball set. Bryant was chosen by fans and collectors who voted online.
The NL MVP joins a long list of baseball greats who have been represented on the first Topps card of the year including Jackie Robinson, Ted Williams, Hank Aaron and Derek Jeter. The one-week online vote occurred in October of last year where fans chose from a list of 16 nominees. Topps started the Vote for Card No. 1 in 2016 when Angels outfielder Mike Trout was the fans’ choice.
“It’s a huge honor to be chosen as Card No. 1 since it has depicted so many legends before me,” Bryant said. “It’s very humbling and nice to know it came from the fans.”
Bryant, who has an endorsement deal with Topps, has earned a number of accolades in his young baseball career. In 2015, he won the NL Rookie of the Year and took the MVP crown just a year later. The two-time All-Star put up impressive numbers including 30 home runs, 102 RBI, a league-leading 121 runs scored, and a .292 batting average last season.
“Kris Bryant is an outstanding player with an infectious personality,” said David Leiner, General Manager and Vice President of Topps North American Sports & Entertainment. “He’s done so much in his career and has created fans throughout baseball regardless of team loyalties. He’s the perfect pick for Card No. 1 for 2017 Topps Baseball.”
As part of the promotion on MLB Network, Topps also revealed a subset of cards featuring on-air personalities, including Hall of Famer John Smoltz, former players Sean Casey, Kevin Millar and Harold Reynolds, hosts Greg Amsinger and Lauren Shehadi, and more. The first 10 cards of this 29-card set will appear in Series 1 and the rest within the June release of Series 2 and the October release of Update.
2017 Topps Series 1 is available for pre-sale below. The product will arrive in hobby shops early next week.
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