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How to Collect

Hobby Videos

The Brands

Word of the Day

Wax

A commonly-used Hobby term, wax refers to an unopened box or case of cards. To “rip wax” or “break wax” is to open a sealed box or case – often…

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Rookie Card

Rookie cards refer to players’ first cards once they make their Major League debut. In most cases, rookie cards are stamped with some kind of…

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Hobby Box

Hobby boxes are high-end boxes that typically feature a greater number of chase cards, which makes them more expensive/valuable. Unlike retail boxes, which are widely distributed in…

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Checklist

A list of every card in a given product (e.g. 2021 Topps Chrome Baseball) – every base card, every parallel, every autographed card, etc.

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Chrome®

Unlike traditional paper cards, Chrome cards use chromium paper, which gives them a shiny, metallic look. Chrome cards are also more firm and durable than…

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Blaster Box

A blaster box is a type of retail box commonly distributed at large retail stores like Walmart and Target (as opposed to Hobby shops or online exclusives)….

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Book Card

When one or more cards – generally, autographed cards or relics – are combined together to open like a book.

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Case

A case is a sealed container that holds a set number of boxes. Most Topps hobby cases contain 12 boxes, though the number of boxes-per-case varies…

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Border

On a card, the border refers to the outer edge or frame surrounding the central image and text. Depending on the card manufacturer, set, and…

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Box

A box is a sealed container that holds packs of cards. Some boxes may contain as little as one pack of cards; others may contain 30+ packs….

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Box Loader

Box loaders – or toppers – are special, single cards or sets of cards that are only available as inserts in hobby boxes. Box loaders…

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Acetate

A premium trading card material made from transparent or semi-transparent plastic, known for its sleek and durable design. Acetate cards often feature striking visual effects,…

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1st Bowman®

A player’s 1st Bowman card is their first professional baseball card, released before their official RC.

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Base Card

Base cards make up the base set, which is the most common set of cards in a sports or non-sport product. Base cards are considered common…

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Breaking

“Breaking” means opening the seal on the box or pack to reveal the cards inside. Breaking can take many forms but is typically done by…

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Brick-and-Mortar

Brick-and-Mortar refers to Hobby Shops. These Hobby Shops represent the foundation of collecting and continue to be the most critical institutions in the Hobby. Even…

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Card Show

A trade show where collectors and dealers congregate to buy, sell, and trade cards. There are hundreds of card shows around the United States each…

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Chasing the Rainbow

A modern collecting phenomenon where you collect different color parallel cards of a player.

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Card Sleeve

These are plastic sleeves used to protect cards. The most popular kind – Penny Sleeves – get their name for being inexpensive: they cost a…

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Case Hit

Boxes are shipped from manufacturers in cases, and for some products, a special card will be inserted ‘one per case’. These case hits are more rare and thus…

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Card Stock

Card stock refers to the type of paper or material used to produce trading cards. Card stock can vary in thickness, depending on the set…

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Chrome® Sapphire

Premium design treatment of Topps Chrome® products that debuted in 2016. Sapphire cards elevate chromium stock cards with blue highlights and sapphire refractor foil boards,…

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Collation/Collating

Collation/Collating is the organizing and assembling of trading cards into complete sets or subsets. Typically done by collectors or dealers, this process involves gathering individual…

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Combination Card

Combination cards feature two or more players, teams, or other elements on a single card. These cards come in various designs: one player on each…

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Common Card

Commons are the least rare, and therefore least valuable, cards in any given set. A typical common would be the base card of a non-rookie player. Commons…

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Completist

A collector who is driven to possess every card of a given set, year, team, player, or category. If they collect 2021 Topps Chrome Baseball,…

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Die-cut

A trading card that has had part of the card stock removed to create a specific shape, design or function, such as a stand-up. In…

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Dinged

A dinged card is a damaged card. A ding can refer to indentations, scratches on the surface, or other types of damage. But the most…

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Grading

Many collectors will submit their cards to a third-party service to evaluate and assess their physical condition. This third-party service will assign a numerical grade…

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High Number/High Series

The subset of cards within a particular set released later in the production run, typically with a higher number.

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Hit

A modern hobby term referring to higher-valued chase cards. Autographs, relic cards, insert cards, and coveted rookie cards are all commonly understood to be hits. In some cases, manufacturers will…

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Autograph

A card that is autographed by a player, celebrity, or other subject. Autos are a type of chase card – they are more limited, and…

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Breaking

Breaking refers to the practice of opening multiple boxes or cases of a product at the same time, and then distributing the cards to a…

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Chase Card

Any given set of cards will include a limited number of chase cards, which are highly coveted by collectors. Some examples of chase cards include: autographed…

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Error Card

A card that contains a mistake or error resulting in a variation (aka VAR). Error cards may include misspellings, statistical errors, incorrect photos, or other mistakes….

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Event-Worn

A piece of memorabilia that has been worn by a player at a non-specific game or event. For example, a jersey or jersey patch that…

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Factory Set

Factory Set refers to a specific way to sell baseball cards. Instead of random packs being placed in a retail box or hobby box, a full set is packaged and…

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Fanatics Live

Fanatics Live is a Hobby platform innovating the breaking industry with more exciting shows, unprecedented athlete access, and the most robust trust and safety policies…

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Flagship

Topps Flagship is the core annual baseball card release, encompassing Series 1, Series 2, Topps Update, Topps Chrome, and Topps Chrome Update. Each year’s flagship…

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Game-Used

A piece of memorabilia that has been used in a professional sporting event. These items can include, but are not limited to: bats, jerseys, fielding…

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Game-Worn

A piece of memorabilia that has been worn by a player in an official game, which is then embedded in a trading card – commonly…

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Glossy Set

Glossy sets refer to cards featuring a shiny, reflective coating. This coating is achieved through printing tech, such as Chrome cards printed on chromium paper….

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Hobby

A widely-used shorthand for the practice of card collecting and the community of card collectors.

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Hologram Card

A hologram card features a holographic image or design element. The hologram can be the primary focus of the card or be used as an…

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Inscription

When a player signs an autograph, they sometimes include an additional inscription along with their name. Some popular inscriptions include the player’s nickname, Hall of Fame…

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Insert Card

Insert cards refer to any non-base and non-parallel cards in a trading card set. These cards typically have their own themes, names, designs, and numberings.

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Jackie Robinson

Jackie Robinson, born January 31, 1919, in Cairo, Georgia, was a groundbreaking American baseball player who broke Major League Baseball’s color barrier with the Brooklyn…

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Jersey Card

A trading card that contains a small piece – or “swatch” – of a player’s jersey. Unlike Patch Cards, which are taken from specific parts…

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Jersey Number Card

A jersey number card refers to a couple of different types of covetable cards. One example of a jersey number card is a trading card that…

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Josh Gibson

Josh Gibson, born on December 21, 1911, was an elite baseball catcher and one of the greatest hitters in history. He starred in the Negro…

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