How to Collect

A card that is autographed by a player, celebrity, or other subject. Autos are a type of chase card – they are more limited, and thus more valuable, than the more common cards in a set. Read More

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 cards and make up the majority of cards in a given product. They typically feature a card number on the… Read More

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 year, it can vary in width, color, and design. Some cards have full borders, while others feature borderless designs… Read More

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 and type of card. Thicker card stock is often used for higher-end or premium products. The thicker stock provides… Read More

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 cards, rare parallels, rare rookie cards, relic cards, and insert cards. Unlike common base cards, chase cards are more rare and valuable. When opening… Read More

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

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 are the opposite of chase cards and hits. Read More

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 accent or security feature. Holograms refract light to produce three-dimensional images or shiny, prismatic effects that change depending on… Read More

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. Read More

A trading card that contains a small piece – or “swatch” – of a player’s jersey. Unlike Patch Cards, which are taken from specific parts of the jersey (i.e. the logo or number), jersey swatches are typically single-color and consist of basic mesh or… Read More

Most trading card products have a base set, made up of common cards, and then a smaller number of more-limited parallel cards. These cards essentially “run parallel” to the base set – they have a similar look and design, but are distinguished by a unique physical… Read More

Prospecting is collecting cards of young players who have yet to reach the MLB. In many ways, Prospecting is all about finding as many cards of potential future All Stars as possible – imagine collecting the first-ever card of Albert Pujols, Mike Trout, or Juan Soto. For… Read More

A card that contains a piece of memorabilia embedded in the card itself – from a swatch of fabric from a player’s jersey to a piece of game-used baseball. There are Dual and Triple Relic cards, which include more than one piece of memorabilia on a… Read More

The RetroFractor celebrates historic players across 100 years of baseball who never received their 1st Bowman card. Read More

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 designation (e.g. “RC”) on the front or back, and that designation will appear on the card that same year… Read More

Collector who seeks out every card in a set. Read More

Sticker cards are just that: stickers that can be peeled off from the back. The most famous examples of sticker cards are Garbage Pail Kids and Wacky Packages. Read More

A superfractor is the rarest type of refractor card. Superfractors are short-printed, 1-of-1 cards, which means that for any given card, there will be only one superfractor of that card in the entire product. Because they are 1/1, superfractors are among the most desired and valuable cards… Read More

Team Collecting Guide Read More