3 best. 3 worst Topps issues

[Section115]

Best: 1966, 1972, 1960

Worst: 1970, 1976, 1973


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[nolemmings]

I'll chime in on this topic again. I try to look at the sets as if they were released when I was a kid, and of course many of them in fact were. My least favorite:

1. 1978. Hands down. It's as if the guy tasked with designing this set took the preceding year's issue--itself pretty unremarkable--and took 15 minutes to tweak a couple of things to distinguish it (must have been the same guy they used in 1969). Those things, an ugly uncreative script team name and the player's position, abbreviated no less, put inside a baseball, make it look like someone forgot to do their homework assignment and slapped together something in between classes. Hate it.

2. 1973. First year to issue all cards at once, and the first to dive headlong into "action shots", after an apparent warm reception from the '71 and '72 dabbling into that format. Between the hideous airbrushing gone wild to the long range who-the-heck-is that shot selection, these just fell flat. I will give them credit for the LHP/RHP distinction and it's not totally their fault that the action photography was not yet up to snuff; still, with the drab black backs and their vertical orientation that limited the stats, this was lackluster at best.

3. 1954. I won't totally re-hash my prior rant--it can be found here.
http://www.net54baseball.com/showthr...highlight=1954
Suffice it to say that the player selection was so lousy-- a 1/10 chance at getting a coach or manager and virtually no AL Champion Indian pitchers, for example-- that any kid ripping packs that year was dismally disappointed. Topps was hugely lucky that they hit on Aaron, Kaline and Banks, or this would be universally roasted as the worst Topps set ever.

BEST.

1. 1966. My first year collecting. Love the color coordination for all players on a team--also used well in '68 and '69 (same colors even). Mad that they chose that one year to exclude World Series cards as my beloved Twins had been participants. Just liked everything about the set except maybe the capless guys from the Angels and Braves in the early series.

2. 1961. Really think this is a clean design, although the photography could be better. This was the first set I ever collected that was issued before I had started collecting-- my first effort at a set from the past, and I will always remember the first card given to me--Billy Pierce. Had never heard of him, did a bit of research and saw he was quite good and this spurred me to first study many others who had played before "my time". Really started me into vintage collecting, later followed by prewar.

3. 1956. Player selection is outstanding, love the over-sized cards, and the design and artwork are great, even if many were repeated from the prior year or two. If they could have just squeezed Musial in there somehow.

[JollyElm]

Originally Posted by nolemmings

2. 1973. First year to issue all cards at once, and the first to dive headlong into "action shots", after an apparent warm reception from the '71 and '72 dabbling into that format. Between the hideous airbrushing gone wild to the long range who-the-heck-is that shot selection, these just fell flat. I will give them credit for the LHP/RHP distinction and it's not totally their fault that the action photography was not yet up to snuff; still, with the drab black backs and their vertical orientation that limited the stats, this was lackluster at best.

Minor point, but it was 1974 when Topps issued all the cards at once. 1973 still had the various series.

[nolemmings]

Sorry, but the 1973 were also released all at once. In some parts of the country they were released in series, but they were all printed at once and at least where I grew up in Minnesota, were all available at the same time.

[JollyElm]

Originally Posted by nolemmings

Sorry, but the 1973 were also released all at once. In some parts of the country they were released in series, but they were all printed at once and at least where I grew up in Minnesota, were all available at the same time.

Sorry, but I don't buy it. The whole country had the set released in series...but not your town in Minnesota? Come on.

[nolemmings]

Sorry, but I don't buy it. The whole country had the set released in series...but not your town in Minnesota? Come on.

Um, you might want to re-think that.

[JollyElm]

That pack must have been issued after the season was over, sort of like those infamous 'Christmas' packs. The graphic on that pack is the same one used during the season, only it didn't have that "660 cards" verbiage on it.

1973 Topps Wrapper.jpg

I have never even once heard a person claim they were all released at the same time. Look anywhere--the PSA website, Beckett, etc.--they all say the same thing: they were issued in series. That is why Beckett always listed them in separate series.

[bnorth]

Originally Posted by nolemmings

Um, you might want to re-think that.

I know nothing about these packs but using anything in a GAI slab to prove it is real is not a good idea. They slabbed several made up fake packs. I would be amazed if the cards in the pack are the right year.

[K-Nole]

http://www.psacardfacts.com/Hierarchy.aspx?c=188

http://www.cardboardconnection.com/1...seball-cards-2

http://www.1973baseballcards.com/?p=1

[ALR-bishop]

What amazes me is that a guy as astute as Anthony could be so wrong about 57 and 59

Todd-- I get what you say about 54, but it is even more true of the iconic 52 set which is also full of coaches, managers and guys who hardly played at the ML level, if at all.

[33rd Street]

1953 topps- I realize sets from the fifties suffer from the bowman/topps mini war but in 53 topps got a great Mantle in there a high number mays and that great Paige! Top it off with the best card (my opinion) of Robinson to open the set and I can live with no Snider, Musial etc. these cards just scream nostalgia to me. Little pieces of art.

1956 Topps- I guess you can tell I'm a 50's guy by now. Now that bowman's gone topps gets to load up this issue with every great except Musial. For eye appeal and collectabilty this is topps best issue in my opinion it's lacking any rookie class at all that little go go sox SS doesn't excite many collectors but there are 33 HOF's in this classic.

1957 Topps- last year for New York Giants and the bums! Set has it all, legends of the sport and a great rookie class. Centered 57's are some of my favorite cards.

Worst

1968-1970- nothing about these three years excites me. The only good thing that happened was Mantle never had a 1970 card! Thank god I didn't have to see the mick on some of the goffy early seventy issues with huge sideburns and polyester uniforms!!

1958 Topps- very colorful but the worst of the fifties in my opinion.

1974- this is topps worst issue ever in my opinion. Just so happens its the year I was born. Yuck.

[onlyvintage62]

Originally Posted by JollyElm

Sorry, but I don't buy it. The whole country had the set released in series...but not your town in Minnesota? Come on.

It has been verified (even by Topps), that parts of the country had all the cards released at once. It was a marketing test to see how it would impact sales.

The reason being is that they were losing money by printing cards in series, as demand fell off by the 6th and 7th series.

I know that the entire states of California and Florida - at least- had the card released in one shot.

[Griffins]

Best- '67, '65, '71, '56, '55

'67 is the cleanest design of all the Topps issues, and IMO 2nd only to '53 Bowman for best design. '65 and '71 are both great designs and both sets feature good imagery. '56 and '55 are like the others, a good design that doesn't get in the way of the photography, as it should be.

Worst '73, '61, '59, '57, '58

'73, '61, and '57 all have bad, muddy images. '69 has the same problem, all the blue skies look slate gray. '59 and '58 both have bad designs that over power the images.
Topps had a bad run from '57-'62 until they went on a good run from '63-'67.