New Release: 2014 BBM Lions

Two team sets were issued by BBM last week, the BayStars set I showed yesterday and the Lions set below.

 The base cards remind me a lot of last year's design. It might just be me. I don't know. And the backs are the same as always. I think the side borders constrain the front picture a bit.

 Technically, the Lions team set has the most parallels of all the team sets. The first is Total Package, a three-card subset of Hideto Asamura. There are hitting, fielding, and running cards.

 The next four subsets use identical designs, with different background colors and titles. Each card has three images, and as far as I can tell, all three subjects in that subset are shown, with the other two players in the background. The blue-colored Aces of Three Types feature pitchers.

 Rising Stars has three younger players - not exactly rookies. It's yellow.

 Yellow and blue make green, and that's the next subset's color. Veteran Presence, not surprisingly, has the team's veteran players.

 The last of the similar subsets is International Import. If you thought this featured Pier 1 merchandise, you're wrong. And you didn't look at the image above. Instead, it has three foreign players on the Lions roster. I think all three joined the team this year, so their card backs feature only their MLB experience. The three last subsets have career statistics with yearly totals. The pitcher subset has a 2013 statistics breakdown by opposing team.

The final subset has player pairs and I assume explain a connection between them. The set is complete at 90 cards.

The four identically-designed subsets have a parallel using a refractor-style finish that is similar to Bowman's Cracked Ice design. These are serially-numbered to 150 copies.

 As always, the team set has one insert set, called Lions Den. They used a claw scratch mark background, and of course the card fronts are foil.

Lions Den has a parallel serial-numbered to 100 copies each using gold foil.

A "Limited Edition" promo set of nine cards exists with light blue borders, different card numbering, and a notation on the front.

As always, autographs are included for 68 players and two mascots found in the base set. These are serially-numbered 30-60 copies each, though most players have 60 copies.

Two dual-autograph cards serially-numbered to five copies, and six "special" autographed cards also numbered to five were randomly inserted in packs.