(Not Exactly) New Release: 2014 Frontier Hiroshima Carp Season Summary

For the second year in the row, Frontier issued a Season Summary set. Last year, there were multiple teams with box sets, but this year it seems that only the Carp wanted one.

The base card fronts have large white borders at the top and bottom with large black text. Additional small circles along one edge has the Carp team logo, player's jersey number, and position. The backs use use the same photo, though it looks like the background has been blurred (at least where another player - or umpire - is in the shot). Additionally, the photo has been cropped slightly differently to give more of the background. Basic biographical details and a season line of statistics are found at the bottom; cards are numbered in an upper corner.

The design isn't bad, though a large portion of the front has text. If these cards were large-sized (A4 or 8x10, or poster size) the design would work that much better. It does feel like a form of an advertisement, almost.

There are 24 cards in the base set, and each box comes with one full set plus one autographed card. The breakdown of the autograph sets is as follows:

• Rookie Parallel Signatures: 5 cards
• Red All The Way Signatures: 18 cards
• Home Uniform Signatures: 10 cards
• 2014 All Star Player Signatures: 6 cards
• Carp Legendary Signatures: 4 cards
• Ace of Carp Signatures: 2 cards (not shown above)

Boxes retailed for around $80 each.

*My* 2015 Topps Series 1 Preview

Everybody's posting final checklists for the first series of 2015 Topps baseball cards, and I've taken a gander or two at the multitude of inserts to be found. I figure that while everyone is looking at the checklists and thinking about what they want, I'll add in my two cents for a few of the sets. Maybe you'll keep me in mind as you bust packs next month!

Let's start with the base cards. I'll get a full set at some point, but there is one card I'm anticipating more than any others: Buck Farmer, card number 193. I like the design with colored stone-style fading borders though, as it's a nice change from the plain white.

Buck (and the other 349 cards in the set) seem to have nine announced parallels (gold, rainbow foil, snow camo, black, pink, plates - which I count as a single parallel, platinum, framed, and clear). But of course there will be Target red, WalMart blue, ToysRUs purple, and probably a few other retail parallels like were issued last year. Keep me in mind if you pull Mr. Farmer from your Topps packs!

 The Highlight of the Year set has some promise. It depends on what the unsigned cards look like. With nine per hobby box and only 30 cards in the first series, it should be very reasonably obtained if I take the plunge.

Many other inserts really don't pique my interest. Other than the throwback minis, there haven't been any stand-out sets in Topps' flagship set in the past few years.

 However, I am somewhat interested in Gallery of Greats. These will be paper-framed cards similar to Gypsy Queen, but with only two per hobby box and a 25-card checklist, I think I'm going to pass.

 There are a couple odd insert sets on my list, though. The Baseball/History insert set of 30 cards will have fifteen non-sport events paired with baseball events that happened on the same day. I have an interest in history and the linking of two facets of American culture is quite appealing. With four cards per box, I can probably get the full set without much travel.

Speaking of culture, here's a set I've been asking for since arriving in Japan. BBM has issued a First Pitch subset in its second series each year for about a decade. The checklist is full of has-beens and never-weres for the most part, but I like the effort and I will definitely build this set as quickly as possible. The checklist has fifteen cards but I haven't seen any odds. Again, if you aren't interested in these, I have a great home for them here!

There are some insert sets that I have yet to see - Robbed, First Home Run, etc. And Cardboard Connection lists two other retail sets that I could chase if they're obtainable and attractive: The Babe Ruth Story, and The Jackie Robinson Story.

So, for the first time since 2011, I'm actually excited about flagship Topps! It's only two weeks away.

What, if anything, are you going to collect from this year's release?

New(ish) Release: 2014 Epoch Giants V9

Along with professional baseball in Japan, the Yomiuri Giants are celebrating their 80th anniversary. Yup, the Giants are recognized as the first professional team in Japan, and remain in existence after all these years. Not only are they the longest-running team, they are the most powerful. With plenty of money in the team's coffers, they really are the Yankees of the NPB, attracting the best players and frequently making it to the Japan Series. Their best years were in the 1960s and 1970s, when Oh and Nagashima led the team to multiple victories. This set recognizes that accomplishment.

The base cards have a premium feel to them, with a high gloss finish and foil highlights. The blue stadium background doesn't really do much for me; I'd prefer seeing the original background. The fronts and backs contain the "V9 Glorious Victory" notation, and fronts list the years the player was with the team.  Backs have statistics, awards, and other recognitions. Cards are numbered in the upper left corner on the back, and the set rounds out at 46 cards.

Each box contains one full 46-card set, one parallel, and two autographs. It looks like 44 players have autographs, while the other two have printed signatures. There are around 80-85 cards per player (Oh and Nagashima have a small handful each).

The autographs have a silver foil parallel, generally limited to around 25 copies (again, with Oh and Nagashima receiving a very small number). Additionally, the gold foil parallel are 1/1s. There is one triple autograph, of which there are three copies. In the top row of the image above, you can see Oh's regular, silver, and gold autographed cards, along with the triple-signed card. The bottom row has additional silver parallel autographs.

One box had an original retail price of 9800 yen plus tax, though these are almost completely sold out! I can pick up a few base sets still, though. I might get one for myself this weekend, as the set continues to grow on me.