2022 marked another highly anticipated release year for Topps Finest Baseball cards. As one of the hobby’s premier high-end products, Topps Finest has developed a reputation for featuring stunning photography, intricate refractors, and some of the set’s most valuable rookie cards and parallels.
The 2022 Topps Finest Baseball base set contains 330 cards and highlights the biggest stars and top prospects from the 2021 MLB season. As with past years, Topps once again delivered exquisite photography and intricate refractors that shine and sparkle unlike any other brand. Some of the standout base cards include Shohei Ohtani, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Fernando Tatis Jr., and rookie sensations Spencer Torkelson and Bobby Witt Jr. While the base cards are certainly beautiful collector pieces on their own, it’s the parallels and short printed cards that drive the most excitement for Finest enthusiasts.
Perhaps the most coveted parallel from 2022 Finest is the 1/1 Rainbow Foil parallel. Featuring a spectacular iridescent rainbow foil pattern on a refractor stock, these ultra-rare 1/1 parallels are true works of art. Some of the biggest names to garner a coveted Rainbow Foil 1/1 include Shohei Ohtani, Juan Soto, Ronald Acuña Jr., and rookie sensation Julio Rodriguez. With their stunning visual appeal and exclusivity as the lone copy in existence, Rainbow Foil 1/1s command astronomical prices in the secondary market.
Another highly sought-after parallel is the Gold Refractor, limited to only 10 copies per card. Featuring a brilliant gold refractor backdrop, these parallels truly pop on the card front. Some notable Gold Refractors from 2022 Finest include rookie phenoms Adley Rutschman and Bobby Witt Jr., as well as superstars Mike Trout, Aaron Judge, and Mookie Betts. With their sharp color contrast and low print runs, Gold Refractors are highly valuable collector pieces.
Finest also introduced a new Spectra parallel in 2022, featuring a translucent spectrum color blend on the refractor stock. These low-numbered parallels, which include rainbow, orange, green, blue, and purple variations, add a new layer of visual appeal to the set. Rosters for the Spectra parallels are not publicly disclosed, so pulling one of these color-shifting beauties is a true thrill for collectors.
When it comes to short prints and hit cards, 2022 Finest delivered some true gems. The biggest chase of the set is the coveted Rainbow Foil Autograph parallel, limited to a minuscule 3 copies per player. Pulling a superstar name like Mike Trout or Shohei Ohtani in this parallel is the stuff of collector dreams. Other highly sought-after autograph parallels include the Gold Refractor Autograph (10 copies), On-Card Autograph, and Rainbow Foil Patch Autograph.
Top rookies and prospects are also heavily featured in Finest’s hit parade. Top rookie cards this year included Bobby Witt Jr. Rainbow Foil Autograph (3 copies), Adley Rutschman Gold Refractor Autograph (10 copies), and Julio Rodriguez On-Card Autograph. Prospect hounds chased parallels of stars of tomorrow like Gunnar Henderson, Spencer Torkelson, and Oneil Cruz.
The 2022 Topps Finest Baseball set once again raised the bar for high-end cardboard. Between the exquisite photography, dazzling refractors, and treasure trove of valuable parallels and short prints, it’s easy to see why Finest is a pinnacle release each year. With its combination of true artistry and investment potential, 2022 Finest will surely go down as one of the set’s most coveted modern issues. Whether collecting for the long-term or to chase the biggest rookie stars, Topps Finest continues to captivate collectors year after year.
