The 2022 Topps Holiday Baseball card set was released in November 2022 as a limited-edition insert set included randomly in packs of the main 2022 Topps Baseball series 1 and series 2 releases. The holiday cards feature players dressed in festive costumes or poses related to Christmas, Hanukkah, and New Year’s themes. Along with physical card packs, Topps also released digital versions of the cards that can be redeemed through online redemption codes.
The 2022 Topps Holiday Baseball card set totals 80 cards and features current MLB stars from across the league. Notable players included are Shohei Ohtani, Aaron Judge, Juan Soto, Mookie Betts, Fernando Tatis Jr., and more. The digital codes for these special cards were highly sought after by collectors looking to build their virtual collections without having to hunt packs for the rare physical parallels and variations. Redeeming the codes unlocked special animations, backgrounds, and bonus content not found on the standard cardboard issues.
Topps distributed the holiday card codes in a few different ways. Some codes were included at random in physical 2022 Topps Series 1 and Series 2 hobby boxes, blasters, and hangers. Others were given out through Topps social media accounts like Twitter as prizes in contests and drawings around the release dates. A limited number of complete code sheet sets were also auctioned off on platforms like eBay with all 80 codes bundled together.
For collectors seeking to find the codes on their own, the odds of pulling one were estimated at around 1 in every 10 hobby boxes or 1 in every 50 blasters/hangers. So it required ripping a substantial number of packs to try and find even a single code. This made the code sheets with a full set particularly valuable for those wanting to avoid the cost of buying multiple boxes just for the chance at codes.
Once obtained, redeeming the codes was fairly straightforward. Collectors would go to the Topps website and log into their account. In the “Redeem Codes” section, they could enter the 16-digit alphanumeric code. If valid, the corresponding digital holiday card would then be added to their collection. Each code could only be used once. If an invalid or previously redeemed code was entered, an error message appeared.
In addition to the base holiday cards, Topps also included parallels and short prints in the digital format that provided rarer card artwork and numbering. These included Gold /50, Silver /25, Rainbow Foil /10, Black 1/1, and Hand-Numbered 1/1 variants that drove up demand. After redeeming all codes, collectors could then view, trade, and sell their complete sets or individual cards on the Topps BUNT, Huddler, and TOPPS NOW! apps.
As with most limited edition insert sets, the 2022 Topps Holiday Baseball cards held strong resale value in the weeks after release. Complete code sheet sets in mint condition fetched prices upwards of $500-600 on auction sites. Highly sought rookies and stars with rare parallels also sold for $50-100 individually. Even the base codes retained value of $5-10 each due to the difficulty of finding them. This made the holiday cards a profitable investment for those able to pull or purchase full sets early on.
By the new year, as more codes entered circulation through pack openings and contests, prices gradually declined from the initial hype. Within a few months, complete sets settled in the $200-300 range while individual base cards could be had for $2-5 each. Still, for casual collectors it remained a challenge to obtain all 80 cards without spending over MSRP on product or codes. The limited print run and short shelf life kept the 2022 Topps Holiday Baseball cards highly coveted among digital and physical collectors alike long after the holidays passed.
The 2022 Topps Holiday Baseball card codes represented a fun way for Topps to celebrate the season and engage collectors beyond the standard cardboard releases. While finding the codes required luck or deep pockets, for those able to redeem a full set the experience of collecting the festive player cards provided entertainment and brought digital and physical collecting together. The rarity, bonus content, and resale value ensured the holiday inserts remained a hot commodity throughout the new year.
