The 2022 Topps Update baseball card set was released on September 7th, 2022 and contains cards highlighting the second half of the 2022 Major League Baseball season. As with every year, Topps Update provides baseball card collectors the opportunity to get cards of players who were not included in the flagship Topps Series 1 and Series 2 releases from earlier in the year. It also features rookie cards and debuts of players who made their MLB debuts in the second half of the season. With 350 total cards, the 2022 Topps Update set continues Topps tradition of being one of the most anticipated baseball card releases each year.
Some of the notable rookie cards and debuts featured in the 2022 Topps Update set include Gunnar Henderson, the top prospect in the Baltimore Orioles organization who made his MLB debut in August. Henderson’s rookie card is one of the most sought after in the set. Other top rookie cards and debuts include Emerson Hancock of the Seattle Mariners, Brennan Davis of the Chicago Cubs, and Andre Pallante of the St. Louis Cardinals. Update also includes the debut cards of international signings who made their MLB debuts in 2022 such as Cristian Pache of the Atlanta Braves and Oswaldo Cabrera of the New York Yankees.
In addition to rookie cards, Topps Update is known for including traded player variations that showcase players on their new teams from trades that occurred during or after the regular season. Some notable traded player variations in the 2022 set include Juan Soto and Josh Bell on the San Diego Padres after being acquired from the Washington Nationals at the trade deadline. Soto and Bell are two of the biggest names to change teams this season. Other traded player variations include Luis Castillo on the Seattle Mariners after a deadline deal with the Cincinnati Reds and Tyler Mahle on the Twins after being traded from the Reds to Minnesota.
Update also features traded variations of players who were dealt in the offseason like Freddie Freeman on the Los Angeles Dodgers after leaving the Atlanta Braves in free agency and Carlos Correa on the Twins after departing the Houston Astros. Topps does an excellent job each year of documenting these player movements to new organizations through their traded card variations in Update. For collectors, these traded cards serve as important historical markers of trades and free agent signings.
In addition to rookie cards and traded variations, Topps Update highlights statistical updates and milestones reached during the second half of the season. Some examples from the 2022 set include cards acknowledging Aaron Judge’s pursuit of the single season home run record as he chased down Roger Maris’ AL mark of 61. Judge would end up setting the new American League record with 62 home runs. The set also features cards for milestones reached like Albert Pujols hitting his 700th career home run. Topps Update chronicles these types of career achievements and single season accomplishments each year.
The design theme of the 2022 Topps Update set pays homage to the brand’s original design aesthetic from the early 1960s. The clean white borders and simple team wordmarks along the bottom evoke the classic vintage baseball card look. The photography on the cards remains crisp and high quality like in Topps flagship Series 1 and 2 sets. As with all modern Topps releases, the Update cards also include reverse hit variations that feature extended statistical and biographical information on the back.
In addition to the base card set, Topps Update includes several highly sought after insert sets. The most popular is usually the Archives insert set which recreates vintage designs from past decades. The 2022 Archives set reimagines cards from the 1970s using a retro color scheme and design style. Other insert sets in 2022 Update include Photo Negative, Clear Shots, and Chrome which feature parallel and refractors of select cards. Topps also includes short print and autograph variations scattered throughout packs which adds to the excitement of the release.
When it was released in September, the 2022 Topps Update baseball card set was a massive success, selling out very quickly across the hobby. Demand remains high even months after its initial release date as collectors look to complete their sets or acquire specific rookie cards and stars. On the secondary market, individual cards from the set like Gunnar Henderson rookies or Aaron Judge milestone inserts routinely sell for hundreds of dollars each. Overall, Topps Update is one of the most coveted and important releases on the annual baseball card calendar, providing a fun way for collectors to chronicle the second half of each MLB season in card form. Its classic design sensibilities, new player additions, and insert sets make it a must-have for any serious baseball card collector.
