MLB Baseball Cards are one of the most popular collectibles in the sports world. As the 2022 MLB season gets underway, excitement is high for the next wave of trading cards to hit the market featuring the latest rookies, stars, and top performances from last year.
Some of the most anticipated MLB baseball card releases for 2022 include the Topps Series 1 cards which are scheduled to arrive in March. This traditional flagship set from Topps kicks off each new season and is the foremost collectors chase rookies and stars in their new uniforms for the first time each year. Series 1 cards provide the earliest cards of any new players and are highly sought after by investors and fans. Topps usually includes around 300 cards in the Series 1 set with parallels, autographs, and memorabilia cards added in for extended runs.
Another early release collectors will be watching for is the 2022 Topps Heritage set arriving in April/May. The Heritage set looks back to the golden era of baseball cards from the 1960s and 1970s with its vintage inspired design. Ranging from 125-150 cards per base set, Heritage provides the year’s first retrospective looks at players performance from the previous season. Insert cards offer more complex stats or autographs in a throwback style. Heritage cards hold strong value due to their blend of nostalgia and relevance to the current MLB game.
Bowman Baseball is also a marquee MLB card release expected out in Q2 2022. As the primary set for rookie prospects and future stars, Bowman is where tomorrow’s greats have their card debuts while playing in the minor leagues. Nolan Arenado, Ronald Acuna Jr., Juan Soto and dozens of other fixtures in today’s game first appeared as rookies in Bowman sets nearly a decade ago. Limited parallels, autographs and memorabilia cards featuring top prospects regularly fetch high prices in this annually hyped release. Bowman sets a player up for years of potential collector interest tracing their early career path.
Series 2 cards will see another influx of Topps products on store shelves in summer 2022 continuing team lineups from opening day. Updates, variations and short prints make Series 2 collectible for completionists. By this point Topps Stat leaders and All-Star inserts have begun recognizing that season’s breakout hitters, pitchers and midseason stars. Additional sticker and rack pack variants provide affordable chase cards without premium markup.
During the heat of the MLB pennant races, Topps Chrome and Bowman Chrome start releasing in late summer/early fall using the modern “chrome” card technology that gives a reflective high-shine coating to each image. Insert sets highlight playoff contenders while rookies and prospects can still make their chromes debuts here. The alluring foil board enhances photography and makes chasing parallel rainbow sets very popular with fans. Several autograph and memorabilia options exist as holiday gifts up ahead too.
As baseball heads into the climax of its postseason in October, Topps Finest and Playoff Preview products hit the scene to cap off the annual tradition. Finest uses premium card stock and dazzling photo selection to honor the top regular season standouts. Playoff cards zoom in on deciding series heroes and division champions with a congratulatory flair. Then in November/December we see the behemoth Topps Ultimate Collection and Topps Chrome Update sets wrap up the year’s expansive checklist with any remaining needs, short prints and new player/team updates showcased. Bowman Draft also issues between the World Series and winter meetings highlighting that year’s recently selected prospects.
Throughout 2022, collectors can look forward to attending major MLB card shows hosted by companies like Steel City Collectibles, Dave and Adam’s Card World and Sportscard Universe to find exclusive autographed memorabiliareleases, conventions-exclusive parallels and meet today’s stars. Online communities like BlowoutCards.com, comc.com and eBay provide immense secondary market options to complete sets or acquire grails from seasons past too. The trading card industry remains a multi-billion dollar business inspired by the allure of America’s favorite pastime. Whatever your MLB fan affiliation, 2022 is primed to be another momentous year for baseball cards!
