Topps has been producing Major League Baseball trading cards since 1952 and their Big League set has been one of their flagship baseball card products for many decades. When assessing whether Topps Big League cards are good, there are several factors collectors consider including design, photography, production quality, card stock thickness, autograph and memorabilia odds, and long-term value and investability. Let’s take a deeper look at each of these characteristics for Topps Big League cards:
Design – Topps Big League sets feature modern, clean designs that are easy to look at and very collector friendly. The layout typically includes the player’s photo on front with team logo along with stats on the back. Topps does a good job of maintaining consistency from year to year while tweaking the design just enough to feel fresh. Colors and logos are vibrant and sharp. From a design standpoint, Topps Big League sets score well and are visually appealing additions to any collection.
Photography – Topps uses high quality photography for player images in Big League sets. Photos are captured professionally and feature clear close-ups showing good detail of each player’s face and uniform. Lighting is balanced well without being too bright or dark. Some collectors complain photos can appear a bit repetitive from season to season but overall the photography Topps utilizes is above average for modern baseball cards.
Production Quality – Topps has mastered the mass production of trading cards and their quality control is quite good. Big League cards are printed on durable glossy card stock that does not tend to chip, peel or fray easily even with extensive handling. Centering, cutting and overall construction is consistent from card to card. On the rare occasion a printing imperfection may occur, but generally alignment, registration and finishing is done to high standards meeting expectations.
Card Stock – Topps Big League cards are printed on what collectors consider mid-weight “chrome” stock. This material is thick enough to feel substantial in hand without being too stiff. It has a high gloss coating that makes colors and images pop vividly. The stock does not have the same premium feel of ultra-thick cards from high-end sets but more than gets the job done and holds up well long-term. Some veteran collectors actually prefer the flexibility.
Autographs/Memorabilia – When it comes to relics, autographs or numbered parallels, Topps Big League offers only very basic short prints. This is to be expected given the large print runs – there just wouldn’t be enough certified memorabilia or signatures to go around at higher odds. Occasionally special parallels exist but collectors seeking autographs or specific memorabilia should look elsewhere.
Value/Investment – Long-term, Topps Big League cards have shown decent but not spectacular value growth over decades. Rarer short prints tend to appreciate the best percentage-wise versus common base cards. Key rookies have increased in price based on player performance careers. However, Big League will never be as desirable or valuable as flagship Topps products or high-end releases due to the sheer number of boxes mass produced each season. But basic holdings do retain value as a fun, affordable way to collect current players.
While Topps Big League may not be the hottest or most exclusive baseball card product on the market, it succeeds well at its intended purpose – to be a large-scale, mainstream release capturing the current Major League season and players in an affordable, accessible manner. The set scores high marks across the board in design, photography quality, production consistency and long-term collectibility and value preservation when compared to other mainstream/factory-style releases. Serious collectors will want premium editions for signatures or materials. But for following today’s MLB stars in a well-crafted traditional cardboard format at reasonable prices year after year, Topps Big League absolutely delivers and is a “good” option in the category to build player collections long into the future through consistently “good” annual iterations.
