Baseball Card Series 2 for 2022 was released in June by the major card manufacturers Topps, Panini, and Leaf. This series continues the tradition of providing collectors new rookie cards and inserts to add to their collections for the current MLB season. Series 2 is always highly anticipated as it features players who did not make the opening day rosters and provides updated stats and performances for those who had breakout starts to the year.
Some of the top rookie cards in Series 2 for 2022 included catcher Adley Rutschman of the Baltimore Orioles, the number 1 prospect in baseball who was called up in May. His card remained one of the most sought after rookie cards of the year. Seattle Mariners outfielder Julio Rodriguez also had a highly popular rookie card after getting off to a torrid start and making the All-Star team in his first season. Cardinals pitcher Matthew Liberatore and Rangers infielder Josh Smith were other notable rookie cards.
Veteran stars featured included Shohei Ohtani of the Angels, who continued to dominate on the mound and at the plate. His cards remained some of the most valuable in the hobby. Other stars like Mike Trout, Fernando Tatis Jr., Ronald Acuna Jr., and Mookie Betts had new base and parallel versions added. Rookies and veterans alike had a variety of parallel and refractors inserted in packs at different rarities, including Gold, Silver, Rainbow Foil, and Black parallels to chase.
Topps Series 2 is the longest running and most popular release each year, with this year’s edition containing base cards, inserts, parallels and hit cards. The design featured team colors and logos on a white background. Topps also included their popular “Topps Now” program, which allows them to rapidly produce and release cards for big performances and milestones from the current season within days of occurring. Topps Chrome and Allen & Ginter also had 2022 Series 2 variations.
Panini had their “Donruss” and “Contenders” Series 2 releases, with the Donruss set featuring a retro border-style design. Panini is known for including more memorabilia and autograph cards in hobby boxes compared to Topps. Some of the big hits pulled included Julio Rodriguez jersey cards and rookie autographs of Rutschman, Liberatore and other top prospects. Panini’s “Flawless” high-end product also debuted rare 1/1 autograph patches of stars in Series 2.
Leaf produced their “Metal” baseball cards in Series 2, continuing the brand’s signature metal card designs. Hobby boxes contained base cards, parallels, and autograph or memorabilia cards. Leaf is considered a smaller manufacturer compared to Topps and Panini but still offers collectors alternative designs and inserts to find.
In the secondary market, Series 2 rookie cards and stars performed well. The Rutschman and Rodriguez rookies from Topps maintained strong values above $100 raw after release. Popular parallels like Topps Chrome Golds and Refractors of Acuna, Tatis and others traded hands for hundreds of dollars. Autograph cards of top prospects from Panini sets like Contenders also saw early demand. Veteran star cards from the set like a Mike Trout base also stayed steady in price.
Overall, Series 2 delivered for collectors with a fresh batch of the season’s top performers. While Series 1 is usually the true rookie card debut, Series 2 allowed players who made their debuts later in the season to also have their own official rookie cards issued. The inserts, parallels and memorabilia cards from Topps, Panini and Leaf provided multiple collecting avenues beyond just the base cards as well. Series 2 remains an integral part of the annual baseball card calendar that keeps the hobby engaged throughout the summer months of the MLB season.
