Topps released their 2022 baseball card set in January of this year. As with every year, Topps aimed to produce a complete reference set capturing all MLB players, coaches, managers and teams from the previous season. Their 2022 offering includes a massive 650+ cards in the base set alone. Let’s take an in-depth look at some of the key details and highlights from the Topps 2022 baseball card release.
The backbone of any Topps set is of course the base cards. For 2022 they produced 660 total base cards, which is on the higher end compared to recent years. The base cards capture all 30 MLB teams from the 2021 season, including every player on each team’s active roster as of the conclusion of the regular season in October 2021. There are base cards for managers, coaches and even team photographer/clubhouse attendant roles to fully represent each franchise.
Some notable base cards include rookies of Stars like Seattle Mariners outfielder Julio Rodriguez and Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal. Veteran stars getting base cards include Shohei Ohtani, Fernando Tatis Jr., Gerrit Cole and more. Less notable players still active in 2021 like Ricardo Sanchez and Andrew Romine also received base cards to complete the team rosters. It’s a true full baseball season reference set.
In addition to the standard base cards, Topps also included several insert sets in hobby boxes and packs. Among the most popular are the Topps Chrome inserts, featuring refractor and parallels of key rookies and stars. The 2022 Chrome set includes 60 total cards after being scaled down in recent years. Top rookies like Rodriguez, Bobby Witt Jr. and Spencer Torkelson headline the inserts parallel rainbows.
Topps also did a 50 card “Silver Pack” insert focusing on rookies. Additional inserts included the “Topps Now” dynamic inserts capturing stats, milestones and achievements throughout the season in near real-time. Topps also brought back retro-style “Turn Back The Clock” inserts showing players in vintage uniform designs. Numbered parallel inserts were also available including Gold (/2021), Black (/150) and Orange (/75).
Autograph and memorabilia inserts have always been a huge hit with collectors. Topps delivered with flagship “Topps Autograph” and “Topps’ Best” memorabilia inserts. Star rookies and veterans alike were present, with rare 1/1 parallel autographs being the big ticket items. Acuna Jr., Tatis Jr. and Soto were some of the biggest star autographs available. Topps also introduced brand new “Topps Museum Collection” game worn memorabilia patches for several stars.
In addition to the traditional sets, Topps also released a variety of special parallel and collector-focused sets. This included the high-end “Topps Finest” set with cracked ice parallels. An all-retail “Walmart” exclusive set was also produced. Topps also collaborated with Target stores on exclusive inserts only available in their “Purple” parallel packs. And the massive “Allen & Ginter” retro non-sport set was produced as well for those collectors.
When it came to distribution and product mix, Topps released Series 1 and Series 2 hobby boxes in traditional January/March cycles. Retail blaster and hangers packs also stocked hobby shops, drug stores and big boxes. Exclusive “Hobby Box” only parallels incentive collectors to purchase sealed cases and boxes. Topps Tribute standalone sets also covered retired players and icons. And numerous insert-focused “Factory Sets” were produced covering subsets like Autographs and Stadium Club styles.
In summary, Topps delivered yet another monumental complete MLB season set in 2022 capturing all the major base players, rookies and stars. While some bemoan the growing raw card counts each year, for collectors looking for a full modern MLB reference set – Topps remains the standard-bearer. With so many parallels, inserts and ways to collect – there’s truly something in the 2022 Topps baseball release for all types of collectors from kids to investors. It will stand as the flagship uniform year set for the 2021 MLB season.
