2017 Bowman Draft Review - A fresh look at the 2017 MLB Draft class

Baseball card collectors in search of something shiny and new for the holidays have to look no farther than 2017 Bowman Draft Baseball. This set provides fans and collectors a grand opportunity to familiarize themselves with the first official baseball cards of next season’s top prospects.

Each box guarantees three autographs and plenty of chrome cards, both in the form of coveted refractors and serially numbered color variations. Two first-round picks, Minnesota Twins shortstop Royce Lewis (1st overall pick), and Tampa Bay’s two-way player, Brendan McKay, headline the set. While Sports Illustrated cover boy Hunter Greene is noticeably absent, that does not detract from the attention 2017 Bowman Draft Baseball deserves.

The box provided for this review served up a complete base set, which will please collectors looking to get into the depths of each organization’s newest additions to their minor league systems. Putting the base set aside, the chrome cards and color parallels bring the prospects to the forefront and make for attractive additions to any collection.

Bowman has expanded their Chrome Draft autographs to over 75 prospects, which allows collectors a wide assortment of players that they can land in each box. With over a dozen parallel variations of each autographed card, player collectors will be kept busy the entire offseason trying to chase down entire runs of their favorite player’s signature.

Bowman keeps it simple with the chase cards, limiting the hobby boxes to the Defining Moments, MLB Draft History, and Recommended Viewing insert sets. Both the Defining Moments and MLB Draft History sets also have autographed variations, adding to the excitement and potential of scoring a Hall of Fame signature or one from Bowman’s selected group of exclusive young superstars. While the box opened for this review did not yield any of the aforementioned insert autographs, it did provide a rare short print in the form of a Kevin Maitan facsimile signature image variation.

Debuting right in time for the holiday season, 2017 Bowman Draft Baseball makes for a wonderful gift under the Christmas tree that will provide collectors the chance to lose themselves in the 2017 MLB Draft class while they wait for spring training to emerge.

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How 2017 Bowman Baseball puts a stamp on seven decades in the game

Bowman gives a nod to their seventh decade with the debut of their 2017 baseball card series, commemorating their history with tributes to their longevity throughout this year’s product. Highlighting special inserts marked with 70th anniversary logos, and reproductions of classic cards, Bowman has created an aura that respects their past while moving their brand forward.

2017 Bowman Baseball / Bowman

Building excitement as the first 2017 baseball card release that focuses on top farmhands within the MLB pipeline through their Bowman Prospects and Chrome Prospects subsets, 2017 Bowman Baseball has positioned itself as the premier set for collectors looking catch the next rising star. The smooth design of the set (which is enhanced by the Chrome parallels) only serves add to its wide appeal.

The aforementioned 150-card Bowman Prospects set features the standout minor leaguers across baseball, many of whom are on the cusp on the major leagues this season, including Amed Rosario, Austin Meadows, and Clint Frazier. While the checklist for the set might disappoint some due to seeing the same players included for a second year in a row, Bowman continues to make the future stars of the game its focal point.

Not to be ignored is the 100-card base set, which is highlighted by rookie cards of the ever-popular Aaron Judge, Yoan Moncada, and Dansby Swanson. The mix of rookies who made their major league debut last season, coupled with baseball’s established veterans, make the base set a valuable accompany piece to the pre-rookie cards that everyone is chasing.

2017 Bowman Aaron Judge / Bowman

In an effort to connect their 70th anniversary to the current stars, inserts that contain a mesh of active stars and retired legends are designed in the fashion of the 1948, 1951, 1952, and 1992 Bowman sets. Also inserted into packs are buyback cards stamped with the Bowman 70th anniversary logo.

2017 Bowman Inserts / Bowman

Each box promises one autographed card. The box provided for this review yielded a Chance Adams autographed Chrome Prospect card. The wide array of autographs available in 2017 Bowman will make consumers happy, as they have the opportunity to pull signatures from the likes of Judge, Mike Trout, and Bryce Harper, as well as Hall of Famers Greg Maddux, Mike Piazza, and Randy Johnson.

Chance Adams Chrome Autograph / Bowman

As Bowman literally puts their stamp on their seven decades of baseball lineage with the 2017 Bowman set, they are simultaneously positioning themselves to be a player in the hobby for potentially another seven decades. This release sets them up perfectly for this generation to place 2017 Bowman Baseball as a landmark set in their collections.

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