2018 Topps Heritage Minor League Baseball Review - Why 2018 Topps Heritage Minors is right on time for the offseason

Now that the MLB postseason is finished and hot stove discussions are in full swing, fans are looking towards the top prospects honing their skills in the Arizona Fall League and the various winter leagues throughout the Caribbean for their baseball fix. Topps has saved their classy 2018 Topps Heritage Minor League Baseball set to coincide with baseball’s fall shift from now to next.

2018 Topps Heritage Minors / Topps

2018 Topps Heritage Minors Base Set and Parallels

Set in the design of its 2018 Topps Major League Heritage counterpart, 2018 Topps Heritage Minor League provides tomorrow’s stars with the big league stage that they have been waiting for. The 220-card base set features 20 short-prints, as well All-Star and League Leaders subsets.

2018 Topps Heritage Minors / Topps

Topps hits all of the major talents in the MLB pipeline in the base set, featuring the likes of Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Eloy Jimenez, Royce Lewis, Estevan Florial, and yes, even Tim Tebow. For those looking to corner the market on their favorite up-and-comer, colored serial numbered parallels run aplenty, and a new twist for 2018 Topps Heritage Minors is the inclusion of one three-card glossy card pack per box.

2018 Topps Heritage Minors Parallels / Topps

2018 Topps Heritage Minors Inserts

The inserts are where 2018 Topps Heritage Minors starts to percolate. The 1969 Deckle Edge inserts cast the prime performers in vintage black and white shots, and limited edition color parallels even further spice up the design. The 1969 Collectors Cards inserts capture the quick and dirty about the next 20 minor league stars that you need to follow. Each box also contains two chances to win a one-day contract with the Richmond Flying Squirrels that includes your own Topps Pro Debut baseball card.

2018 Topps Heritage Minors Inserts / Topps

2018 Topps Heritage Minors Autographs and Relics

Each box guarantees one relic card and one autographed card. The Real One autographs are the most common, and as with the base set, there are colored serial numbered parallels of each. Collectors with a luckier hand can score signed base image variations numbered to 50, autographed deckle edge inserts, and signed 1969 Mint Coin relics.

2018 Topps Heritage Minors Brendan McKay Autograph / Topps

The box Topps provided for this review uncovered a Brendan McKay Real One autograph, and a Justus Sheffield Clubhouse Collection relic. McKay, the Tampa Bay Rays 2017 first-round selection, is following Shohei Ohtani’s footsteps as a two-way threat on the mound and at the plate.

2018 Topps Heritage Minors Justus Sheffield Relic / Topps

This year’s Topps Heritage Minors is an enjoyable break due to the exciting future stars, the sleek insert sets, and the guarantee of both an autograph and a relic from next season’s coveted prospects. With boxes of 2018 Topps Heritage Minors under $50, now is a great time to get familiar with the next wave of MLB talent.

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The Top 5 Reasons to Love 2018 Topps Heritage Baseball

Topps resurrects their 1969 design with the release of 2018 Topps Heritage Baseball. This set is beloved by collectors for a variety of reasons, primarily due to the fine details they replicate as an homage to the throwback issue. We cracked open a fresh box of 2018 Topps Heritage Baseball and found these five hallmarks that will make you fall in love with this year's set.

5) Player Checklists –
Trying to keep track of your 2018 Topps Heritage set? How about some help from Aaron Judge, Mike Trout, and Kris Bryant? Staying true to form of the 1969 Topps protocol, 2018’s checklist cards feature face shots of today’s top stars, providing collectors with an additional look at their favorite players while they mark off their progress towards a complete set.

2018 Topps Heritage Aaron Judge Checklist / Topps

4) Seattle Pilots Autographed Tribute Cards –
A Ball Four revival anyone? Jim Bouton leads the signers from the limited edition 1969 Seattle Pilots 50th Anniversary tribute autographed cards. Former Pilot Steve Whitaker once referred to the team as, “the orphans of the league.” Fifty years later, Topps proves they still have a home in the hearts of fans and collectors with these special autographed cards.

Jim Bouton Seattle Pilots Autograph / Topps

3) Imperfections –
Most modern sets are bred to perfection with borderless images, high gloss finishes, and centered designs. While going through the first few packs of this 2018 Topps Heritage Baseball box, I drew the occasional off-centered card. By the time I opened the last pack, these 60/40 or 70/30 centered cards averaged one per pack. With so many modern issues made in perfect symmetry, pulling some cards that had centering flaws only added to vintage experience that Topps Heritage provides.

2) Variations –
Funky nicknames? Action shots? Color swaps? Newly traded players? Solo rookie prospect cards? Topps has all of the bases covered with the short printed variations in 2018 Topps Heritage Baseball. These detailed variants force collectors are to pour over the details on each card, savoring the nuances to see if they have landed one of these scarce issues.

Victor Robles Image Variation SSP / Topps

1) Shohei Ohtani –
Would it be anyone else? Topps wasted no time getting this year’s most coveted rookie in their 2018 Topps Heritage Baseball set by including Ohtani as a last minute short printed variation to the set. Early sales of his short printed rookie are selling for $200 each, while his autographed versions have sold for in excess of $3,000.

$3,000 anyone?

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