2009 Upper Deck 1989 20th Anniversary Buybacks

When I saw that Upper Deck was inserting buybacks of their inaugural 1989 set into packs of 2009 cards, I was intrigued, but didn't have high hopes of actually obtaining the Rickey. Buyback cards are notoriously expensive, especially among players with a large collector following such as Rickey. Since it had now been almost a year since they were first released, and I'd still never seen one, I was beginning to think the Rickey didn't even exist. That is...until last week!


Here's the Rickey buyback, which I finally got in the mail yesterday. Since this is the only one that I've ever seen, I'm not sure how many actually exist, but it has to be a fairly limited print run. I e-mailed Upper Deck to ask, but is usually the case, I've yet to receive a response. I know that the buybacks were inserted approximately 1 per box in 2009 Upper Deck Series 2 and 2009 Upper Deck SPX, and they were probably included in other releases as well.


In the lower left hand corner is the buyback stamp which states "20th Anniversary Buyback" in typical Upper Deck hologram form. I like the fact that they actually modified the cards to indicate that they were buybacks, which allows you to actually differentiate them from the initial release. Receiving a regular 1989 Upper Deck card (unless it's the Griffey rookie), would just not be that exciting.


The back of the card is typical 1989 Upper Deck, but it was pretty exciting when they were first released. I still remember how crazy I thought it was that they were charging over $1.00 a pack, if you could even find them in stores. As nice as the photos (on the front and back of the cards) were, I usually couldn't pass up buying a couple of packs of Topps for the same price.

If any player/team collectors know any more details about this release, I'd definitely appreciate the feedback. Has anyone seen more than one copy of the same card? I don't think that it's a #1/1, but would be interested in finding out how many there actually are.

2009 Razor Sports Icons Auto

The first Rickey card produced by Razor (at least the first that I know of) surfaced on eBay, and sold for over $300!


The card is part of Razor 2009 Sports Icons Auto Update set, the complete checklist of which can be found here.

Razor is currently not the biggest player in the card market, but they are at least still making cards, which is more than can be said about a lot of other companies. All of Razor's releases feature cut signatures, and some are obviously better looking than others.

Tri-Star has also produced similar cut signature sets, with this "interesting" (sorry Ken) looking Rickey included in their 2008 Signa-Cuts Baseball Edition set.

I haven't seen them for sale yet, but Rickey also has cut signature cards in 2008 Tri-Star Signa-Cuts Baseball Edition series 2 and 2009 Tri-Star Signa-Cuts Bronx Edition.

2009 Topps U&H Target & Wal-Mart Legends of the Game

I finally was able to acquire a couple of the Legends of the Game parallels that are available only in Target and Wal-Mart retail packs.


I believe this is the "base" version of the Target card, but I'm really not sure. There's also a "gold" version, and although this card does have a gold border (as compared to the greenish border on the Legends found in the regular packs), it may or may not be the gold parallel.

Here's the cards that Beckett says are available:
2009 Topps Target Legends #LLG21
2009 Topps Target Legends Gold #LLG21
2009 Topps Target Legends Platinum #LLG21

All of the auctions that I've seen list this as the "gold" card, and I have not seen any that look any different. I believe one of the problems arises from the numbering on the back. The Target only parallels are considered the "gold" parallels, hence the "G" in the card numbered. So, in essence, there is a gold parallel of a gold card, if that makes any sense.



Here's the Wal-Mart card, and the identification doesn't get much easier.


These are the cards that are supposedly available:
2009 Topps Wal Mart Legends #LLP22
2009 Topps Wal Mart Legends Gold #LLP22
2009 Topps Wal Mart Legends Platinum #LLP22

Just like Target has the gold set, Wal-Mart has the platinum set. I believe the card that's actually listed as a Platinum is a #1/1, so I know it's not that one. That leaves me to believe that this is actually the base card, although I'm still left wondering what the gold parallel might be.

I actually contacted Topps to help me out, and their response was pretty useless, as it seems that even they are confused about what's going on.

"Thank you for taking the time to write with your question, and please accept our apologies for any confusion.

It appears the Gold versions are serial numbered #/99 on the front top right of the card. The Platinum versions are serial numbered #/25. There are base versions of similarly colored Gold and Platinum parallels, however the more common versions are not serial numbered on the card."

The fact that the gold's #/99 and the platinum's are #/25 is true of the Legends that are found in the regular hobby packs, but I know this is not the case with the Target and Wal-Mart cards. If anyone has different versions of the same player (base, gold, platinum) from either the Target or Wal-Mart Legends set, I would love to see a side-by-side scan. Hopefully then I'll be able to finally put this mystery to bed.

Now I just need to wait for the U&H cereal box chrome, chrome refractors, and gold refractors to be released, and hope that those are a bit easier to decipher.

2009 Topps Triple Threads Slideshow and Checklist

Now that Triple Threads has been live for a few weeks now, most of the different card variations have surfaced on eBay at one time or another. There is a total of 18 "different" Rickey cards included in the set, and other than 2 of the 3 #1/1's, the other 16 cards have all been accounted for, all of which are included in the slideshow below.

Here's the "official" checklist of the Rickey cards included in 2009 Topps TripleThreads. Due to seeing almost all of these on eBay, there are no surprises, but it's good too know that there isn't a super short-print hiding out there that just hasn't been uncovered yet.

2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics #115 Print Run/36
2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics #116 Print Run/36
2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics #117 Print Run/36

2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics Sepia #115 Print Run/27
2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics Sepia #116 Print Run/27
2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics Sepia #117 Print Run/27

2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics Emerald #115 Print Run/18
2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics Emerald #116 Print Run/18
2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics Emerald #117 Print Run/18

2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics Gold #115 Print Run/9
2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics Gold #116 Print Run/9
2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics Gold #117 Print Run/9

2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics Sapphire #115 Print Run/3
2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics Sapphire #116 Print Run/3
2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics Sapphire #117 Print Run/3

2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics Platinum #115 Print Run/1
2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics Platinum #116 Print Run/1
2009 Topps Triple Threads Relics Platinum #117 Print Run/1

My First 2009 Triple Threads Rickey!

In the mail this weekend I received my first 2009 Rickey Topps Triple Threads, one of the first new cards of Rickey that has been released in many years.

It seems that there are probably 6 different parallels to three different base cards, judging by the auctions that have surfaced, so I'll be chasing these for quite some time.

Rickey has card with the "SB KING" notation, as well as "MAN OF STEAL" and "1990 AL MVP," and I believe that's all their is, unless a rare short-print shows up later. So far, I have seen auctions for cards #/3, #/9, #/18, #/27, and #/36, and can only assume that a #1/1 of each card exists as well.


Despite how it may look in the scan, the patch is actually a dark green, and the card looks a lot brighter and shinier in person. I do enjoy the image that they chose to use of Rickey, but it would have been nice if a different one would have been used for each of the three card notations.


The back of the card lists the typical legal disclaimer, with the emphasis that this does not come from any particular year or event. I am glad that it actually came from an A's jersey, but they must want to be sure that it's clear that it was not the jersey that he wore when he broke the stolen base record back in 1991.

2009 Triple Threads, and a 2010 Topps Preview!

Based on the events of the past week, it's pretty clear that Rickey has once again signed an agreement with Topps to have his cards included in their myriad of sets. As of earlier this year, Rickey did not have an agreement with either Topps, Upper Deck, or Donruss, but that's obviously changed.

Although it's not scheduled to be released until tomorrow, 2009 Triple Threads started to hit eBay last night, which included the awesome cards below!



I have mixed feelings about Rickey's inclusion in Triple Threads, as although the cards are great, they are going to quickly rise out of my price range.



The last mainstream set in which Rickey was included was 2007 Triple Threads, which contained a total of 35 different Rickey cards. Of these, 10 were 1/1's, and 8 were serial numbered to less than 10 copies, which definitely makes them pretty hard to acquire! Of the remaining cards, 13 were numbered between 10 and 40, and only 4 (including the base card), had a print run of 99 copies or greater.

I can't complain, and I definitely love having new Rickey's to chase after, but will just have to focus on the ones that will be easy (financially) to acquire.

In other news, Beckett has released a preview of 2010 Topps, which will also contain new cards of Rickey!



The "big" news is the announcement of buybacks of over 1 million Topps base cards to be reinserted in packs next year. I'm not sure how I feel about this, as I don't know how many people will be happy about acquiring some random 1986 Topps, but I'm sure Topps will be promoting it widely.

I did appreciate that there was a Rickey card included in the promo poster above. His 1980 Topps rookie card is at the top of the poster, to the left of the Million Card Giveaway logo. Also included with the Beckett preview was a checklist of the set, which of course includes a few choice Rickey's!

The Cards Your Mother Threw Out
MTO29 Rickey Henderson

Relic
PPR-RHE Rickey Henderson

Hat Logo Relic
MHR-110 Rickey Henderson

MHR-111 Rickey Henderson

MHR-112 Rickey Henderson

MHR-113 Rickey Henderson

I'm definitely looking forward to the "Cards Your Mother Threw Out" set, as I always enjoy it when Rickey is included as part of an insert set, and not just as a parallel of a base card. The relic card should also be obtainable, while I'm pretty sure the hat logo relics will be 1/1's, or at least have a minuscule print run, which will make them hard to even see, let alone obtain.

Even More Topps U&H Releases

It seems that every day brings even more surprises from 2009 Topps Update & Highlights!

First, I found out that Rickey was included a an SP in the set, and then two different relics showed up on eBay. Now, Beckett has updated their official checklist with the cards that will be included in the now common Wal-Mart and Target blasters and "cereal" boxes. The complete list is included below. As always, if any of you guys pull any of these, please let me know!



2009 Topps Update #UH318b SP
2009 Topps Legends of the Game Relics #RH Jsy
2009 Topps Legends of the Game Relics #RH2 Bat

2009 Topps Target Legends #LLG21
2009 Topps Target Legends Gold #LLG21
2009 Topps Target Legends Platinum #LLG21
2009 Topps Legends Chrome Target Cereal #LLG21
2009 Topps Legends Chrome Target Cereal Gold Refractors #LLG21
2009 Topps Legends Chrome Target Cereal Refractors #LLG21

2009 Topps Wal Mart Legends #LLP22
2009 Topps Wal Mart Legends Gold #LLP22
2009 Topps Wal Mart Legends Platinum #LLP22
2009 Topps Legends Chrome Wal Mart Cereal #PR26
2009 Topps Legends Chrome Wal Mart Cereal Gold Refractors #PR26
2009 Topps Legends Chrome Wal Mart Cereal Refractors #PR26

Topps Updates & Highlights Relics!

As more boxes of Updates & Highlights are busted, more surprises continue to emerge! I was excited enough about the variation that surfaced yesterday, but there are now relic cards as well!



This jersey card is numbered to only 20 copies, which will make it a bit difficult to acquire, but it features an awesome picture of him on the A's.



The bat card is also limited to only 20 copies, with this one showing him on the Yankees. I can't wait to see what other surprises might pop up!

Once again, if anyone happens to pull these cards, please let me know!

A New Rickey Card is Released!

For the first time since I've been blogging, a new mainstream Rickey Henderson card has been produced! Other than a couple of horrific 1/1 cut signatures from Tri-Star (see here), Rickey hasn't had a card released since 2007, and there definitely hasn't been one that I had any chance of obtaining. But, that has all changed!



When perusing eBay last night I was shocked to see that Rickey was included as one of the variations in the newly released 2009 Topps Updates and Highlights (it's card UH318). I've seen a couple of his cards posted, all with him as a Yankee. Based on the other variations that have surfaced, most other players have two variations, featuring them on two different teams. Here's hoping that he's featured on the A's in the other one!

Of course, if anyone pulls any Rickey cards, please let me know! I'm sure we can work out something in trade. I haven't followed the variations closely, but do they have a gold parallel as well?