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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Baseball Happenings Podcast - Breaking down Mets spring training with Bill Whitehead

Bill Whitehead, AP and MLB writer covering the New York Mets in Port St. Lucie, checked in with the Baseball Happenings Podcast to break down the hectic first week of 2018 Mets spring training.

Tim Tebow / Bill Whitehead

Whitehead gave us the inside scoop on Dominic Smith, and why his late arrival to practice was out of character for their young first base prospect. He covered Smith extensively during his 2015 season with the St. Lucie Mets.

During the 30-minute interview, Whitehead also provided updates on the myriad of injuries during the first week of camp, his thoughts on the Mets new manager Mickey Calloway, where Tim Tebow fits in the Mets plans, and why Peter Alonso and P.J. Conlon are two upstarts to keep your eyes on during the spring. 

Baseball Happenings Podcast on iTunes. 

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Baseball Happenings Podcast - Mike Trombley dishes out big league financial advice

Mike Trombley, an 11-year major league veteran with the Twins, Dodgers, and Orioles, came on the Baseball Happenings Podcast to discuss how professional athletes can best look out for their financial interests both during and after their careers. He is currently the head of Trombley Associates, a family-run financial management company in Massachusetts where he took over for his father Ray who started the company over a half-century prior.

In the wake of the recent news about Jake Peavy losing a reported $15 million due to his financial advisor’s involvement in a Ponzi scheme, Trombley explained the pitfalls that many major leaguers face trying to manage a sudden windfall of riches while keeping their attention on what is going on in between the lines of play.

“There were a couple of [Major League] friends of mine that [had] their agents paying their bills for them,” Trombley said. “They never even saw a bill.”

During the 20-minute interview, Trombley dishes out practical advice on what to look for in an investment professional, as well as his experiences of managing his money while living the hectic life of a Major League Baseball player.

Baseball Happenings Podcast on iTunes.

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Chris Carr | Going Head To Head With Kobe Bryant In The 1997 Slam Dunk Contest | Baseball Happenings Podcast

Chris Carr, runner-up to Kobe Bryant in the 1997 Slam Dunk Championship, recently discussed in our latest podcast going one-on-one against the future Hall of Famer in the dunk contest. In the 20-minute interview, Carr, who is now the assistant woman's basketball coach at Kansas State University, explains why he thought he had a better performance than Bryant, as well as gives an inside look of why guarding a young Bryant was an easier task than squaring up Michael Jordan.

Chris Carr 1997 Slam Dunk Contest Interview


Carr finished the first round with the highest score, giving him the opportunity to be the last dunker in the finals. Bryant scored a 49 with his first dunk, but left the door open by missing his second attempt. Carr saw his chance for victory.

"I knew I was going to have to come with something really good ... because he [Bryant] had a big game in the rookie game and wasn't the MVP ... so he was out to win something this weekend," Carr said.

Carr finished with a 45 on his final dunk, a potent attempt, but not enough to surpass the 49 that Bryant put up with the East Bay Funk. Looking back over 20 years later, Carr still feels like he got the best of Bryant in the contest.

"I still don't think that he beat me," he said. "I'm going to every year put out a tweet and copy him on it just to try to rile him up a bit."

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Wally Moon, 1954 National League Rookie of the Year, dies at 87

Wally Moon's soaring drives over the Los Angeles Coliseum's left field fence were affectionately nicknamed "Moon Shots" for the way he lofted balls into flight over the screen. Sadly, his final "Moon Shot" touched down Friday February 9th, 2018 when he passed away in Bryan, Texas. He was 87.

Wally Moon 1961 Sport Magazine / Author's Collection

Revered not only for his famous moniker, but his trademark unibrow, Moon immediately made a splash during his Major League debut with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1954 when he homered during his first at-bat. He continued to sizzle during his rookie campaign, batting .304 with 12 home runs and 76 RBIs, besting Hall of Famers Ernie Banks and Hank Aaron for the National League Rookie of the Year Award.

During Moon’s 12-year MLB career, he spent the first five with the St. Louis Cardinals and after an injury played down year in 1958, the Cardinals traded Moon to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Presented with a fresh start and a new environment, a healthy Moon changed his hitting approach to aim for the short Los Angeles Coliseum wall, earning him blasts their aforementioned nickname.



The change of scenery paid off immediately for both Moon and the Dodgers, as he was selected for the 1959 All-Star team and finished fourth in the MVP, both honors coming while helping to lead the Dodgers to World Series victory. He spent the next six seasons with the Dodgers, long enough to claim another World Series ring during the 1965 season, his final major league campaign.

The three-time All-Star finished his career with a lifetime .289 batting average with 142 home runs and 661 RBIs. Once away from the major league spotlight, Moon couldn’t stay away from baseball. He spent ten years as the head coach at John Brown University in Arkansas, save for a one year break as the hitting coach with the San Diego Padres in 1969.

Moon finally returned to the professional ranks in 1987 when he was given a minor league managing job in the New York Yankees organization. One of the upstarts on his 1988 Prince William club was a fresh-faced 19-year-old Puerto Rican center fielder, Bernie Williams. After the Yankees let Moon go, he settled in with the Baltimore Orioles as a minor league manager and hitting instructor from 1990-1995.

In retirement, Moon wrote his autobiography, “Moon Shots: Reflections on a Baseball Life,” in 2010 with Tim Gregg.

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