Jason Dean Martin
August 8, 2016
Earlier today, there was anticipation from Topps NOW collectors as to what Topps would do to commemorate Ichiro’s 3000th hit which occurred yesterday at Coors Field in Colorado.
The answer came shortly before 3:30 pm EST and collectors were given multiple, yet very pricey, options.
The first option, the ‘base’ version, is the typical Topps NOW card highlighting yesterday’s achievement and is card number 327-A. This card is priced at $9.99 with discounts available if buying multiple copies.
However, Topps didn’t stop there. Many expected Topps to have an autograph or relic card similar to card number 247-B featuring Eric Hosmer and a piece of a base used during the All-Star Game to be available as well. What we didn’t expect were the parallels and the price tags!
The above card is the cheapest game-used base relic card that was available from Topps today and it was priced at $179.99 while also limited to 99 copies. There were four parallels of this card also available and they were limited to 49, 25, 10, & 1 copies and priced at $249.99, $369.99, $599.99, & $999.99, respectively.
I can’t say for sure, but I believe all 184 copies were sold out within 30 minutes netting Topps $46,318.16 (according to Blowout Buzz).
There’s also the possibility that some of the ‘base’ Topps NOW Ichiro cards could come with autographs as they did earlier this year on card #154. When that autograph was created, only 10 were signed out of the entire print run and they were randomly distributed amongst purchasers. One would think card #327’s print run will far surpass that of #154 and if only 10 cards are signed, your odds of receiving one will be small. But, for $10 a card, or less if buying in bulk, it’s a gamble I’d be willing to take.
Wow. Topps Now has to be one of the more successful money grabs Topps has had since the early days of eTopps.