2015 DANSBY SWANSON ATOMIC REFRACTOR Bowmans Best /50 impressions prospect FI-DS

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Seller: sidewaysstairsco ✉️ (1,180) 100%, Location: Santa Ana, California, US, Ships to: US & many other countries, Item: 202648462818 2015 DANSBY SWANSON ATOMIC REFRACTOR Bowmans Best /50 impressions prospect FI-DS. Check out my other new & used items>>>>>HERE! (click me) FOR SALE: A Topps-Bowman "First Impressions" numbered prospect card 2015 BOWMAN'S BEST DANSBY SWANSON  ATOMIC REFRACTOR  IN SLEEVE AND TOP LOADER      DETAILS: Card features an awesome atomic "cracked" refractor effect with action photo of Atlanta Braves' star shortstop, Dansby Swanson. Dansby Swanson was picked in the 1st round by Arizona Diamondbacks. He made made his MLB debut on August 17, 2016 for the Atlanta Braves.  Catalog #: FI-DS (2015 Bowman's Best - First Impressions - 1st Round Pick)  CONDITION: In excellent, near-mint condition. Card basically went from pack to sleeve and top loader so it looks great overall. The top-left corner of the backside has a tiny imperfection. The top loader case may have been previously used. Please see photos.  *To ensure safe delivery all items are carefully packaged before shipping out.*  THANK YOU FOR LOOKING. QUESTIONS? JUST ASK.  *ALL PHOTOS AND TEXT ARE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OF SIDEWAYS STAIRS CO. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.* "James Dansby Swanson[1] (born February 11, 1994) is an American professional baseball shortstop for the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball (MLB). The Arizona Diamondbacks selected him first overall in the 2015 MLB Draft. Born in Kennesaw, Georgia, to two former college athletes from Troy University, Swanson grew up supporting the Braves. He was a two-sport athlete at Marietta High School, earning the nickname "Three-point Swanson" for his basketball prowess. The Colorado Rockies selected him out of high school in the 38th round of the 2012 MLB Draft, but Swanson opted not to sign, instead playing college baseball for the Vanderbilt Commodores. He missed most of his freshman season due to injuries, but had a breakout sophomore season as Vanderbilt's starting second baseman. The Commodores won their first ever national championship that season, and Swanson was named the 2014 College World Series Most Outstanding Player. He shifted back to shortstop in 2015 and won the Brooks Wallace Award for the best collegiate baseball player at that position. Swanson left Vanderbilt after the 2015 season to join the Diamondbacks and begin his professional baseball career. After one season in Arizona's farm system, he was traded to the Braves as part of a prospect package sent to Atlanta to acquire Shelby Miller. Swanson made his MLB debut in August 2016 and was the only Atlanta rookie named to the Braves' 2017 Opening Day roster, but he struggled both offensively and defensively and was sent back to Triple-A that July. Swanson's 2018 season was repeatedly derailed by wrist and hand injuries, and he missed a month of the 2019 season with a bruised heel. Healthy in 2020, Swanson set a career high with a .274 batting average, and his 49 runs scored were third in MLB. He followed this with a championship title in the 2021 World Series, the Braves' first since 1995.... Early life Swanson was born on February 11, 1994, in Kennesaw, Georgia.[1] Both of his parents were college athletes at Troy University: his mother Nancy played basketball and tennis, while his father played baseball and served as an assistant coach for the Trojans.[2] Growing up outside of Atlanta, Swanson was a childhood fan of the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball (MLB) and often attended games at Turner Field.[3] He was a two-sport varsity athlete at Marietta High School in Georgia, playing for both the school's baseball and basketball teams.[4] During his senior season on the Marietta Blue Devils basketball team, Swanson had a 44 percent three-point field goal shooting rate and averaged 14 points per game. He finished his three-year varsity team basketball career with 165 three-point goals, earning the nickname "Three-point Swanson".[5] College career The Colorado Rockies of Major League Baseball (MLB) selected Swanson in the 38th round of the 2012 MLB Draft, but he opted not to sign with them, instead honoring his commitment to play college baseball for the Vanderbilt Commodores.[6] Swanson had received recruitment offers from a number of universities, including Troy, Clemson, and Georgia Tech, but he agreed to attend Vanderbilt after a conversation with coach Tim Corbin.[2] A freshman for Vanderbilt's 2013 season, injuries and youth limited Swanson to only 11 games, four of which he started at shortstop. First, a broken bone in his foot kept him on the sidelines for six weeks. When he returned from that injury, he suffered a torn glenoid labrum. During the offseason, Swanson underwent shoulder surgery and exercised to prepare for his sophomore season in 2014.[7] When Tony Kemp left Vanderbilt after the 2014 season, Corbin asked Swanson to become the Commodores' starting second baseman as a sophomore in 2014.[7] Swanson hit his first collegiate home run on February 28 in the fifth inning of Vanderbilt's 4–1 win over Stanford.[8] By the end of March, Swanson's .430 on-base percentage (OBP) was second to shortstop Vince Conde on the Commodores.[9] Swanson finished the regular Southeastern Conference (SEC) season with a team-leading .366 batting average, 47 runs scored, 21 doubles, and 17 stolen bases, and he was an All-SEC First Team selection.[10] Although Vanderbilt was eliminated early in the 2014 SEC Tournament by Ole Miss,[11] Swanson and the rest of the team still clinched a berth in that year's NCAA tournament.[12] Partway through the tournament, Swanson recorded his 27th double of the season during Vanderbilt's 6–4 win over UC Irvine, tying the school record set by Warner Jones 10 years prior.[13] Vanderbilt's postseason run concluded with their first ever national championship when they defeated Virgina 3–2 in the College World Series (CWS) finals.[14] Swanson was named the CWS Most Outstanding Player after batting .323 with five runs scored and two RBI in the tournament, as well as for his defense at second base. He was also named to the All-Tournament team at designated hitter, while Branden Cogswell of Virginia received the honor at second base.[15] Going into the 2015 college baseball season, Conde's departure and the season-long suspension of third baseman Xavier Turner forced Corbin to move several members of his infield: freshman Will Toffey started at third base, which pushed Tyler Campbell, who had played at third during the CWS, to second, and in turn moved Swanson to shortstop.[16] [17] By the end of March, the Commodores were second in the SEC with a .312 batting average, while Swanson led the conference with 30 runs scored.[18] Between 2014 and 2015, he made 117 consecutive starts for Vanderbilt before missing the Commodores' April 28 game due to illness.[19] After finishing the regular season with a .347 batting average, 50 RBI, 34 extra-base hits, and a conference-leading 60 runs scored,[20] Swanson was both named to the All-SEC Second Team and was a semifinalist for the Dick Howser Trophy, given to the best college baseball player in the United States.[21][22] He was also a finalist for the Golden Spikes Award, which ultimately went to Andrew Benintendi of Arkansas.[23] Swanson rounded out the 2015 college baseball awards season with the Brooks Wallace Award, given to the best collegiate shortstop in the country.[24] While facing Missouri in the 2015 SEC Tournament, both Swanson's two home runs and the Commodores' four as a team tied SEC Tournament single-game records.[25] Vanderbilt finished second in the SEC Tournament after losing 7–3 to Florida in the conference finals.[26] After hitting the game-winning home run against Indiana in the second game of the 2015 NCAA tournament,[27] Swanson struggled in the tournament. Through the first eight games, he batted .242 with 11 strikeouts, and he was only 1-for-13 with five strikeouts and a defensive error in Vanderbilt's first three CWS games.[28] In a rematch of the previous season's CWS, Virginia defeated Vanderbilt in the finals to win their first ever national title.[29] Professional career Draft and minor leagues (2015–2016) The Arizona Diamondbacks selected Swanson first overall in the 2015 MLB Draft. It was the first time that a college shortstop had been drafted first overall since the San Diego Padres took Bill Almon in 1974.[30] He signed with the team on July 17, ten minutes before the 2 p.m. (PT) deadline for that year's draft picks, and accepted a $6.5 million signing bonus.[31] His professional baseball debut was delayed when, during a simulated game before assignment to one of the Diamondbacks' minor league affiliates, Swanson was hit in the face by a fastball from pitching prospect Yoan Lopez. He was diagnosed with a concussion and required 14 stitches on the side of his mouth.[32] After recovering from the hit, Swanson was assigned to the Class A Short Season Hillsboro Hops, making his professional debut on August 13, 2015. He went 0-for-2 at the plate, striking out twice, drawing a walk, and scoring a run.[33] Having missed six weeks with the concussion, Swanson was told that he would finish out the season with Hillsboro rather than receiving a late-season promotion that would push his development.[34] He played in 22 games for the Hops, batting .289 with one home run and 11 RBI in 83 at bats while leading Hillsboro to a Northwest League championship.[35][36] On December 9, 2015, the Diamondbacks traded Swanson, Ender Inciarte, and Aaron Blair to the Atlanta Braves in exchange for Shelby Miller and Gabe Speier. The Braves were in the middle of a rebuild, and president of baseball operations John Hart said that the team "wanted to make it painful for [Arizona] with players that we got back" by refusing a Miller trade until they received significant prospects like Swanson.[37] After spending spring training with the Braves, Swanson was sent to the Class A-Advanced Carolina Mudcats.[38] He played in 22 games there, batting .333 with a Carolina League-leading 12 doubles, before receiving a promotion to the Double-A Mississippi Braves at the end of April.[39] Swanson spent the first part of the season in competition with Ozzie Albies for a future starting shortstop role in Atlanta, but in July, Albies, who had been playing in Triple-A, was sent down to Mississippi so that he and Swanson could practice as a second base-shortstop pair.[40] That season, Swanson was selected to appear in both the Southern League All-Star Game and the All-Star Futures Game.[41][42] He appeared in 84 games for Mississippi, batting .261 with eight home runs and 45 RBI.[43] In 105 games between Carolina and Mississippi, he batted .275 for the minor league season, with nine home runs and 55 RBI in 411 at bats.[35] Atlanta Braves (2016–present) 2016–2018: Injuries and inconsistency Swanson with the Braves during spring training in 2016 Swanson was called up to Atlanta on August 16, 2016, after the Braves traded shortstop Erick Aybar to the Detroit Tigers to clear the position for him. He made his MLB debut that day, recording his first two major league hits, both singles, in a 10–3 loss to the Minnesota Twins.[44] His first major league home run, coming in the second inning of a 9–7 loss to the Washington Nationals on September 6, was inside-the-park: the hit off of Gio Gonzalez went over Trea Turner and ricocheted off the center field fence, and Swanson beat Bryce Harper's throw home to record the run. It was the first inside-the-park home run for the Braves since Wes Helms in 2001,[45] and Swanson was the first Brave since Paul Runge in 1985 to have his first career home run fall inside the park.[46] He remained with the Braves through the remainder of their 2016 season,[47] finishing the year with a .302 batting average, three home runs, 17 RBI, and 11 extra-base hits. Swanson had at least one hit in 25 of the 38 games in which he played.[48] Swanson was the only rookie to make the Braves' 2017 Opening Day roster, joining Chase d'Arnaud, Freddie Freeman, Adonis Garcia, Jace Peterson, and Brandon Phillips in the infield.[49] He began the season in a sophomore slump both offensively and defensively: by the end of May, Swanson was batting .185 with a .559 on-base plus slugging (OPS), while he had also committed 11 errors at shortstop.[50] His struggles coincided with the arrival of Johan Camargo and Matt Adams, both of whom provided offensive power to the infield.[51] Camargo in particular had taken over the majority of playing time at shortstop, while Ozzie Albies had just received a major league promotion.[52] On July 27, Swanson was demoted to the Triple-A Gwinnett Stripers, where he could receive more regular playing time.[52] At the time, he had been hitting .213 with six home runs and 35 RBI in 95 games.[53] Additionally, he only had three hits in 25 at bats following the All-Star break.[54] In 11 games for Gwinnett, Swanson hit .237 with one home run and five RBI.[55] He was suddenly called back up to the Braves on August 9 after Camargo suffered a knee injury during his pre-game ritual.[56] After returning to Atlanta, Swanson settled back into the shortstop position, batting .337 with a .434 OBP in the month after he replaced Camargo. Defensively, he and Albies, now playing second base, formed a strong middle infield tandem.[57] Swanson finished his first full season in Atlanta batting .232 with six home runs and 51 RBI in 144 games and 488 at bats.[58] Swanson began the 2018 season on a hot streak, recording multiple hits in four of the Braves' first six games.[59] He began feeling discomfort in his left wrist at the end of April, and after aggravating the injury during a game against the New York Mets, he was placed on the 10-day disabled list on May 4. The injury seemed to coincide with a sudden drop in offensive power from Swanson: after batting .358 with a .976 OPS in his first 16 games, he dropped to batting .191 with a .468 OPS in the next 12.[60] After a rehabilitation game in Double-A, Swanson returned to the Braves' lineup on May 19.[61] He again struggled through most of the season, batting .234 with a .704 OPS between June 1 and August 21, a stretch that ended with Swanson's first career multi-home run game. After hitting off of Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Ivan Nova in the fifth inning, he hit another home run in the seventh against reliever Michael Feliz, helping the Braves to a 6–1 win.[62] He widened his batting stance in August and showed some improvement, batting .297 with six home runs between August 11 and September 2,[63] but he hit only .161 in September.[64] On September 25, 2018, Swanson left a game against the New York Mets in the second inning with wrist pain,[64] later revealed to be a partially torn ligament in his left hand that ruled him out for the remainder of the regular season.[65] He continued to feel discomfort afterwards and was prevented from playing in the 2018 National League Division Series (NLDS). Instead, Charlie Culberson filled in at shortstop during the Braves' postseason run.[66] The Braves lost to the Dodgers in the four game NLDS,[67] while Swanson's hand and wrist continued to bother him until November 5, when he underwent surgery to remove a loose piece of cartilage.[68] The cartilage had been moving around his wrist, and Swanson described the experience as "like if you would slam a wedge doorstop into a door".[69] In 136 games, Swanson batted .238 with 14 home runs and 59 RBI,[70] while defensively he improved from −7 Defensive Runs Saved in 2017 to 10 in 2018.[71] 2019–2020: Increasing offensive success Swanson with the Braves in 2019 With his wrist no longer bothering him, Swanson showed a new offensive power during 2019 spring training, giving manager Brian Snitker hope that his production would increase.[72] He seemed poised for a breakout through the first half of the season: by June 18, Swanson's 13 home runs were one shy of his previous career high, and his exit velocity, launch angle, and hard-hit rate at the plate all showed significant increases from the previous season.[73] By the All-Star break, Swanson was batting .270 with 17 home runs and 57 RBI.[74] On July 23, however, Swanson landed awkwardly on first base while attempting to run out a ground ball in a game against the Kansas City Royals, injuring his left heel in the process.[75] The injury initially seemed minor, but he suffered a setback at the beginning of August, and after three weeks on the injured list, Swanson referred to the heel as "a frustrating injury".[76] He was activated from the injured list on August 26, just over a month after suffering the injury.[77] He struggled to hit after returning from the injury, batting only .141 in his first 23 games back from the injured list, but finished the season with eight hits in four games.[78] In 545 plate appearances during the 2019 regular season, Swanson batted .251 with 17 home runs and 65 RBI.[79] After missing the previous year's postseason, Swanson was named to the Braves' roster as they faced the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2019 NLDS.[80] In the ninth inning of Game 3, Swanson hit an RBI double off of Cardinals closer Carlos Martínez to tie the game 1–1. Adam Duvall followed this with a two-RBI single, and Mark Melancon held the Cardinals scoreless in the bottom of the ninth to win the game 3–1 for Atlanta.[78] The Cardinals held on to win the series, however, with a 13–1 rout of the Braves in Game 5 to eliminate Atlanta from the playoffs.[81] He went 5-for-18 at the plate during his first postseason run, with two RBI and three runs scored.[58] On January 10, 2020, Swanson agreed to a one-year, $3.15 million contract extension with the Braves.[82] He had an immediately strong start to the 2020 season, which began in July and was shortened to only 60 games due to the  The Braves began their abbreviated season with a three-game series against the New York Mets, during which Swanson went 5-for-12 at the plate with a double, a home run, and six RBI.[83] He hit his first walk-off home run on August 17, lifting the Braves to a 7–6 victory over the Washington Nationals.[84] On September 9, Swanson was one of three Braves who scored five runs in the Braves' 29–9 rout of the Miami Marlins, a franchise record for the most runs in one game. Austin Riley and Adam Duvall also scored five runs apiece.[85] Swanson played in all 60 games of the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, setting career highs with a .274 batting average, .345 on-base percentage, and .464 slugging percentage while recording 10 home runs and 35 RBI. His 49 runs scored were the third in MLB, behind teammate Freddie Freeman's 51 and Fernando Tatis Jr.'s 50.[86] After the season, which was played without spectators in attendance due toprotocols, Swanson said that playing in empty ballparks "felt like backyard baseball a little bit", and the lack of audience distractions led players "to feel comfortable in their own skin".[87] The Braves faced division rivals the Miami Marlins in the 2020 NLDS. Swanson's five RBI in the three-game series were the most of any Braves shortstop during a Division Series, while Atlanta advanced to the National League Championship Series (NLCS) for the first time since 2001.[88] The Braves lost the 2021 NLCS to the Los Angeles Dodgers in seven games,[89] and Swanson cost the team a potential scoring opportunity on a fourth-inning baserunning error. He broke for home plate on a ground ball from Nick Markakis and was caught in a rundown by third baseman Justin Turner and catcher Will Smith. Smith tagged Swanson out and then threw the ball back to third base, where Dodgers shortstop Corey Seager tagged out Austin Riley, who had tried to advance from second base during Swanson's rundown. The Braves had been 3–2 at the time of the double play but ultimately lost the game 4–3.[90] 2021–present: World Series championship Swanson with the Braves in 2021 Swanson filed for salary arbitration during the 2020–21 offseason, but arbitrators denied his request to make $6.7 million the following year, instead ruling that his salary would be $6 million.[91] He began the 2021 season in a slump, batting only .209 with a .631 OPS and 31.4 percent strikeout rate by May 20, but began to pick up in May, with four home runs in a 13-game stretch.[92] On June 3, both Swanson and his middle infield partner Ozzie Albies recorded the 500th hits of their MLB career. Swanson's came on a home run that traveled 440 feet (130 m), the longest recorded during his time with the Braves.[93] On July 22, Swanson hit his first major league grand slam, hitting against Matt Moore of the Philadelphia Phillies in a 7–2 Atlanta victory. It was his 17th home run of the season, tying Swanson's career high.[94] He recorded another grand slam the following week, against John Curtiss of the Milwaukee Brewers. Swanson had hit a two-run home run earlier in the game, giving him 20 for the season, tying Denis Menke for the most of any Braves shortstop in one season.[95] His next home run, which came against the Washington Nationals on August 13, gave Swanson the single-season home run record for any Braves shortstop.[96] He played in 160 games during the 2021 regular season, the most of anyone in the National League, and batted .248 with 27 home runs and 88 RBI in 588 at bats.[58] The Braves clinched the NL East for the fourth consecutive season on September 30, 2021, with a 5–3 win over the Phillies.[97] Swanson was instrumental in that process, with two doubles, a home run, and five RBI in the last six games before the Braves clinched the title.[98] Swanson's defensive abilities were on display against the Brewers in the 2021 NLDS: in Game 3, he held Milwaukee scoreless on separate occasions, first by preventing runners from advancing on a groundout from Lorenzo Cain and then by turning an eighth-inning double play to retire Jace Peterson and Willy Adames.[99] He was less adept at the plate, going only 3-for-15 in the four-game series.[35] The Braves faced the Dodgers in the 2021 NLCS, where in Game 1 Swanson tagged out Chris Taylor to prevent Los Angeles from breaking a 2–2 tie in the top of the ninth inning. The Braves won the game 3–2 on a walk-off RBI single from Austin Riley.[100] His offensive troubles continued, however, with only two hits in 23 at bats during the six-game series.[58] By Game 4 of the 2021 World Series, Swanson was only batting .225 in the postseason, and he had mostly gone hitless. In the seventh inning, however, he hit a 95 mph (153 km/h) fastball from Houston Astros reliever Cristian Javier for a game-tying home run. Jorge Soler's home run secured a 3–2 victory for Atlanta, putting them one game within reach of their first championship since 1995.[101] With the Astros down 7–0 in Game 6, Swanson secured the final out of the game to give the Braves the World Series championship title.[102] International career In 2014, Swanson represented USA Baseball at Haarlem Baseball Week in the Netherlands. Through his first six starts, Swanson led the team with a .458 batting average in 24 at bats.[103] The US team won the gold medal with their 6–3 victory over Japan,[104] and Swanson went on to participate in the team's Cuban tour, in which they were swept by the host team. He had 66 at bats for Team USA, finishing second on the team with a .288 batting average.[105] Personal life Swanson is engaged to Mallory Pugh of the Chicago Red Stars and the United States women's national soccer team, having proposed in December 2021.[106] The couple met through Pugh's brother-in-law and Swanson's former teammate Jace Peterson and began dating in 2017.[107] Swanson is the first MLB player to have "Dansby" in any part of his name – Justin and Leonidas Dansby appeared in Minor League Baseball but did not reach the majors.[108] Swanson's first name is James; Dansby is his mother's maiden name. He is the youngest of three children, and both of his older siblings played college sports: Chase played baseball for the Mercer Bears, while his sister Lindsey was on the softball team at Georgia College.[109] Swanson suffers from anxiety, which negatively impacted his performance during his first few seasons of professional baseball.[110] A devout Christian, he credits his faith with helping him through his panic attacks." (wikipedia.org) "The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The team played its home games at Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium from 1966 to 1996, and at Turner Field from 1997 to 2016. Since 2017, their home stadium has been Truist Park (formerly SunTrust Park), located 10 miles (16 km) northwest of downtown Atlanta in Cumberland, Georgia.[7] The Braves play spring training games at CoolToday Park in North Port, Florida.[8][9] The name "Braves", which was first used in 1912, originates from a term for a Native American warrior. They are nicknamed "the Bravos", and often referred to as "America's Team" in reference to the team's games being broadcast on the nationally available TBS from the 1970s until 2007, giving the team a nationwide fan base. The Braves and the Chicago Cubs are the National League's two remaining charter franchises. The Braves were founded in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1871, as the Boston Red Stockings (not to be confused with the American League's Boston Red Sox). The team states it is "the oldest continuously operating professional sports franchise in America."[10][b] After various name changes, the team eventually began operating as the Boston Braves, which lasted for most of the first half of the 20th century. Then, in 1953, the team moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and became the Milwaukee Braves, followed by their move to Atlanta in 1966. From 1991 to 2005, the Braves were one of the most successful teams in baseball, winning an unprecedented 14 consecutive division titles[11][12][13] (omitting the strike-shortened 1994 season in which there were no official division champions), and producing one of the greatest pitching rotations in the history of baseball. Most notably, this rotation consisted of pitchers Greg Maddux, John Smoltz, and Tom Glavine. Pitcher Steve Avery was also a significant contributor to the rotation during the period of 1991–1993. The Braves won the National League West division from 1991 to 1993, and after divisional realignment, the National League East division from 1995 to 2005. They returned to the playoffs as the National League Wild Card in 2010. The Braves advanced to the World Series five times in the 1990s (1991, 1992, 1995, 1996, and 1999), winning the title in 1995 against the Cleveland Indians. Since their debut in the National League in 1876, the franchise has won an MLB record 21 divisional titles, 18 National League pennants, and four World Series championships – in 1914 as the Boston Braves, in 1957 as the Milwaukee Braves, and in 1995 and 2021 as the Atlanta Braves. The Braves are the only Major League Baseball franchise to have won the World Series in three different home cities. At the end of the 2021 season, the Braves' overall win–loss record is 10,820–10,757 (.501).... History Main article: History of the Atlanta Braves Boston (1871–1952) Main article: History of the Boston Braves 1871–1913 King Kelly cigarette card (Goodwin & Company, 1888) The Cincinnati Red Stockings, established in 1869 as the first openly all-professional baseball team, voted to dissolve after the 1870 season. Player-manager Harry Wright, with brother George and two other Cincinnati players, then went to Boston, Massachusetts at the invitation of Boston Red Stockings founder Ivers Whitney Adams to form the nucleus of the Boston Red Stockings, a charter member of the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players (NAPBBP). The original Boston Red Stockings team and its successors can lay claim to being the oldest continuously playing team in American professional sports.[10] (The only other team that has been organized as long, the Chicago Cubs, did not play for the two years following the Great Chicago Fire of 1871.) Two young players hired away from the Forest City club of Rockford, Illinois, turned out to be the biggest stars during the NAPBBP years: pitcher Al Spalding (founder of Spalding sporting goods) and second baseman Ross Barnes. Led by the Wright brothers, Barnes, and Spalding, the Red Stockings dominated the National Association, winning four of that league's five championships. The team became one of the National League's charter franchises in 1876, sometimes called the "Red Caps" (as a new Cincinnati Red Stockings club was another charter member). Boston Beaneaters team photo, 1890 The Boston Red Caps played in the first game in the history of the National League, on Saturday, April 22, 1876, defeating the Philadelphia Athletics, 6–5.[15][16][17] Although somewhat stripped of talent in the National League's inaugural year, Boston bounced back to win the 1877 and 1878 pennants. The Red Caps/Beaneaters were one of the league's dominant teams during the 19th century, winning a total of eight pennants. For most of that time, their manager was Frank Selee. Boston came to be called the Beaneaters in 1883 while retaining red as the team color. The 1898 team finished 102–47, a club record for wins that would stand for almost a century. Stars of those 1890s Beaneater teams included the "Heavenly Twins", Hugh Duffy and Tommy McCarthy, as well as "Slidin'" Billy Hamilton. The team was decimated when the American League's new Boston entry set up shop in 1901. Many of the Beaneaters' stars jumped to the new team, which offered contracts that the Beaneaters' owners did not even bother to match. They only managed one winning season from 1900 to 1913 and lost 100 games five times. In 1907, the Beaneaters (temporarily) eliminated the last bit of red from their stockings because their manager thought the red dye could cause wounds to become infected, as noted in The Sporting News Baseball Guide in the 1940s. The American League club's owner, Charles Taylor, wasted little time in adopting Red Sox as his team's first official nickname (up to that point they had been called by the generic "Americans"). Media-driven nickname changes to the Doves in 1907 and the Rustlers in 1911 did nothing to change the National League club's luck. The team became the Braves for the first time before the 1912 season.[18] The president of the club, John M. Ward named the club after the owner, James Gaffney.[18] Gaffney was called one of the "braves" of New York City's political machine, Tammany Hall, which used an Indian chief as their symbol.[18][19] 1914: Miracle Main article: 1914 Boston Braves season A program from the 1914 World Series, featuring Braves manager George Stallings (left). Baseball Magazine cover, 1914 (right). Two years later, the Braves put together one of the most memorable seasons in baseball history. After a dismal 4–18 start, the Braves seemed to be on pace for a last-place finish. On July 4, 1914, the Braves lost both games of a doubleheader to the Brooklyn Dodgers. The consecutive losses put their record at 26–40 and the Braves were in last place, 15 games behind the league-leading New York Giants, who had won the previous three league pennants. After a day off, the Braves started to put together a hot streak, and from July 6 through September 5, the Braves went 41–12.[20] On September 7 and 8, the Braves took two of three games from the New York Giants and moved into first place. The Braves tore through September and early October, closing with 25 wins against six losses, while the Giants went 16–16.[21] They were the only team, under the old eight-team league format, to win a pennant after being in last place on the Fourth of July. They were in last place as late as July 18, but were close to the pack, moving into fourth on July 21 and second place on August 12.[22] Despite their amazing comeback, the Braves entered the World Series as a heavy underdog to Connie Mack's Philadelphia A's. Nevertheless, the Braves swept the Athletics—the first unqualified sweep in the young history of the modern World Series (the 1907 Series had one tied game) to win the world championship. Meanwhile, Johnny Evers won the Chalmers Award. The Braves played the World Series (as well as the last few games of the 1914 season) at Fenway Park, since their normal home, the South End Grounds, was too small. However, the Braves' success inspired owner Gaffney to build a modern park, Braves Field, which opened in August 1915. It was the largest park in the majors at the time, with 40,000 seats and a very spacious outfield. The park was novel for its time; public transportation brought fans right to the park. 1915–1953 After contending for most of 1915 and 1916, the Braves only twice posted winning records from 1917 to 1932. The lone highlight of those years came when Judge Emil Fuchs bought the team in 1923 to bring his longtime friend, pitching great Christy Mathewson, back into the game. However, Mathewson died in 1925, leaving Fuchs in control of the team. Fuchs was committed to building a winner, but the damage from the years prior to his arrival took some time to overcome. The Braves finally managed to be competitive in 1933 and 1934 under manager Bill McKechnie, but Fuchs' revenue was severely depleted due to the Great Depression. Looking for a way to get more fans and more money, Fuchs worked out a deal with the New York Yankees to acquire Babe Ruth, who had started his career with the Red Sox. Fuchs made Ruth team vice president, and promised him a share of the profits. He was also granted the title of assistant manager, and was to be consulted on all of the Braves' deals. Fuchs even suggested that Ruth, who had long had his heart set on managing, could take over as manager once McKechnie stepped down—perhaps as early as 1936.[23] At first, it appeared that Ruth was the final piece the team needed in 1935. On opening day, he had a hand in all of the Braves' runs in a 4–2 win over the Giants. However, that proved to be the only time the Braves were over .500 all year. Events went downhill quickly. While Ruth could still hit, he could do little else. He could not run, and his fielding was so terrible that three of the Braves' pitchers threatened to go on strike if Ruth were in the lineup. It soon became obvious that he was vice president and assistant manager in name only and Fuchs' promise of a share of team profits was hot air. In fact, Ruth discovered that Fuchs expected him to invest some of his money in the team.[23] Seeing a franchise in complete disarray, Ruth retired on June 1—only six days after he clouted what turned out to be the last three home runs of his career. He had wanted to quit as early as May 12, but Fuchs wanted him to hang on so he could play in every National League park.[23] The Braves finished 38–115, the worst season in franchise history. Their .248 winning percentage is the second-worst in the modern era and the second-worst in National League history (ahead of the 1899 Cleveland Spiders with a .130 winning percentage). Fuchs lost control of the team in August 1935,[23] and the new owners tried to change the team's image by renaming it the Boston Bees. This did little to change the team's fortunes. After five uneven years, a new owner, construction magnate Lou Perini, changed the nickname back to the Braves. He immediately set about rebuilding the team. World War II slowed things down a little, but the team rode the pitching of Warren Spahn to impressive seasons in 1946 and 1947. Hall of Fame pitcher Warren Spahn In 1948, the team won the pennant, behind the pitching of Spahn and Johnny Sain, who won 39 games between them. The remainder of the rotation was so thin that in September, Boston Post writer Gerald Hern wrote this poem about the pair:     First we'll use Spahn     then we'll use Sain     Then an off day     followed by rain     Back will come Spahn     followed by Sain     And followed     we hope     by two days of rain. The poem received such a wide audience that the sentiment, usually now paraphrased as "Spahn and Sain and pray for rain", entered the baseball vocabulary. However, in the 1948 season, the Braves had the same overall winning percentage as in games that Spahn and Sain started. The 1948 World Series, which the Braves lost in six games to the Indians, turned out to be the Braves' last hurrah in Boston. In 1950, Sam Jethroe became the team's first African American player, making his major league debut on April 18. Amid four mediocre seasons, attendance steadily dwindled until, on March 13, 1953, Perini, who had recently bought out his original partners, announced he was moving the team to Milwaukee, where the Braves had their top farm club, the Brewers. Milwaukee had long been a possible target for relocation. Bill Veeck had tried to return his St. Louis Browns there earlier the same year (Milwaukee was the original home of that franchise), but his proposal had been voted down by the other American League owners. Milwaukee (1953–1965) See also: History of the Atlanta Braves § Milwaukee Milwaukee went wild over the Braves, drawing a then-NL record 1.8 million fans. The Braves finished 92–62 in their first season in Milwaukee. The success of the relocated team showed that baseball could succeed in new markets, and the Philadelphia Athletics, St. Louis Browns, Brooklyn Dodgers, and New York Giants left their hometowns within the next five years. Milwaukee Braves cap logo As the 1950s progressed, the reinvigorated Braves became increasingly competitive. Sluggers Eddie Mathews and Hank Aaron drove the offense (they hit a combined 1,226 home runs as Braves, with 850 of those coming while the franchise was in Milwaukee and 863 coming while they were teammates), often aided by another power hitter, Joe Adcock, while Warren Spahn, Lew Burdette, and Bob Buhl anchored the rotation. The 1956 Braves finished second, only one game behind the Brooklyn Dodgers. In 1957, the Braves celebrated their first pennant in nine years spearheaded by Aaron's MVP season, as he led the National League in home runs and RBI. Perhaps the most memorable of his 44 round-trippers that season came on September 23, a two-run walk-off home run that gave the Braves a 4–2 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals and clinched the League championship. The team then went on to its first World Series win in over 40 years, defeating the powerful New York Yankees of Berra, Mantle, and Ford in seven games. One-time Yankee Burdette, the Series MVP, threw three complete-game victories against his former team, giving up only two earned runs. In 1958, the Braves again won the National League pennant and jumped out to a three games to one lead in the World Series against the New York Yankees once more, thanks in part to the strength of Spahn's and Burdette's pitching. But the Yankees stormed back to take the last three games, in large part to World Series MVP Bob Turley's pitching. Hank Aaron The 1959 season saw the Braves finish the season in a tie with the Los Angeles Dodgers, both with 86–68 records. Many residents of Chicago and Milwaukee were hoping for a Sox-Braves Series, as the cities are only about 75 miles (121 km) apart, but it was not to be because Milwaukee fell in a best-of-3 playoff with two straight losses to the Dodgers. The Dodgers would go on to defeat the Chicago White Sox in the World Series. The next six years were up-and-down for the Braves. The 1960 season featured two no-hitters by Burdette and Spahn, and Milwaukee finished seven games behind the Pittsburgh Pirates, who went on to win the World Series that year, in second place, one year after the Braves were on the winning end of the 13-inning near-perfect game of Pirates pitcher Harvey Haddix. The 1961 season saw a drop in the standings for the Braves down to fourth, despite Spahn recording his 300th victory and pitching another no-hitter that year. Aaron hit 45 home runs in 1962, a Milwaukee career high for him, but this did not translate into wins for the Braves, as they finished fifth. The next season, Aaron again hit 44 home runs and notched 130 RBI, and 42-year-old Warren Spahn was once again the ace of the staff, going 23–7. However, none of the other Braves produced at that level, and the team finished in the "second division", for the first time in its short history in Milwaukee. The Braves were mediocre as the 1960s began, with an inflated win total fed by the expansion New York Mets and Houston Colt .45s. To this day, the Milwaukee Braves are the only major league team that played more than one season and never had a losing record. Perini sold the Braves to a Chicago-based group led by William Bartholomay in 1962. Almost immediately Bartholomay started shopping the Braves to a larger television market. Keen to attract them, the fast-growing city of Atlanta, led by Mayor Ivan Allen Jr. constructed a new $18 million, 52,000-seat ballpark in less than one year, Atlanta Stadium, which was officially opened in 1965 in hopes of luring an existing major league baseball and/or NFL/AFL team. After the city failed to lure the Kansas City A's to Atlanta (the A's ultimately moved to Oakland in 1968), the Braves announced their intention to move to Atlanta for the 1965 season. However, an injunction filed in Wisconsin kept the Braves in Milwaukee for one final year. In 1966, the Braves completed the move to Atlanta. Eddie Mathews is the only Braves player to have played for the organization in all three cities that they have been based in. Mathews played with the Braves for their last season in Boston, the team's entire tenure in Milwaukee, and their first season in Atlanta. Atlanta (1966–present) 1966–1974 The Braves were a .500 team in their first few years in Atlanta; 85–77 in 1966, 77–85 in 1967, and 81–81 in 1968. The 1967 season was the Braves' first losing season since 1952, their last year in Boston. In 1969, with the onset of divisional play, the Braves won the first-ever National League West Division title, before being swept by the "Miracle Mets" in the National League Championship Series. They would not be a factor during the next decade, posting only two winning seasons between 1970 and 1981 – in some cases, fielding teams as bad as the worst Boston teams. The fence over which Hank Aaron hit his 715th career home run still exists outside of Center Parc Stadium. In the meantime, fans had to be satisfied with the achievements of Hank Aaron. In the relatively hitter-friendly confines and higher-than-average altitude of Atlanta Stadium ("The Launching Pad"), he actually increased his offensive production. Atlanta also produced batting champions in Rico Carty (in 1970) and Ralph Garr (in 1974). In the shadow of Aaron's historical home run pursuit, was the fact that three Atlanta sluggers hit 40 or more home runs in 1973 – Darrell Evans and Davey Johnson along with Aaron. By the end of the 1973 season, Aaron had hit 713 home runs, one short of Ruth's record. Throughout the winter he received racially motivated death threats, but stood up well under the pressure. On April 4, opening day of the next season, he hit No.714 in Cincinnati, and on April 8, in front of his home fans and a national television audience, he finally beat Ruth's mark with a home run to left-center field off left-hander Al Downing of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Aaron spent most of his career as a Milwaukee and Atlanta Brave before being traded to the Milwaukee Brewers on November 2, 1974. 1976–1977: Ted Turner buys the team Media magnate Ted Turner purchased the team in 1976, and played a large role in the team's operation. In 1976, the team was purchased by media magnate Ted Turner, owner of superstation WTBS, as a means to keep the team (and one of his main programming staples) in Atlanta. The financially strapped Turner used money already paid to the team for their broadcast rights as a down-payment. It was then that Atlanta Stadium was renamed Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium. Turner quickly gained a reputation as a quirky, hands-on baseball owner. On May 11, 1977, Turner appointed himself manager, but because MLB passed a rule in the 1950s barring managers from holding a financial stake in their teams, Turner was ordered to relinquish that position after one game (the Braves lost 2–1 to the Pittsburgh Pirates to bring their losing streak to 17 games). Turner used the Braves as a major programming draw for his fledgling cable network, making the Braves the first franchise to have a nationwide audience and fan base. WTBS marketed the team as "The Atlanta Braves: America's Team", a nickname that still sticks in some areas of the country, especially the South. Among other things, in 1976 Turner suggested the nickname "Channel" for pitcher Andy Messersmith and jersey number 17, in order to promote the television station that aired Braves games. Major League Baseball quickly nixed the idea. 1978–1990 After three straight losing seasons, Bobby Cox was hired for his first stint as manager for the 1978 season. He promoted 22-year-old slugger Dale Murphy into the starting lineup. Murphy hit 77 home runs over the next three seasons, but he struggled on defense, unable to adeptly play either catcher or first base. In 1980, Murphy was moved to center field and demonstrated excellent range and throwing ability, while the Braves earned their first winning season since 1974. Cox was fired after the 1981 season and replaced with Joe Torre, under whose leadership the Braves attained their first divisional title since 1969. Strong performances from Bob Horner, Chris Chambliss, pitcher Phil Niekro, and short relief pitcher Gene Garber helped the Braves, but no Brave was more acclaimed than Murphy, who won both a Most Valuable Player and a Gold Glove award. Murphy also won an MVP award the following season, but the Braves began a period of decline that defined the team throughout the 1980s. Murphy, excelling in defense, hitting, and running, was consistently recognized as one of the league's best players, but the Braves averaged only 65 wins per season between 1985 and 1990. Their lowest point came in 1988, when they lost 106 games. The 1986 season saw the return of Bobby Cox as general manager. Also in 1986, the team stopped using their Indian-themed mascot, Chief Noc-A-Homa. 1991–2005: Division dominance 1991–1994 Tom Glavine John Smoltz Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, and John Smoltz combined for six Cy Young Awards during their time in the Braves pitching rotation Cox returned to the dugout as manager in the middle of the 1990 season, replacing Russ Nixon. The Braves finished the year with the worst record in baseball, at 65–97. They traded Dale Murphy to the Philadelphia Phillies after it was clear he was becoming a less dominant player. Pitching coach Leo Mazzone began developing young pitchers Tom Glavine, Steve Avery, and John Smoltz into future stars. That same year, the Braves used the number one overall pick in the 1990 MLB draft to select Chipper Jones, who became one of the best hitters in team history.[24] Perhaps the Braves' most important move was not on the field, but in the front office. Immediately after the season, John Schuerholz was hired away from the Kansas City Royals as general manager. The following season, Glavine, Avery, and Smoltz would be recognized as the best young pitchers in the league, winning 52 games among them. Meanwhile, behind position players David Justice, Ron Gant and unexpected league Most Valuable Player and batting champion Terry Pendleton, the Braves overcame a 39–40 start, winning 55 of their final 83 games over the last three months of the season and edging the Los Angeles Dodgers by one game in one of baseball's more memorable playoff races. The "Worst to First" Braves, who had not won a divisional title since 1982, captivated the city of Atlanta (and the entire southeast) during their improbable run to the flag. They defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates in a very tightly contested seven-game NLCS only to lose the World Series, also in seven games, to the Minnesota Twins. The series, considered by many to be one of the greatest ever, was the first time a team that had finished last in its division one year went to the World Series the next; both the Twins and Braves accomplished the feat. Despite the 1991 World Series loss, the Braves' success would continue. In 1992, the Braves returned to the NLCS and once again defeated the Pirates in seven games, culminating in a dramatic game seven win. Francisco Cabrera's two-out single that scored David Justice and Sid Bream capped a three-run rally in the bottom of the ninth inning that gave the Braves a 3–2 victory. It was the first time in post-season history that the tying and winning runs had scored on a single play in the ninth inning. The Braves lost the World Series to the Toronto Blue Jays, however. In 1993, the Braves signed Cy Young Award winning pitcher Greg Maddux from the Chicago Cubs, leading many baseball insiders to declare the team's pitching staff the best in baseball.[25] The 1993 team posted a franchise-best 104 wins after a dramatic pennant race with the San Francisco Giants, who won 103 games.[26] The Braves needed a stunning 55–19 finish to edge out the Giants, who led the Braves by nine games in the standings as late as August 11. However, the Braves fell in the NLCS to the Philadelphia Phillies in six games. In 1994, in a realignment of the National League's divisions following the 1993 expansion, the Braves moved to the Eastern Division.[27] This realignment was the main cause of the team's heated rivalry with the New York Mets during the mid-to-late 1990s.[28][29][30] The player's strike cut short the 1994 season, prior to the division championships, with the Braves six games behind the Montreal Expos with 48 games left to play. 1995–2005 The Braves returned strong the following strike-shortened (144 games instead of the customary 162) year and beat the Cleveland Indians in the 1995 World Series.[31] This squelched claims by many Braves critics that they were the "Buffalo Bills of Baseball" (January 1996 issue of Beckett Baseball Card Monthly). With this World Series victory, the Braves became the first team in Major League Baseball to win world championships in three different cities. With their strong pitching as a constant, the Braves appeared in the 1996 and 1999 World Series (losing both to the New York Yankees, managed by Joe Torre, a former Braves manager),[29] and had a streak of division titles from 1991 to 2005 (three in the Western Division and eleven in the Eastern) interrupted only in 1994 when the strike ended the season early. Pitching was not the only constant in the Braves organization —Cox was the Braves' manager, while Schuerholz remained the team's GM until after the 2007 season when he was promoted to team president. Terry Pendleton finished his playing career elsewhere but returned to the Braves system as the hitting coach. In October 1996, Time Warner acquired Ted Turner's Turner Broadcasting System and all of its assets, including its cable channels and the Atlanta Braves. Over the next few years, Ted Turner's presence as the owner of the team would diminish. The 1995 World Series Commissioner's Trophy on display in the Ivan Allen Jr. Braves Museum and Hall of Fame at Turner Field A 95–67 record in 2000 produced a ninth consecutive division title. However, a sweep by the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Division Series prevented the Braves from reaching the NL Championship Series.[29] In 2001, Atlanta won the National League East division yet again, swept the Houston Astros in the NLDS, then lost to the Arizona Diamondbacks in the National League Championship Series four games to one. One memorable game the Braves played that year came on September 21, when they played rival New York Mets in the first major professional sporting event held in New York City since 9/11. In 2002, 2003, and 2004, the Braves won the Eastern division again, but lost in the NLDS in all three years in the same fashion: 3 games to 2 to the San Francisco Giants, Chicago Cubs, and Houston Astros. Cy Young dominance Six National League Cy Young Awards in the 1990s were awarded to three Braves pitchers:     In 1991, left-handed pitcher Tom Glavine received his first award.     Right-handed pitcher Greg Maddux won four in a row, three of them with the Braves from 1993 through 1995. His first award came in 1992 with the Cubs.     In 1996, right-handed pitcher John Smoltz received his only Cy Young Award.     In 1998, Glavine won his second.[32] 2005: A new generation Main article: 2005 Atlanta Braves season In 2005, the Braves won the Division championship for the 14th consecutive time from 1991 to 2005. The fourteen consecutive division titles (not counting the interrupted 1994 season) stands as the record for all major league baseball. This particular team would be known as the "Baby Braves", referring to the vast presence of rookies on the roster such as Wilson Betemit, Brian McCann, Pete Orr, Ryan Langerhans, and Jeff Francoeur.[33] Catcher Brian McCann, right fielder Jeff Francoeur, and pitcher Kyle Davies all grew up near the Atlanta area; as such, the team had a record of 90–72, two games better than the second place team in the Philadelphia Phillies. However, the season would end on a sour note as the Braves lost the National League Division Series to the Astros in four games. In Game 4, with the Braves leading by five runs in the eighth inning, the Astros battled back with a Lance Berkman grand slam and a two-out, ninth-inning Brad Ausmus home run off of Braves closer Kyle Farnsworth. The game did not end until the 18th inning, becoming the longest game in playoff history at five hours 50 minutes. Chris Burke ended the marathon with a home run off of Joey Devine. After the 2005 season, the Braves lost their long-time pitching coach Leo Mazzone, who left to go to the Baltimore Orioles. Roger McDowell took his place in the Atlanta dugout. Unable to re-sign shortstop Rafael Furcal, the Braves acquired shortstop Édgar Rentería from the Boston Red Sox. 2006: Struggles Main article: 2006 Atlanta Braves season In 2006, the Braves did not perform at the level they had grown accustomed to. Due to an offensive slump, injuries to their starting rotation, and subpar bullpen performances, the Braves compiled a 6–21 record during June, the worst month ever in Atlanta with a winning percentage of .222; this was only better than the woeful Boston Braves in May 1935 (4–20) with a .166 winning percentage. After the break, the Braves came out with their bats swinging, setting many franchise records. They won five straight, sweeping the Padres and taking two from the Cardinals, tallying a total of 65 runs in that span. The 65 runs in five games is the best by the franchise since 1897, when the Boston Beaneaters totaled 78, including 25 in one game and 21 in another, from May 31 – June 3; the 2006 Braves also became the first team since the 1930 New York Yankees to score ten runs or more in five straight games. The Braves had a total of 81 hits during their five-game run and 98 hits in their last six games, going back to an 8–3 victory over Cincinnati on July 9, the last game before the All-Star break. Additionally, Chipper Jones was able to maintain a 20-game hitting streak and tie Paul Waner's 69-year-old Major League record with a 14-game extra-base hit streak.[34] However, on September 18, the New York Mets' win over the Florida Marlins mathematically eliminated the Braves from winning the NL East, ending the Atlanta Braves' 11-year reign over the NL East. On September 24, the Braves' loss to the Colorado Rockies mathematically eliminated the Braves from winning the NL Wild Card, making 2006 the first year that the Braves would not compete in the postseason since 1990, not counting the strike-shortened 1994 season. Also, a loss to the Mets on September 28 guaranteed the Braves their first losing season since 1990. Although the Braves won two of their last three games against the Astros, including rookie Chuck James besting Roger Clemens, Atlanta finished the season in third place, one game ahead of the Marlins, at 79–83. Sale to Liberty Media In December 2005, team owner Time Warner, which inherited the Braves after purchasing Turner Broadcasting System in 1996, announced it was placing the team for sale.[35][36] Liberty Media began negotiations to purchase the team. In February 2007, after more than a year of negotiations, Time Warner agreed to a deal to sell the Braves to Liberty Media, which owned a large amount of stock in Time Warner, pending approval by 75 percent of MLB owners and the Commissioner of Baseball, Bud Selig. The deal included the exchange of the Braves, valued in the deal at $450 million, a hobbyist magazine publishing company, and $980 million cash, for 68.5 million shares of Time Warner stock held by Liberty, worth approximately $1.48 billion. Team President Terry McGuirk anticipated no change in the front office structure, personnel, or day-to-day operations of the Braves, and Liberty did not participate in day-to-day operations.[37] On May 16, 2007, Major League Baseball's owners approved the sale.[3][38] The Braves are one of only two Major League Baseball teams under majority corporate ownership (and the only NL team with this distinction); the other team is the Toronto Blue Jays (owned by Canadian media conglomerate Rogers Communications). 2007: More struggles Main article: 2007 Atlanta Braves season Brian McCann bats for Atlanta in July 2007 On July 5, Chipper Jones surpassed Dale Murphy for the Atlanta club record of 372 home runs by belting two against the Los Angeles Dodgers. After struggling during the second half of the 2007 season, Atlanta finished over .500 and missed the postseason again. On October 12, 2007, John Schuerholz stepped down as general manager to take over as team president.[39] Assistant GM Frank Wren took over as general manager. 2009: The return of solid pitching Main article: 2009 Atlanta Braves season On December 4, 2008, the Braves received Javier Vázquez and Boone Logan, while the Chicago White Sox received prospects catcher Tyler Flowers, shortstop Brent Lillibridge, third baseman Jon Gilmore and pitcher Santos Rodriguez.[40] On January 13, 2009, the Braves signed Japanese pitcher Kenshin Kawakami to a three-year deal, and two days later signed free agent pitcher Derek Lowe to a four-year contract. During the course of the offseason, the Braves signed veteran pitcher and former Brave Tom Glavine, while losing long-time Brave John Smoltz to the Boston Red Sox. On February 25, 2009, just before the start of spring training, Atlanta agreed to terms on a one-year contract with free-agent outfielder Garret Anderson. The additional outfield depth allowed the Braves to trade Josh Anderson to the Detroit Tigers for minor league pitcher Rudy Darrow on March 30, 2009.[41] On June 3, 2009, the Braves acquired Nate McLouth from the Pittsburgh Pirates for prospects Jeff Locke, Charlie Morton and Gorkys Hernández. They also released veteran pitcher Tom Glavine. On July 10, 2009, the Braves traded outfielder Jeff Francoeur to the New York Mets for outfielder Ryan Church. On July 31, 2009, hours before the trade deadline, the Braves and Boston Red Sox swapped 1st basemen: Atlanta dealt Casey Kotchman to Boston and reacquired Adam LaRoche, whom the Braves had traded away during the 2006–07 off-season to Pittsburgh. The Braves made a late-season surge, coming within 2 games of the wild card leading Colorado Rockies in late September. On October 1, 2009, with the Braves four games back, Colorado beat the Milwaukee Brewers 9–2 to clinch the wild card spot and end the Braves' 2009 postseason hopes. 2010: Cox's final season Main article: 2010 Atlanta Braves season Braves manager Bobby Cox retired in 2010 after 25 years of management The 2010 Braves' season featured an attempt to reclaim a postseason berth for the first time since 2005. The Braves were once again skippered by Bobby Cox, in his 25th and final season managing the team. The Braves started the 2010 season slowly and had a nine-game losing streak in April. Then they had a nine-game winning streak from May 26 through June 3, the Braves longest since 2000 when they won 16 in a row. On May 31, the Atlanta Braves defeated the then-first place Philadelphia Phillies at Turner Field to take sole possession of first place in the National League East standings, a position they had maintained through the middle of August.[42] The last time the Atlanta Braves led the NL East on August 1 was in 2005. On July 13, 2010, at the 2010 MLB All-Star Game in Anaheim, Braves catcher Brian McCann was awarded the All-Star Game MVP Award for his clutch two-out, three-run double in the seventh inning to give the National League its first win in the All-Star Game since 1996.[43] He became the first Brave to win the All-Star Game MVP Award since Fred McGriff did so in 1994. The Braves made two deals before the trade deadline to acquire Álex González, Rick Ankiel and Kyle Farnsworth from the Toronto Blue Jays and Kansas City Royals, giving up shortstop Yunel Escobar, pitchers Jo-Jo Reyes and Jesse Chavez, outfielder Gregor Blanco and three minor leaguers.[44][45] On August 18, 2010, they traded three pitching prospects for first baseman Derrek Lee from the Chicago Cubs.[46] On August 22, 2010, against the Chicago Cubs, Mike Minor struck out 12 batters across 6 innings; an Atlanta Braves single game rookie strikeout record.[47] The Braves dropped to second in the NL East in early September, but won the NL Wild Card. They lost to the San Francisco Giants in the National League Division Series in four games. Every game of the series was determined by one run. After the series-clinching victory for the Giants in Game 4, Bobby Cox was given a standing ovation by the fans, also by players and coaches of both the Braves and Giants. 2011: Fredi González takes over Main article: 2011 Atlanta Braves season Braves closer Craig Kimbrel pitching in 2011 On October 13, 2010, the Braves announced that Fredi González would replace long-time Braves manager Bobby Cox as manager of the team in 2011.[48] The announcement came just two days after the 2010 Braves were eliminated from the postseason. It was also announced that pitching coach Roger McDowell, third-base coach Brian Snitker, and bullpen coach Eddie Pérez would retain their current positions, while former hitting coach Terry Pendleton would replace Glenn Hubbard as the first-base coach and newcomer Carlos Tosca would become the new bench coach. Hubbard and former bench coach Chino Cadahia were not offered positions on the new coaching staff. Larry Parrish was hired as hitting coach on October 29, 2010. On November 16, 2010, in an offseason trade, the Braves acquired Dan Uggla from the Florida Marlins in exchange for left-handed reliever Mike Dunn and infielder Omar Infante. According to Elias Sports Bureau, the Braves had an all-time franchise win–loss record over .500 for the first time since 1923 after their win over the Houston Astros on June 11, 2011.[49] The Braves franchise became the third franchise in MLB history to reach 10,000 wins with their win over the Washington Nationals on July 15, 2011.[50] On July 31, 2011, just sixteen days after registering their 10,000th win, the Florida Marlins defeated the Braves by a score of 3–1, handing the team the 10,000th loss in franchise history. The Braves become only the second team in big league history with 10,000 losses after the Philadelphia Phillies reached the plateau in 2007.[51] Players from the Braves' farm system, such as Freddie Freeman and Brandon Beachy, played regularly with the big league club, while Julio Teherán, Randall Delgado, and Mike Minor were called up for spot starts. With late season injuries to starters Jair Jurrjens and Tommy Hanson, these three young pitchers made their way into the starting rotation in their absence.[52] Eight players made their major league debuts for the team in 2011. September collapse The Braves led the National League Wild Card standings for much of the 2011 season, with the division-rival Philadelphia Phillies firmly in control of first place in the National League East. The Braves entered the final month of the regular season 25 games above .500 with a record of 80–55 and an 8+1⁄2-game lead in the Wild Card standings. The nearest team trailing them, the St. Louis Cardinals, who also trailed the National League Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers by 8+1⁄2 games at the time, were considered a long-shot to gain a spot in the postseason. Just days prior on August 26, the Cardinals found themselves 10+1⁄2 games behind and in third place.[53] With 27 games to play, the Braves went 9–18 in September to finish the season with a record of 89–73. The Cardinals, meanwhile, went 18–8 to finish at 90–72. Braves closer Craig Kimbrel, who had not surrendered a single earned run in July or August, carried a 4.76 ERA in September with three blown saves. After being dominant in his role for much of the season, Braves setup man Jonny Venters posted a 5.11 September ERA. These sharp declines in both relievers led many critics to question the handling of the bullpen by Braves manager Fredi González.[54] Veteran starter Derek Lowe posted a win–loss record of 0–5 in September with an ERA of 8.75.[55] Shortly into the offseason, Lowe would be traded to the Cleveland Indians.[56] The Braves starters lasted six or more innings only three times over the last 23 games.[55] Over the last five games, all of which were losses for the Braves, the team managed to score only seven runs.[57] Braves catcher Brian McCann, often regarded as the best offensive catcher in the Majors, hit only .183 with two home runs in September.[55] The offense as a whole hit for only a .235 batting average and a .300 on-base percentage in September, both second-worst in the National League. The .195 RISP average by Braves hitters was second worst in the Majors.[55] Hitting coach Larry Parrish was fired two days following the last game of the season.[58] 2012: Chipper's last season Chipper Jones salutes the crowd at Turner Field prior to his final regular-season game on September 30, 2012. Jones announced he would retire after 19 seasons with the Braves In 2012, the Braves began their 138th season after an upsetting end to the 2011 season. On March 22, the Braves announced that third baseman Chipper Jones would retire following the 2012 season after 19 Major League seasons with the team.[59] The Braves also lost many key players through trades or free agency, including pitcher Derek Lowe, shortstop Alex González, and outfielder Nate McLouth. To compensate for this, the team went on to receive many key players such as outfielder Michael Bourn, along with shortstops Tyler Pastornicky and Andrelton Simmons. To fill the void of a quality starting pitcher left by Lowe (as well as a mid-season injury to Brandon Beachy), manager Fredi González elected relief pitcher Kris Medlen to the starting pitching rotation. The Braves went on to win every game Medlen started, setting the MLB record for most consecutive wins when a single pitcher starts (total of 23). Atlanta stayed close to the Washington Nationals in the race to win the National League East title. They also stayed on top of the National League Wild Card race. Washington ended up winning their first division title in franchise history, but the Braves remained in first place of the NL wild-card race. Keeping with a new MLB rule for the 2012 season, the top two wild card teams in each league must play each other in a playoff game before entering into the Division Series. The Braves played the St. Louis Cardinals in the first-ever Wild Card Game. The Braves were behind 6–3 in the bottom of the eighth inning when Andrelton Simmons hit a fly ball to left field that dropped in between the Cardinals shortstop and left fielder. Umpire Sam Holbrook called Simmons out, citing the infield fly rule. Had an infield fly not been called, Simmons would have been credited with a single and Atlanta would have had the bases loaded with one out. Fans at Turner Field began to litter the field with debris, prompting the game to be delayed for 19 minutes. The Braves lost the game 6–3, ending their season. 2013: Braves win the East Main article: 2013 Atlanta Braves season Following a gut-wrenching exit against the St. Louis Cardinals in the Wild Card Game, the Braves spent the 2012–2013 offseason revamping and retooling their offense. The Braves turned heads across baseball by acquiring B.J. Upton from the Tampa Bay Rays, signing him to a 5-year $75.25 million contract and making him their starting center fielder,[60] and uniting him with his younger brother Justin Upton from the Arizona Diamondbacks in a seven-player trade that sent fan favorite utility man Martín Prado to the Diamondbacks,[61] they also filled a need for a new Third Baseman in Chris Johnson after the retirement of Chipper Jones the previous year. The Braves began the 2013 season with a hot start in April by going 17–9 for the month, which saw the emergence of rookie sensation Evan Gattis, while taking hold of first place in the National League East division, a lead they would never relinquish for the rest of the season. The Braves suffered many injuries to key players throughout the season, including injuries to Jason Heyward, Brian McCann, Freddie Freeman, Eric O'Flaherty, Jonny Venters, Ramiro Pena and others, but found a way to win despite these blows to the team. Leading up to the All Star break, First Baseman Freddie Freeman was voted in to play for the 2013 National League All-Star Team, in the 2013 All Star Game, which he did not play. The Braves also witnessed the emergence of rookie pitcher Julio Teherán after much hype during Spring training. From July 26 to August 10, the Braves won 14 games in a row.[62] The winning streak was the longest of its kind since April–May 2000. On June 28, 2013, the Atlanta Braves retired former third baseman Chipper Jones' jersey, number 10, before the game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. He was honored before 51,300 fans at Turner Field in Atlanta.[63] He served as a staple of the Braves franchise for 19 years before announcing his retirement at the beginning of the 2012 season. Chipper Jones played his last regular-season game for the Braves on September 30, 2012. The Braves opened up a 15-game lead on the Washington Nationals in the National League East on September 3, 2013, riding that lead en route to its first division title since 2005, the last of 14 straight division titles. This was also Braves manager Fredi González's first division title since beginning his managerial career in 1990; including his first since becoming the manager of the Braves after the 2010 season. The Braves clinched the 18th division title in team history on September 22, 2013[64] after a Nationals loss to the Marlins in the first game of a double header; the Braves also won their game that day, beating the Chicago Cubs 5–2 at Wrigley Field. After clinching the division title, they lost to the Dodgers 3–1 in the Division Series. 2014: Losing season Jason Heyward runs the bases in 2014 On November 11, 2013, the Braves announced that they would vacate Turner Field for a new stadium in Cobb County, in the northwest suburbs outside of Atlanta in 2017. The move is to follow the expiration of the Braves' 20-year lease on Turner Field in 2016. The new stadium is to be constructed in a public/private partnership.[65][66][67][68][69][70][71] During the offseason the Braves signed few of their young talents to multi year contracts; Craig Kimbrel (4 years/$42 million), Freddie Freeman (8 years/$135M), Kris Medlen (1 year/$5.8M), Jason Heyward (2 years/$13.3M), Julio Teherán (6 years/$32.4M) and Andrelton Simmons (7 years/$58M). The Braves finished the season in a distant second place with a 79–83 record, which was their first losing season since 2008 and only their third since 1990. 2015–2016: Rebuilding Prior to the 2015 season, the Braves fired general manager Frank Wren, and John Hart replaced him as interim general manager, choosing to only take the title of President of Baseball Operations. The Braves promptly traded Gold Glove Award winner Jason Heyward to the St. Louis Cardinals along with pitcher Jordan Walden for pitchers Shelby Miller and Tyrell Jenkins.[72] Hart traded All-Star left fielder Justin Upton to the San Diego Padres for Max Fried, Jace Peterson, Dustin Peterson, and Mallex Smith.[73] Catcher Evan Gattis and minor league prospect James Hoyt were traded to the Houston Astros for minor leaguers Mike Foltynewicz, Rio Ruiz, and Andrew Thurman.[74] A day before the season began, the Braves made a final trade involving former All-Star Craig Kimbrel and outfielder Melvin Upton Jr. They were traded to the San Diego Padres for outfielders Cameron Maybin, Carlos Quentin, pitcher Matt Wisler, and the 41st overall pick in the 2015 Major League Baseball draft.[75] By the beginning of the season, the Braves made 11 trades in all. Prior to the start of the 2016 regular season, the Braves continued their offseason rebuilding by trading Andrelton Simmons to the Los Angeles Angels for Erick Aybar and pitching prospects Sean Newcomb and Chris Ellis and $2.5 million. They agreed to one-year contracts with Kelly Johnson, Chris Withrow, and Arodys Vizcaino, and agreed to terms on a minor league contract for Carlos Torres and Jeff Francoeur. The Braves purchased the major league contract of Francoeur. On April 13, 2016, Hector Olivera was arrested and charged with the assault of a woman at the team hotel when the Braves were in Washington D.C. facing the Nationals. He was placed on administrative leave by MLB and was placed on the Braves restricted list.[76] The Braves began the season on a nine-game losing streak, which is the worst opening by the franchise since 1988, when they dropped the first 10 games of that season. After a 9–28 start in 2016, Fredi González was fired on May 17 and replaced by Gwinnett Braves' manager Brian Snitker as interim manager. Snitker replaced González once before in the 2006–07 offseason as the Braves third base coach when González left the Braves to manage the Marlins. The Braves finished the season 68–93 and in last place in NL East.[77] During the 2016 offseason, the Braves signed pitchers R. A. Dickey[78] and Bartolo Colón[79] and promoted interim manager Brian Snitker to full-time manager. 2017: New ballpark and front office changes SunTrust Park (now Truist Park) prior to its first regular-season game The Braves opened their new stadium, SunTrust Park (now Truist Park), on April 14, 2017, with a four-game sweep of the San Diego Padres. The park received positive reviews. Woody Studenmund of the Hardball Times called the park a "gem" saying that he was impressed with "the compact beauty of the stadium and its exciting approach to combining baseball, business and social activities."[80] J.J. Cooper of Baseball America praised the "excellent sight lines for pretty much every seat."[81] Cooper also noted that "the Wi-Fi works and it's very fast, even with a park full of smartphone users."[81] The Braves also introduced "The Freeze" as between-innings entertainment—a former college sprinter, dressed in aqua spandex, has a footrace with a fan; The Freeze wins the majority of the races, despite the fan being given a significant head start.[82] On October 2, 2017, John Coppolella resigned as general manager of the Braves amid a Major League Baseball investigation into Atlanta's international signings, having committed what the Braves termed "a breach of MLB rules regarding the international player market".[83] On November 13, 2017, the Braves announced Alex Anthopoulos as the new general manager and executive vice president.[84] John Hart was removed as team president and assumed a senior adviser role with the organization.[84] Braves chairman Terry McGuirk apologized to fans "on behalf of the entire Braves family" for the scandal.[84] McGuirk described Anthopoulos as "a man of integrity" and that "he will operate in a way that will make all of our Braves fans proud."[84] On November 17, 2017, the Braves announced that John Hart had stepped down as senior advisor for the organization.[85] Hart said in a statement that "with the hiring of Alex Anthopoulos as general manager, this organization is in great hands."[85] MLB investigation and penalties On November 21, 2017, Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred announced the findings of the MLB investigation into Atlanta's international signings.[86] Manfred ruled that the Braves must forfeit 13 international prospects, including highly touted Kevin Maitan, an infielder from Venezuela who signed for $4.25 million in 2016.[86] The team also forfeited a third-round draft pick in the 2018 draft. Former Braves general manager John Coppolella was placed on baseball's permanently ineligible list.[86] Additionally, the Braves shall be prohibited from signing any international player for more than $10,000 during the 2019–20 signing period and their international signing bonus pool for the 2020–21 signing period will be reduced by 50%.[86] 2018–2021: Return to the postseason and World Series title The Braves introduced a new mascot named Blooper on January 27, 2018 at the Atlanta Braves fan fest.[87] Blooper succeeded the Braves' "Homer of the Brave" mascot after he went into retirement.[88] The Braves began a new streak of NL East division titles in 2018, when they went 90–72. In 2019, their 97–65 record was their best since 2003. However, in neither season did the Braves advance past the Division Series. In the 2020 National League Championship Series against the Dodgers, the Braves led 3–1 before the Dodgers came back to win the series and advance to the World Series.[89] The Braves returned to the NLCS in 2021 after beating the Milwaukee Brewers 3–1 in the 2021 NLDS on the heels of a Freddie Freeman game-winning home run in the bottom of the 8th inning in Game 4. With the score tied at 4, Freeman delivered a blast to left center field to give the Braves a 5–4 lead headed to the top of the 9th. After allowing a lead off single to Eduardo Escobar, Will Smith subsequently retired the side in order to secure the Braves berth in the NLCS.[90] On October 23, 2021, the Braves defeated the Dodgers in the National League Championship Series, a rematch of the 2020 NLCS, in six games to advance to the World Series for the first time since 1999, thereby securing their first pennant in 22 years. They defeated the Houston Astros in six games to win their fourth World Series title.[91] For a full season-by-season list, see List of Atlanta Braves seasons. World Series championships Over the 117 years since the inception of the World Series, the Braves franchise has won a total of four World Series Championships, with at least one in each of the three cities they have played in. Season     Manager     Opponent     Series Score     Record 1914 (Boston)     George Stallings     Philadelphia Athletics     4–0     94–59 1957 (Milwaukee)     Fred Haney     New York Yankees     4–3     95–59 1995 (Atlanta)     Bobby Cox     Cleveland Indians     4–2     90–54 2021 (Atlanta)     Brian Snitker     Houston Astros     4–2     88–73 Total World Series championships:     4 Major rivalries New York Mets Main article: Braves–Mets rivalry The Braves–Mets rivalry is a rivalry between the two teams, featuring the Braves and the New York Mets as they both play in the National League East.[28] Although their first major confrontation occurred when the Mets swept the Braves in the 1969 NLCS, en route to their first World Series championship, the first playoff series won by an expansion team (also the first playoff appearance by an expansion team), the rivalry did not become especially heated until the 1994 season when division realignment put both the Mets and the Braves in the NL East division.[27][92] During this time the Braves became one of the most dominant teams in professional baseball, earning 14 straight division titles through 2005, including five World Series berths, and one World Series championship during the 1995 season. The rivalry remained heated through the early 2000s. Philadelphia Phillies While their rivalry with the Philadelphia Phillies lacks the history and hatred of the Mets, it has been the more important one in the last decade. Between 1993 and 2013, the two teams reigned almost exclusively as NL East champions, the exceptions being in 2006, when the Mets won their first division title since 1988 (no division titles were awarded in 1994 due to the player's strike), and in 2012, when the Washington Nationals claimed their first division title since 1981 when playing as the Montreal Expos. The Phillies 1993 championship was also part of a four-year reign of exclusive division championships by the Phillies and the Pittsburgh Pirates, their in-state rivals.[93] While rivalries are generally characterized by mutual hatred, the Braves and Phillies deeply respect each other. Each game played (18 games in 2011) is vastly important between these two NL East giants, but at the end of the day, they are very similar organizations.[94] Overall, the Braves have five more National League East division titles than the Phillies, the Braves having won 16 times since 1995, and holding it for 11 consecutive years from 1995 through 2005. (The Braves also have five NL West titles from 1969 through 1993.) Uniforms Ambox current red Asia Australia.svg     This section needs to be updated. The reason given is: no information on 2021 home throwback uniforms being worn (Hank Aaron era style. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (April 2021)     This section may be too long and excessively detailed. Please consider summarizing the material while citing sources as needed. (March 2019) Home uniform (1987–present), worn by Ozzie Albies. Road uniform (1987–present), worn by Dansby Swanson. The all-navy cap was paired with this uniform since 2009. Alternate cream home uniform (2012–2019; 2021–present), worn by Freddie Freeman. Alternate red home uniform with "tomahawk A" cap (2005–2013), worn by Gregor Blanco. A similar design was unveiled in 2019 without the white piping. Alternate road uniform (2008–2018), worn by Michael Bourn. Alternate road uniform (2019–present), worn by Ozzie Albies. 1966–1967 The Atlanta Braves originally wore the same uniform design from their final years in Milwaukee, save for the red-brimmed navy cap which was changed from a block "M" to a script "A". Both the home and road uniforms have navy piping and the "Braves" script in red with navy trim, along with chest numbers which were also red with navy trim. The "screaming Indian" patch was added on the left sleeve. 1968–1971 During this period navy became the team's primary color, and pinstripes were worn on the home uniform. The chest numbers and piping were removed, with red only used exclusively on the road uniform. The original navy/red cap was only used at home, while an all-navy cap was used on the road. By 1969, the all-navy cap served as the primary, retiring the navy/red cap. 1972–1975 The Braves entered the polyester era with a new look, changing from navy to royal blue while keeping red as a trim color. Home uniforms were white with blue sleeves, while road uniforms were blue with white sleeves. Chest numbers returned with this uniform. Both sleeves contain a feather patch. Caps became royal blue with white panels, along with a lowercase "a" in red with white and blue trim. 1976–1979 The Braves returned to wearing pinstripes and gray uniforms with this set. The home uniform removed the blue sleeves and feather patch, and replaced them with red pinstripes and collar. The road uniform kept the previous template but returned to a gray base with blue sleeves, with the feather patch exclusive only to the left sleeve. The road uniform also featured a script "Atlanta" in front, with the first "a" in lowercase. In 1979, blue player names were added to the road uniform. 1980–1986 The Braves' home uniform again removed the pinstripes and added player names in blue. Collars and sleeves featured red, white and blue stripes. The road uniform was changed to powder blue minus the contrasting sleeve colors and red trim. In 1981, the road uniform was tweaked slightly, adopting the uppercase "A" script on the word "Atlanta". The Braves also wore two all-blue caps: the home cap featured the white "A" script with red trim, while the road cap lacked the red trim on the "A". 1987–present The Braves updated their uniform set in 1987, returning to buttoned uniforms and belted pants. This design returned to the classic look they wore in the 1950s. The white home uniform features red and navy piping, the "Braves" script and tomahawk in front, and radially arched (vertically arched until 2005; sewn into a nameplate until 2012) navy letters and red numbers with navy trim at the back. The gray road uniforms are identical to the white home uniforms save for the "Atlanta" script in front.[95] Initially, the cap worn with both uniforms is the red-brimmed navy cap with the script "A" in front. In 2008, an all-navy cap was introduced and became the primary road cap the following season. The Braves have had three different versions of their Friday red alternate home uniform. The first uniform, worn from 2005 to 2013, featured navy and white piping, navy "Braves" script and tomahawk in front, and white letters and navy numbers with white trim at the back. It was paired with a navy cap with red brim featuring the alternate "tomahawk A" logo. From 2014 to 2018, the Braves tweaked the uniform; the "Braves" script was now adorned with stars while the tomahawk was removed. The "tomahawk A" cap was also retired. In 2019, the Braves reverted to a variation of the original red alternate uniform minus the white piping. The cream alternate uniforms were introduced in February 2012 as a tribute to the Braves' first season in Atlanta in 1966. This set is similar to the primary home uniform, but with chest numbers in place of the tomahawk and blue piping minus the red accents. An alternate "crossing tomahawks" logo featuring the team name and foundation date was added to the left sleeve.[96] The Braves have worn two versions of their alternate navy blue road jerseys. The first iteration was introduced on opening night of the 2008 season against the Washington Nationals, and featured navy lettering. The only red elements on the uniform can be seen on the tomahawk. For 2019, the Braves drastically changed the uniform to feature red lettering, a red tomahawk and silver piping. Unlike the home uniforms, which are worn based on a schedule, the road uniforms are chosen on game day by the starting pitcher. However, they are also subject to Major League Baseball rules requiring the road team to wear uniforms that contrast with the uniforms worn by the home team. Due to this rule, the gray uniforms are worn when the home team chooses to wear navy blue, and sometimes when the home team chooses to wear black. Logos See also: Native American, Atlanta Braves logo information From 1945 to 1955 the Braves primary logo consisted of the head of an Indian warrior.[97] From 1956 to 1965 it was a laughing Indian with a mohawk and one feather in his hair.[98] When the Braves moved to Atlanta in 1966, the "Braves" script was added underneath the laughing Indian.[99] In 1985, the Braves made a small script change to the logo.[99] The Braves modern logo debuted in 1987.[99] The modern logo is the word "Braves" in cursive with a tomahawk below it.[99] In 2018, the Braves made a subtle color change to the primary logo.[99] Tomahawk chop Main article: Atlanta Braves tomahawk chop and name controversy The Atlanta Braves encouraged fans to gesture with the "Tomahawk Chop", distributing foam tomahawks at games and other events. The tomahawk chop was adopted by fans of the Atlanta Braves in 1991.[100] Carolyn King, the Braves organist, had played the "tomahawk song" during most at bats for a few seasons, but it finally caught on with Braves fans when the team started winning.[101][102] The usage of foam tomahawks led to criticism from Native American groups that it was "demeaning" to them and called for them to be banned.[102] In response, the Braves' public relations director said that it was "a proud expression of unification and family".[102] King, who did not understand the sociopolitical ramifications, approached one of the Native American chiefs who were protesting.[103] The chief told her that leaving her job as an organist would not change anything and that if she left "they'll find someone else to play."[103] The controversy has persisted since and became national news again during the 2019 National League Division Series.[104] During the series, St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher and Cherokee Nation member, Ryan Helsley was asked about the chop and chant. Helsley said he found the fans' chanting and arm-motions insulting and that the chop depicts natives "in this kind of caveman-type people way who aren't intellectual."[104] The relief pitcher's comments prompted the Braves to stop handing out foam tomahawks, playing the chop music or showing the chop graphic when the series returned to Atlanta for Game 5.[104] The Braves released a statement saying they would "continue to evaluate how we activate elements of our brand, as well as the overall in-game experience" and that they would continue a "dialogue with those in the Native American community after the postseason concludes."[104] The heads of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and Cherokee Nation both condemned the chop and chant.[104] During the off-season, the Braves met with the National Congress of American Indians to start discussing a path forward.[105] In July 2020, the team faced mounting pressure to change their name after the Cleveland Indians and Washington Redskins announced they were discussing brand change.[105] The Braves released a statement announcing that discussions were still ongoing about the chop, but the team name would not be changed.... The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The franchise was established as an expansion team and began play in 1998. The team plays its home games at Chase Field, formerly known as Bank One Ballpark. In its fourth season, Arizona won a World Series championship, defeating the New York Yankees in 2001 to become the fastest expansion team in major league history to win a championship. From 1998 to 2021, the Diamondbacks have an overall record of 1,840–1,946 (.486).... Franchise history Main article: History of the Arizona Diamondbacks See also: 1998 Major League Baseball expansion On March 9, 1995, Phoenix was awarded an expansion franchise to begin play for the 1998 season. A $130 million franchise fee was paid to Major League Baseball and on January 16, 1997, the Diamondbacks were officially voted into the National League.[4] The Diamondbacks' first major league game was played against the Colorado Rockies on March 31, 1998, at Bank One Ballpark. The ballpark was renamed Chase Field in 2005, as a result of Bank One Corporation's merger with JPMorgan Chase & Co. Since their debut, the Diamondbacks have won five NL West division titles, one NL pennant, one Wild Card game, and the 2001 World Series. Logos and uniforms 1998–2006 Uniform design from late 1990s through mid-2000s The Diamondbacks' original colors were purple, black, teal and copper.[5] Their first logo was an italicized block letter "A" with a diamond pattern, and the crossbar represented by a snake's tongue. This period saw the Diamondbacks wear various uniform combinations. At home, the Diamondbacks wore cream uniforms with purple pinstripes. The primary sleeved uniform, worn from 1998 to 2000, featured the full team name ("Diamond" and "Backs" stacked together) in front and chest numbers. The alternate sleeveless version contained the "A" logo on the right chest, and was paired with purple undershirts. Before the 2001 season, the sleeved uniform was changed to feature the "A" logo. In all three uniforms, player names were teal with purple trim, and numbers were purple with white with teal trim. The Diamondbacks' primary road gray uniform also contained purple pinstripes. The first version featured "Arizona" in purple with white and teal trim along with black drop shadows. Chest numbers were also added. Player names were in purple with white trim, and numbers were teal with white and purple trim. In 2001, the uniform became sleeveless with black undershirts, and the lettering scheme was changed to purple with white, copper and black accents. The alternate home purple uniform featured "Arizona" in teal with white and copper trim and black drop shadows. Originally the letters were rendered in teal with copper and white trim, but was changed to copper with teal and white trim after only one season. This set was worn until 2002. The alternate road black uniform initially featured the "A" logo on the right chest, while letters were in purple with white trim and numbers in teal with white and purple trim. A zigzag pattern of teal, copper and purple was also featured on the sleeves. In 2001, the uniform was changed to feature "Arizona" in front. Letters were now purple with white and copper trim. The Diamondbacks initially wore four different cap versions. The primary home cap is all-purple, while the road cap is black with a teal brim. They also wore a cream cap with purple brim, and a teal cap with purple brim. All designs featured the primary "A" logo. In 1999, the road cap became all-black and contained the alternate "D-snake" logo rendered in copper. Also, the teal and cream alternate caps were dropped. The left sleeve of all four uniforms initially contained the snake logo with the full team name, but became only exclusive to the road black uniform after the 2003 season. 2006–2015 The franchise unveiled new uniforms and colors of Sedona red, Sonoran sand and black on November 8, 2006.[6] The red shade is named for the sandstone canyon at Red Rock State Park near Sedona, while the beige (sand) shade is named for the Sonoran Desert.[5] A sleeve patch was added featuring a lowercase "d" and "b" configured to look like a snake's head.[5] The team also kept the "D" logo, but was slightly altered and put on an all red cap to be used as their game cap. They also kept the "A" logo with the new colors applied to it, with a solid black cap used as the alternate cap. A similar color scheme is currently used by the Arizona Coyotes of the National Hockey League. The white home uniform featured "D-Backs" in red with sand and black trim. The road gray uniform featured "Arizona" in red with sand and black trim. Player names were red with black trim while numbers were black with red trim. The alternate red uniform contained "D-Backs" in sand with red and black trim, with player names in sand with black trim and numbers in black with sand trim. There were two versions of the alternate black uniform. One design has the alternate "A" logo on the right chest, while the other has "Arizona" written in red with black and sand trim. The latter was introduced in 2013 as a tribute to the victims of the Yarnell Hill Fire. On both uniforms, player names were sand with red trim, and numbers in red with sand trim. 2016–present Prior to the 2016 season, the Diamondbacks reincorporated teal into its color scheme while keeping Sedona Red, Sonoran Sand and black. They also unveiled eight different uniform combinations, including two separate home white and away grey uniforms. One major difference between the two sets is that the non-teal uniforms feature a snakeskin pattern on the shoulders, while the teal-trimmed uniforms include a charcoal/grey snakeskin pattern on the back. Arizona also kept the throwback pinstriped sleeveless uniforms from their 2001 championship season for use during Thursday home games.[7][8][9] Starting with the 2020 season, the Diamondbacks made slight redesigns to their current uniforms. The snakeskin patterns were removed while the teal-trimmed grey uniforms were retired. The team also reverted to a standard grey uniform after wearing a darker shade on the previous set. Two home white uniforms remain in use: the primary Sedona Red and the alternate teal. They would also wear two black uniforms: one with the primary "A" logo on the left chest and the other with "Los D-Backs" trimmed in teal. Three cap designs were also unveiled: the primary "A" cap, the teal-trimmed "snake" cap (paired exclusively on the teal alternates), and the sand-trimmed "snake" cap (paired exclusively on the Sedona Red alternates). The Nike swoosh logo is also placed on the right chest near the shoulder.[1] Regular season home attendance Chase Field Home Attendance[10] Year     Total attendance     Game average     League rank 1998     3,610,290     44,571     2nd 1999     3,019,654     37,280     5th 2000     2,942,251     36,324     6th 2001     2,736,451     33,783     9th 2002     3,198,977     39,494     2nd 2003     2,805,542     34,636     5th 2004     2,519,560     31,106     8th 2005     2,059,424     25,425     12th 2006     2,091,685     25,823     14th 2007     2,325,249     28,707     12th 2008     2,509,924     30,987     11th 2009     2,128,765     26,281     11th 2010     2,056,697     25,391     13th 2011     2,105,432     25,993     12th 2012     2,177,617     26,884     13th 2013     2,134,895     26,357     14th 2014     2,073,730     25,602     14th 2015     2,080,145     25,681     12th 2016     2,036,216     25,138     11th 2017     2,134,375     26,350     11th 2018     2,242,695     27,688     9th 2019     2,135,510     26,364     12th 2020     0     0     N/A 2021     1,043,010     12,877     13th Radio and television The primary television play-by-play voice for the team's first nine seasons of play was Thom Brennaman, who also broadcast baseball and college football games nationally for FOX Television. Brennaman was the TV announcer for the Chicago Cubs and Cincinnati Reds (along with his father Marty Brennaman) before being hired by Diamondbacks founder Jerry Colangelo in 1996, two years before the team would begin play. In October 2006, Brennaman left the Diamondbacks to call games with his father for the Reds beginning in 2007, signing a four-year deal (his FOX duties remained unchanged). On November 1, 2006, the team announced that the TV voice of the Milwaukee Brewers since 2002, Daron Sutton, would be hired as the Diamondbacks primary TV play-by-play voice. Sutton was signed to a five-year contract with a team option for three more years. Sutton is considered one of the best of the younger generation of baseball broadcasters. His signature chants include "let's get some runs" when the D-backs trail in late innings. Sutton's father is Hall of Fame pitcher and current Atlanta Braves broadcaster Don Sutton.[11] Former Diamondbacks and Chicago Cubs first baseman Mark Grace and former Major League knuckleball pitcher Tom Candiotti were the Diamondbacks primary color analysts for the 2006 and 2007 seasons. Former Diamondbacks third baseman Matt Williams also did color commentary on occasion, as did former Cardinals and NBC broadcast legend Joe Garagiola, Sr., a longtime Phoenix-area resident and father of Joe Garagiola, Jr., the first GM of the Diamondbacks (as head of the Maricopa County Sports Authority in the early 1990s, Garagiola, Jr. was one of the primary people involved in Phoenix obtaining a Major League Baseball franchise). The Diamondbacks announced in July 2007[12] that for the 2008 season, all regionally broadcast Diamondbacks TV games would be shown exclusively on FOX Sports Arizona (now Bally Sports Arizona) and a few could possibly be shown on the national MLB on FOX telecasts. Bally Sports Arizona is currently seen in 2.8 million households in Arizona and New Mexico. The previous flagship station since the inaugural 1998 season was KTVK (Channel 3), a popular over-the-air independent station (and former longtime ABC affiliate) in Phoenix. From 2009 to 2012, Mark Grace and Daron Sutton were tagged as the main broadcasters of the Diamondbacks with pre-game and postgame shows on FOX Sports Arizona, being hosted by former big-league closer Joe Borowski. On June 21, 2012, Daron Sutton was suspended indefinitely, amid rumors of insubordination.[13] Then on August 24, the team announced that Mark Grace had requested an indefinite leave of absence after being arrested for his second DUI in less than two years [14] (Grace was later indicted on four DUI counts[15]). For the remainder of the 2012 season, Sutton was replaced by Greg Schulte (Jeff Munn replaced Schulte on the radio broadcast) and Grace was replaced by Luis Gonzalez. At the end of the 2012 season, the team announced that neither Sutton nor Grace would be returning for the 2013 season.[16] On October 18, 2012, the team announced that Bob Brenly would be returning as a broadcaster to replace Grace and that he would be joined by then-ESPN personality Steve Berthiaume.[17] The English language flagship radio station is KTAR. Greg Schulte is the regular radio play-by-play voice, a 25-year veteran of sports radio in the Phoenix market, also well known for his previous work on Phoenix Suns, Arizona Cardinals and Arizona State University (ASU) broadcasts. He calls games with analyst Tom Candiotti.[18] Jeff Munn served as a backup radio play-by-play announcer until 2016; he served as the regular public address announcer at Chase Field in the early days of the franchise. He is well known to many Phoenix area sports fans, having also served as the public address announcer for the Suns at what's now Footprint Center in the 1990s. He is also the play-by-play radio voice for ASU women's basketball.[19] Mike Ferrin served in the same role for 6 years before parting ways with the team, and he was replaced by Chris Garagiola in December 2021.[20] Spanish broadcasts The flagship Spanish language radio station is KHOV-FM 105.1 with Oscar Soria, Rodrigo López, and Richard Saenz.[18] Games were televised in Spanish on KPHE-LP—with Oscar Soria and Jerry Romo as the announcers—but this arrangement ended prior to the 2009 season due to the team switching fully to FOX Sports Arizona and the lack of carriage of KPHE-LP on the Cox cable system.[21] Achievements Baseball Hall of Famers Randy Johnson pitching for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Arizona Diamondbacks Hall of Famers Affiliation according to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum Arizona Diamondbacks         Roberto Alomar         Randy Johnson         Alan Trammell             Players and managers listed in bold are depicted on their Hall of Fame plaques wearing a Diamondbacks cap insignia.     * Arizona Diamondbacks listed as primary team according to the Hall of Fame Ford C. Frick Award recipients Arizona Diamondbacks Ford C. Frick Award recipients Affiliation according to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum                 Joe Garagiola                     Names in bold received the award based primarily on their work as broadcasters for the Diamondbacks. Arizona Sports Hall of Fame OF Luis Gonzalez (1999–2006) Main article: Arizona Sports Hall of Fame Diamondbacks in the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame No.     Name     Position     Tenure     Notes —     Jerry Colangelo     Owner     1998–2004     20     Luis Gonzalez     LF     1999–2006     38     Curt Schilling     P     2000–2003     Grew up in Phoenix, attended Yavapai College 51     Randy Johnson     P     1999–2004 2007–2008     17     Mark Grace     1B     2001–2003     Diamondbacks Broadcaster from 2004 - 2012 —     Derrick Hall     Executive     2005–present     Attended Arizona State University —     Roland Hemond     Executive     1996–2000 2007–2017     All-time leaders Main article: List of Arizona Diamondbacks team records All-Star Paul Goldschmidt (2011–2018) had a on-base percentage of .398, during his tenure in Phoenix Hitting     Games played: Luis Gonzalez (1999–2006) – 1,194     At bats: Luis Gonzalez – 4,488     Hits: Luis Gonzalez – 1,337     Batting average: Greg Colbrunn – .310     Runs: Luis Gonzalez – 780     Doubles: Luis Gonzalez – 310     Triples: Stephen Drew – 52     Home runs: Luis Gonzalez – 224     Runs batted in: Luis Gonzalez – 774     On-base percentage: Paul Goldschmidt* – .398     Walks: Paul Goldschmidt* – 655     Strikeouts: Paul Goldschmidt* – 1,059     Slugging percentage: Paul Goldschmidt* – .532     Stolen bases: Tony Womack – 182 Pitching     ERA: Randy Johnson (1999–2004, 2007–08) – 2.83     Wins: Randy Johnson – 118     Losses: Randy Johnson/Brandon Webb (2003–10) – 62     Games: Brad Ziegler – 377     Saves: José Valverde – 98     Innings: Randy Johnson – 1630.1     Starts: Randy Johnson – 232     Strikeouts: Randy Johnson – 2,077     Complete games: Randy Johnson – 38     Shutouts: Randy Johnson – 14     WHIP: Curt Schilling – 1.04     all stats are current as of March 29, 2022 from the Arizona Diamondbacks website.[22] * signifies current Major League player " (wikipedia.org) "A baseball card is a type of trading card relating to baseball, usually printed on cardboard, silk, or plastic.[1] In the 1950s they came with a stick of gum and a limited number of cards. These cards feature one or more baseball players, teams, stadiums, or celebrities. Baseball cards are most often found in the U.S. mainland but are also common in Puerto Rico or countries such as Canada, Cuba and Japan, where top-level leagues are present with a substantial fan base to support them. Some notable companies producing baseball cards include Topps, Upper Deck Company, and Panini Group. Previous manufacturers include Fleer (now a brand name owned by Upper Deck), Bowman (now a brand name owned by Topps),[2] and Donruss (now a brand name owned by Panini Group).[3] Baseball card production peaked in the late 1980s and many collectors left the hobby disenchanted after the 1994-95 MLB strike.[4] However, baseball cards are still one of the most influential collectibles of all time. A T206 Honus Wagner was sold for $6.606 million in 2021.... Production While baseball cards were first produced in the United States, as the popularity of baseball spread to other countries, so did the production of baseball cards. Sets appeared in Japan as early as 1898,[6] in Cuba as early as 1909[7] and in Canada as early as 1912.[8] Attributes The obverse (front) of the card typically displays an image of the player with identifying information, including, but not limited to, the player's name and team affiliation. The reverse of most modern cards displays statistics and/or biographical information. Many early trade cards displayed advertisements for a particular brand or company on the back. Tobacco companies were the most instrumental in the proliferation of baseball cards, which they used as value added bonuses and advertisements for their products.[9] Although the function of trading cards had much in common with business cards, the format of baseball cards initially most resembled that of playing card. An example, is the design of 1951 Topps Baseball. While there are no firm standards that limit the size or shape of a baseball card, most cards of today are rectangular, measuring 2+1⁄2 by 3+1⁄2 inches (6.4 by 8.9 cm).[10] Baseball card classification: the type card Main article: The American Card Catalog Since early baseball cards were produced primarily as a marketing vehicle, collectors began to classify those cards by the 'type' of company producing the set. The system implemented by Jefferson Burdick in The American Card Catalog has become the de facto standard in identifying and organizing trade cards produced in the Americas pre-1951. The catalog itself extends into many other areas of collecting beyond the sport of baseball. Sets like 1909–1911 White Borders, 1910 Philadelphia Caramels, and 1909 Box Tops are most commonly referred to by their ACC catalog numbers (T206, E95, and W555, respectively). Rare cards The most valuable cards are worth millions. One T206 Honus Wagner card was sold at auction in May 2021 for $3,750,000.[11] A 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card, graded as PSA 9 on a scale of 1 (worst) to 10 (best), sold for $2,880,000.[12] Condition can play a huge role in the price. Other 1952 Topps Mantle cards, graded 1, have sold for as little as a few thousand dollars.[13] Card collector Vintage baseball cards have been a prime focus of countless collectors and historians of one of America's favorite pastimes. Some baseball card collectors pay large sums of money to gain possession of these cards and they may also put a lot of time into it. Since rare baseball cards are difficult to find, collectors seek for ways to be aware of the rare cards that come into the trading or selling market. Baseball card collectors normally obtain them from other card collectors or from specialized dealers. Some collectors may sell rare baseball cards over the internet and very often on eBay.[14] Rare baseball cards may also be purchased at major baseball card shows. These events are held periodically in different cities, allowing baseball card collectors and dealers to meet. In valuing a card, the potential buyer takes into consideration the condition (or graded condition) of the card. Rookie cards,[15] players' first cards, are the most valuable ones. Sports card catalogs are a main source of obtaining detailed information on baseball cards. Online catalogs typically also contain tools for collection management and trading platforms. History of cards Pre-1900 Albert Spalding on a 1871 Boston Red Stockings card An 1888 "Goodwin Champions" cigarette card of King Kelly, one of the earliest cards using chromolithography to create multi-colored images of players During the mid-19th century in the United States, baseball and photography were both gaining popularity. As a result, baseball clubs began to pose for group and individual pictures, much like members of other clubs and associations posed. Some of these photographs were printed onto small cards similar to modern wallet photos. The oldest known surviving card shows the Brooklyn Atlantics from around 1860.[16][17] As baseball increased in popularity and became a professional sport during the late 1860s, trade cards featuring baseball players appeared. These were used by a variety of companies to promote their business, even if the products being advertised had no connection with baseball. In 1868, Peck and Snyder, a sporting goods store in New York, began producing trade cards featuring baseball teams.[18] Peck and Snyder sold baseball equipment, and the cards were a natural advertising vehicle. The Peck and Snyder cards are sometimes considered the first baseball cards. Typically, a trade card of the time featured an image on one side and information advertising the business on the other. Advances in color printing increased the appeal of the cards. As a result, cards began to use photographs, either in black-and-white or sepia, or color artwork, which was not necessarily based on photographs. Some early baseball cards could be used as part of a game, which might be either a conventional card game or a simulated baseball game. By early 1886, images of baseball players were often included on cigarette cards with cigarette packs and other tobacco products. This was partly for promotional purposes and partly because the card helped protect the cigarettes from damage. By the end of the century, baseball had become so popular that production had spread well beyond the Americas and into the Pacific Isles.[6] 1900–1920 The T206 Honus Wagner card, published 1909–1911, is the most valuable baseball card in history.[19] By the turn of the century, most baseball cards were produced by confectionery companies and tobacco companies.[20] The first major set of the 20th century was issued by the Breisch-Williams Company in 1903.[21] Breisch-Williams was a confectionery company based in Oxford, Pennsylvania. Soon after, several other companies began to advertise their products with baseball cards. This included, but was not limited to, the American Tobacco Company, the American Caramel Company, the Imperial Tobacco Company of Canada, and Cabañas. a Cuban cigar manufacturer. The American Tobacco Company decided to introduce baseball advertising cards into their tobacco products with the issue of the T206 White Border Set in 1909.[22] The cards were included in packs of cigarettes and produced over a three-year period until the ATC was dissolved. The most famous card, and most expensive for the grade, is the Honus Wagner from this set. Another famous one, from 1911, is Joe Tinker.[23][24] At the same time, many other non-tobacco companies started producing and distributing baseball trade cards to the public. Between 1909 and 1911, The American Caramel Company produced the E90-1 series and 1911 saw the introduction of the 'Zee Nut' card. These sets were produced over a 28-year span by the Collins-McCarthy Company of California. By the mid-teens companies such as The Sporting News magazine began sponsoring card issues. Caramel companies like Rueckheim Bros. & Eckstein were among the first to put 'prizes' in their boxes. In 1914, they produced the first of two Cracker Jack card issues, which featured players from both major leagues as well as players from the short lived Federal League. As the teens drew to a close, the Chicago-based Boston Store Department company also issued a set. 1920–1930 After the end of World War I in 1918, baseball card production lulled for a few years as foreign markets were not yet developed and the United States' economy was transitioning away from wartime production. This trend would continue until the late 1930s when the effects of the Great depression finally hit. The twenties produced a second influx of caramel cards, a plethora of postcard issues, and a handful of cards from different regions of the world. During the first two years, an influx of strip cards hit the market. These cards were distributed in long strips and often cut by the consumer or the retailer in the store. The American Caramel Company re-emerged as a producer of baseball cards and started to distribute sets in 1922–1923. Few, if any cards, were produced in the mid-twenties until 1927 when companies like York Caramel of York, Pennsylvania started producing baseball cards. Cards with similar images as the York Caramel set were produced in 1928 for four ice cream companies, Yuengling's, Harrington's, Sweetman and Tharp's. In 1921, the Exhibit Supply Company of Chicago started to release issues on post card stock. Although they are considered a post card issue, many of the cards had statistics and other biographical information on the back.[25] 1920 saw the emergence of the foreign markets after what was essentially an eight-year hiatus. Canadian products found their way to the market, including products branded by the Peggy Popcorn and Food Products company of Winnipeg, Manitoba from 1920 to 1926, and Willard's Chocolate Company from 1923 to 1924. Other Canadian products came from ice cream manufacturers in 1925 and 1927, from Holland Creameries and Honey Boy, respectively. Billiken Cigars, a.k.a. "Cigarros Billiken", were distributed in Cuba from 1923 to 1924. 1930–1950 Jimmy Foxx 1933 Goudey baseball card In the early 1930s, production soared, starting with the 1932 U.S. Caramel set. The popular 1933 Goudey Gum Co. issue, which included cards of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig, best identifies this era. In contrast to the economical designs common in earlier decades, this card set featured bright, hand-colored player photos on the front. Backs provided brief biographies and personal information such as height, weight, and birthplace. The 240-card set, quite large for the time, included current players, former stars, and prominent minor leaguers. Individual cards measured 2+3⁄8 by 2+7⁄8 inches (6.0 by 7.3 cm), which Goudey printed on 24-card sheets and distributed throughout the year.[26] The bulk of early National Baseball Hall of Fame inductees appear in this set. 1933 also saw the delivery of the World Wide Gum issue. World Wide Gum Co. was based in Montreal and clearly had a close relationship with the Goudey Gum Company, as each of their four issues closely resembled a Goudey contemporary. Goudey, National Chicle, Delong and a handful of other companies were competitive in the bubble gum and baseball card market until World War II began. After 1941, cards would not be produced in any significant number until a few years after the end of the war. Wartime production transitioned into the post-war civilian consumer goods, and in 1948 baseball card production resumed in the U.S. with issues by the Bowman Gum and the Leaf Candy Company. At the same time, Topps Gum Company issued their Magic Photos set, four years before they issued their first "traditional" card set.[27] By 1950, Leaf had bowed out of the industry. Japanese baseball cards became more numerous in 1947 and 1950. The cards were associated with Menko, a Japanese card game. Early baseball menko were often round, and were printed on thick cardboard stock to facilitate the game.[28] Modern card history 1948–1980 Bowman was the major producer of baseball cards from 1948 to 1952. In 1952, Topps began to produce large sets of cards as well. The 1952 Topps set is the most sought-after post-World War set among collectors because of the scarcity of the Mickey Mantle rookie card, the first Mantle card issued by Topps.[29] Although it is not his true rookie card (that honor belongs to his 1951 Bowman card), it is still considered the ultimate card to own of the post-war era.[30] Topps and Bowman then competed for customers and for the rights to any baseball players' likeness. Two years later, Leaf stopped producing cards. In 1956, Topps bought out Bowman and enjoyed a largely unchallenged position in the U.S. market for the next two decades. From 1952–1969, Topps always offered five or six card nickel wax packs and in 1952–1964, also offered one card penny packs.[31][32] In the 1970s, Topps increased the cost of wax packs from 10–15 cents (with 8–14 cards depending on year) and also offered cello packs (typically around 18–33 cards) for 25 cents.[33] Rack packs containing 39–54 cards could also be had for between 39–59 cents per pack.[34] This did not prevent a large number of regional companies from producing successful runs of trading cards. Additionally, several U.S. companies attempted to enter into the market at a national level. In 1959, Fleer, a gum company, signed Ted Williams to an exclusive contract and sold a set of cards featuring him.[35] Williams retired in 1960, forcing Fleer to produce a set of Baseball Greats cards featuring retired players.[36] Like the Topps cards, they were sold with gum. In 1963, Fleer produced a 67 card set of active players (this time with a cherry cookie in the packs instead of gum), which was not successful, as most players were contractually obligated to appear exclusively in Topps trading card products. Post Cereals issued cards on cereal boxes from 1960 to 1963 and sister company Jell-O issued virtually identical cards on the backs of its packaging in 1962 and 1963. In 1965, Topps licensed production to Canadian candy maker O-Pee-Chee. The O-Pee-Chee sets were essentially identical to the Topps sets until 1969, when the backs of the cards were branded O-Pee-Chee. In 1970, due to federal legislation, O-Pee-Chee was compelled to add French-language text to the backs of its baseball cards.[37] In the 1970s, several companies took advantage of a new licensing scheme, not to take on Topps, but to create premiums. Kellogg's began to produce 3D-cards inserted with cereal and Hostess printed cards on packages of its baked goods. In 1976, a company called TCMA, which mainly produced minor league baseball cards, produced a set of 630 cards consisting of Major League Ball players. The cards were produced under the name the Sports Stars Publishing Company, or SSPC. TCMA published a baseball card magazine named Collectors Quarterly which it used to advertise its set offering it directly via mail order. The cards were available directly from TCMA, and were not made available again, like other sets issued by TCMA, due to a manufacturers' agreement. 1981–1994 Fleer sued Topps in 1975 to break the company's monopoly on baseball cards and won, as in 1980 federal judge Clarence Charles Newcomer ended Topps Chewing Gum's exclusive right to sell baseball cards, allowing the Fleer Corporation to compete in the market.[38][39] In 1981, Fleer and Donruss issued baseball card sets, both with gum. An appeal of the Fleer lawsuit by Topps clarified that Topps' exclusive rights only applied to cards sold with gum.[40] After the appeal, Fleer and Donruss continued to produce cards issued without gum; Fleer included team logo stickers with their card packs, while Donruss introduced "Hall of Fame Diamond Kings" puzzles and included three puzzle pieces in each pack. In 1992, Topps' gum and Fleer's logo stickers were discontinued, with Donruss discontinuing the puzzle piece inserts the following year.[41] With the issuance of a very popular and rare (compared to other sets at the time) set in 1984, Donruss began to take hold as one of the most popular card brands in competition with Topps. In particular, several rookie cards in the 1984 Donruss set are still considered the most desirable cards from that year of any brand (especially the Don Mattingly rookie card). Also in 1984, two monthly price guides came on the scene. Tuff Stuff and Beckett Baseball Card Monthly, published by Dr. James Beckett, attempted to track the approximate market value of several types of trading cards. More collectors entered the hobby during the 1980s. As a result, manufacturers such as Score (which later became Pinnacle Brands) and Upper Deck entered the marketplace in 1988 and 1989 respectively. Upper Deck introduced several innovative production methods including tamper-proof foil packaging, hologram-style logos, and higher quality card stock. This style of production allowed Upper Deck to charge a premium for its product, becoming the first mainstream baseball card product to have a suggested retail price of 99 cents per pack. In 1989, Upper Deck's first set included the Ken Griffey, Jr. rookie card. The card became highly sought-after until Griffey's persistent injury troubles caused his performance level to decline.[41] The Bowman brand name was reissued by Topps in 1989 The other major card companies followed suit and created card brands with higher price points. Topps resurrected the Bowman brand name in 1989. Topps produced a Stadium Club issue in 1991. 1992 proved to be a breakthrough year as far as the price of baseball cards was concerned, with the previous 50-cents per pack price being replaced by higher price points, overall higher-grade cardboard stock, and the widespread introduction of limited edition "inserts" across all product lines. 1992 was the beginning of the collectors' chase for "gold foil," which was commonly stamped on the limited edition "insert" cards. Notable examples from 1992's "insert" craze include Donruss Diamond Kings, which included gold-foil accents for the first time ever, and Fleer's host of gold foil-accented "insert" cards, including All-Stars and Rookie Sensations. 1992 was also the first year that "parallel" cards were introduced. In 1992, Topps produced Topps Gold "insert" cards of each card in the standard base set. The "parallel" Topps Gold cards had the player's name and team stamped in a banner of "gold foil" on the card front. The "parallel" moniker became popular to describe these cards because each and every card in the standard base set had an accompanying "insert" variation. In 1993, the card companies stepped up the "premium" card genre with "super premium" card sets, with Fleer debuting its "Flair" set and Topps debuting its "Topps Finest" set. Topps Finest was the first set to utilize refractors, a technology that utilized a reflective foil technology that gave the card a shiny "rainbow" appearance that proved extremely popular among hobbyists. Other notable "premium" card sets from the 1990s are as follows: Donruss issued its Leaf brand in 1990; Fleer followed with Fleer Ultra sets in 1991; and Score issued Pinnacle brand cards in 1992.[41] 1995–current Starting in 1997 with Upper Deck, companies began inserting cards with swatches of uniforms and pieces of game-used baseball equipment as part of a plan to generate interest. Card companies obtained all manner of memorabilia, from uniform jerseys and pants, to bats, gloves, caps, and even bases and defunct stadium seats to feed this new hobby demand.[41] It is also in 1997 that the first "one-of-one" cards were released by Fleer, beginning with the 1997 Flair Showcase "Masterpieces" (the Ultra set would begin to include purple 1-of-1 masterpieces the following year). Both kinds of inserts remain popular staples in the hobby today. The process and cost of multi-tiered printings, monthly set issues, licensing fees, and player-spokesman contracts made for a difficult market. Pinnacle Brands folded after 1998. Pacific, which acquired full licensing in 1994, ceased production in 2001. In 2005, Fleer went bankrupt and was bought out by Upper Deck, and Donruss lost the MLB license in 2006 (they also did not produce baseball cards in 1999 and 2000). At that time, the MLBPA limited the number of companies that would produce baseball cards to offset the glut in product, and to consolidate the market.[42] As a result of the measure that included revoking the MLB/MLBPA production licenses from Donruss, only two companies remained; Topps and Upper Deck.[41] Topps and Upper Deck are the only two companies that retained production licenses for baseball cards of major league players. In a move to expand their market influence, Upper Deck purchased the Fleer brand and the remnants of its production inventory. After purchasing Fleer, Upper Deck took over production of the remaining products that were slated to be released. Upper Deck continues to issue products with the Fleer name, while Topps continues to release Bowman and Bazooka card products. Topps is also the only company that continues to produce pre-collated factory sets of cards.[41] Card companies are trying to maintain a sizable hobby base in a variety of ways. Especially prominent is a focus on transitioning the cards to an online market. Both Topps and Upper Deck have issued cards that require online registration, while Topps has targeted the investment-minded collector with its eTopps offering of cards that are maintained and traded at its website.[43] Also, since the late 1990s, hobby retail shops and trade-show dealers found their customer base declining, with their buyers now having access to more items and better prices on the Internet. As more collectors and dealers purchased computers and began trusting the Internet as a "safe" venue to buy and sell, the transformation from the traditional retail shops and shows to Internet transactions changed the nature of the hobby. During the same time period, MLBPA also introduced a new guideline for players to attain a rookie card. For years, players had been highlighted in previous sets as a rookie while still in the Minor Leagues. Such players would sometimes remain in the Minor Leagues for considerable time before attaining Major League status, making a player's rookie card released years before their first game as a major leaguer. The new guideline requires players to be part of a Major League team roster before a rookie card would be released in their name, and a designated "rookie card" logo printed on the face of the card. The rookie card logo shows the words "rookie card" over a baseball bat and home plate with the Major League Baseball logo in the top left corner. Baseball cards garnered national media attention again in early 2007, when it was found that Topps' new Derek Jeter card had allegedly been altered just prior to final printing. A reported prankster inside the company had inserted a photo of Mickey Mantle into the Yankees' dugout and another showing a smiling President George W. Bush waving from the stands. Topps Spokesman Clay Luraschi later admitted that it was done on purpose by the Topps creative department.[44] In February 2007, the hobby's most expensive card, a near mint/mint professionally graded and authenticated T206 Honus Wagner, was sold to a private collector for $2.35 million.[45] The card was sold again later that same year for a record-setting $2.8 million.[46] Throughout the 20th century, baseball cards were always made from cardboard. Now, companies use other materials that they claim can withstand being soaked in salt water.[citation needed] In 2012, Topps created the Topps Bunt digital trading card app. The app has gained over 2 million users from more than 50 countries.[47] The card markets United States Baseball cards in the United States have gone through numerous changes in everything from production and marketing to distribution and use. The earliest cards were targeted primarily at adults as they were produced and associated by photographers selling services and tobacco companies in order to market their wares. By the early 1910s, many cards were issued as part of games and confection companies began to distribute their own card sets. The market in the United States has been particularly affected by issues both sports and non-sports related. Economic effects of World War I, World War II, and the Great Depression have all had a major impact on the production of cards. For example, World War I suppressed baseball card production to the point where only a handful of sets were produced until the economy had transitioned away from wartime industrialization. The 1994 players' strike caused a decline in interest and industry consolidation.[citation needed] Yet, with the advent and acceptance of third party companies bringing greater objectivity in the grading of baseball cards (coupled with online marketing), the vintage baseball card business has become quite popular again, with sales in the multi-millions of dollars recorded every year for at least ten years. The Topps monopoly Main article: Topps Topps' purchase of Bowman led to a stranglehold on player contracts. Since Topps had no competition and there was no easy way for others to break into the national market, the company had a de facto monopoly. However, several regional sets featuring players from local teams, both major league and minor league, were issued by various companies. Over the years, there was also a great deal of resistance from other companies. In 1967, Topps faced an attempt to undermine its position from the Major League Baseball Players Association, the League's nascent players' union. Struggling to raise funds, the MLBPA discovered that it could generate significant income by pooling the publicity rights of its members and offering companies a group license to use their images on various products. After initially putting players on Coca-Cola bottlecaps, the union concluded that the Topps contracts did not pay players adequately for their rights. Fleer even filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission alleging that Topps was engaged in unfair competition through its aggregation of exclusive contracts. A hearing examiner ruled against Topps in 1965, but the Commission reversed this decision on appeal. The Commission concluded that because the contracts only covered the sale of cards with gum, competition was still possible by selling cards with other small, low-cost products. However, Fleer chose not to pursue such options and instead sold its remaining player contracts to Topps for $395,000 in 1966.[48] Soon after, MLBPA executive director Marvin Miller then approached Joel Shorin, the president of Topps, about renegotiating these contracts. At this time, Topps had every major league player under contract, generally for five years plus renewal options, so Shorin declined. After continued discussions went nowhere, before the 1968 season, the union asked its members to stop signing renewals on these contracts, and offered Fleer the exclusive rights to market cards. Although Fleer declined the proposal, by the end of 1973, Topps had agreed to double its payments to each player from $125 to $250, and also to begin paying players a percentage of Topps' overall sales.[49] The figure for individual player contracts has since increased to $500. Since then, Topps used individual player contracts as the basis for its baseball cards. Fleer vs. Topps In April 1975, Fleer asked for Topps to waive its exclusive rights and allow Fleer to produce stickers, stamps, or other small items featuring active baseball players. Topps refused, and Fleer then sued both Topps and the MLBPA to break the Topps monopoly. After several years of litigation, the court ordered the union to offer group licenses for baseball cards to companies other than Topps. Fleer and another company, Donruss, were thus allowed to begin making cards in 1981. Fleer's legal victory was overturned after one season, but they continued to manufacture cards, substituting stickers with team logos for gum. Donruss distributed their cards with a Jigsaw puzzle piece. Canada The history of baseball cards in Canada is somewhat similar to that of baseball cards in the United States. The first cards were trade cards, then cards issued with tobacco products and later candies and gum. World Wide Gum and O-Pee-Chee both produced major sets during the 1930s. In 1952, Topps started distributing its American made cards in Canada. In 1965 O-Pee-Chee re-entered the baseball card market producing a licensed version of the Topps set. From 1970 until the last Topps based set was produced in 1992 the cards were bi-lingual French/English to comply with Canadian law[50][51] From 1985 until 1988, Donruss issued a parallel Canadian set under the Leaf name. The set was basically identical to the Donruss issues of the same years however it was bi-lingual. All the Leaf sets were produced in the United States. There were several promotional issues issued by Canadian firms since Major League Baseball began in Canada in 1969. There were also several public safety sets issued, most notably the Toronto Blue Jays fire safety sets of the 1980s and early 1990s and the Toronto Public Libraries "Reading is fun" set of 1998 and 1999. These sets were distributed in the Toronto area. The cards were monolingual and only issued in English. Japan The first baseball cards appeared in Japan in the late 19th century. Unlike American cards of the same era, the cards utilized traditional Japanese pen and ink illustrations. In the 1920s, black-and-white photo postcards were issued, but illustrated cards were the norm until the 1950s. That decade brought about cards which incorporated photos of players, mostly in black and white. Menko cards also became popular at the time. NPB branded baseball cards are currently widely available in Japanese toy stores, convenience stores, sports stores, and as bonus items included in certain packages of potato chips. United Kingdom In 1987 and 1988 the American company Topps issued two series of American baseball cards featuring cards from American and Canadian Major League Baseball teams in the UK. The full color cards were produced by Topps Republic of Ireland subsidiary company and contained explanations of baseball terms. Given baseball's lack of popularity in the United Kingdom, the issues were unsuccessful. Latin America Topps issued licensed sets in Venezuela from 1959 to 1977.[52] Most of the set had Spanish in place of the English text on the cards and the sets included winter league players. There were locally produced cards depicting players from the winter leagues produced by Offset Venezolana C.A., Sport Grafico, and others which were in production until the late 1990s. In Cuba, sets were issued first in the early 1900s. By the 1930s various candy, gum and chocolate makers were offering cards, most notably Baguer Chocolate. The post-World War Two era had cards issued by magazines, candy makers, Coca-Cola, and of course a gum company. In post revolution Cuba, baseball cards were still issued. Several sets of Mexican League baseball cards have been issued in the past few years. American made cards of Major League Baseball players-Puerto Rican and internationals-are widely available in Puerto Rico. Australia Australian produced baseball cards were first released in 1990 by the then newly created trading card company Futera. These cards featured players from the newly created Australian Baseball League. Subsequent baseball cards were released annually in boxed sets or foil packs until 1996 when declining interest saw production cease. No new baseball cards were released in Australia until Select Australia released six team sets of cards during the 2012-13 Australian Baseball League season.[53] This was then followed up by Dingo Trading Cards releasing multiple baseball card team sets during the 2013-14 Australian Baseball League season.[54] Price guides Price guides are used mostly to list the prices of different baseball cards in many different conditions. One of the most famous price guides is the Beckett price guide series. The Beckett price guide is a graded card price guide, which means it is graded by a 1–10 scale, one being the lowest possible score and ten the highest. In addition, Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA) grades cards 1-10, and can authenticate autographs as well." (wikipedia.org) "A trading card (or collectible card) is a small card, usually made out of paperboard or thick paper, which usually contains an image of a certain person, place or thing (fictional or real) and a short description of the picture, along with other text (attacks, statistics, or trivia).[1] There is a wide variation of different types of cards. Trading cards are traditionally associated with sports (baseball cards are particularly common) but can also include subjects such as Pokémon and other non-sports trading cards. These often feature cartoons, comic book characters, television series and film stills. In the 1990s, cards designed specifically for playing games became popular enough to develop into a distinct category, collectible card games. These games are mostly fantasy-based gameplay. Fantasy art cards are a subgenre of trading cards that focus on the artwork.... History Origins Main articles: Trade card and Cigarette card Trade cards are the ancestors of trading cards. Some of the earliest prizes found in retail products were cigarette cards—trade cards advertising the product (not to be confused with trading cards) that were inserted into paper packs of cigarettes as stiffeners to protect the contents.[2] Allen and Ginter in the U.S. in 1886, and British company W.D. & H.O. Wills in 1888, were the first tobacco companies to print advertisements.[3] A couple years later, lithograph pictures on the cards with an encyclopedic variety of topics from nature to war to sports — subjects that appealed to men who smoked - began to surface as well.[4] By 1900, there were thousands of tobacco card sets manufactured by 300 different companies. Children would stand outside of stores to ask customers who bought cigarettes for the promotional cards.[5] Following the success of cigarette cards, trade cards were produced by manufacturers of other products and included in the product or handed to the customer by the store clerk at the time of purchase.[4] World War II put an end to cigarette card production due to limited paper resources, and after the war cigarette cards never really made a comeback. After that collectors of prizes from retail products took to collecting tea cards in the UK and bubble gum cards in the US.[6] Early baseball cards Main article: Baseball card Adrian C. Anson depicted on an Allen & Ginter cigarette card, c. 1887 The first baseball cards were trade cards printed in the late 1860s by a sporting goods company, around the time baseball became a professional sport.[7] Most of the baseball cards around the beginning of the 20th century came in candy and tobacco products. It was during this era that the most valuable baseball card ever printed was produced - the T206 tobacco card featuring Honus Wagner.[8] The T206 Set, distributed by the American Tobacco Company in 1909, is considered by collectors to be the most popular set of all time.[9] In 1933, Goudey Gum Company of Boston issued baseball cards with players biographies on the backs and was the first to put baseball cards in bubble gum.[10] The 1933 Goudey set remains one of the most popular and affordable vintage sets to this day.[11] Bowman Gum of Philadelphia issued its first baseball cards in 1948. Modern trading cards Topps Chewing Gum, Inc., now known as "The Topps Company, Inc.", started inserting trading cards into bubble gum packs in 1950 with such topics as TV and film cowboy Hopalong Cassidy; "Bring 'Em Back Alive" cards featuring Frank Buck on big game hunts in Africa; and All-American Football Cards. Topps produced its first baseball trading card set in 1951, with the resulting design resembling that of playing cards.[12] Topps owner and founder Sy Berger created the first true modern baseball card set, complete with playing record and statistics, the following year in the form of 1952 Topps Baseball.[13] This is one of the most popular sets of all time; its most valued piece was 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle #311, which is sometimes erroneously referred to as Mantle's rookie card, though he had in fact appeared in the 1951 Bowman Baseball set.[14] Topps purchased their chief competitor, Bowman Gum, in 1956.[15] Topps was the leader in the trading card industry from 1956 to 1980, not only in sports cards but in entertainment cards as well. Many of the top selling non-sports cards were produced by Topps, including Wacky Packages (1967, 1973–1977), Star Wars (beginning in 1977)[16] and Garbage Pail Kids (beginning in 1985).[17] In 1991 Topps ceased packaging gum with their baseball cards, making many collectors happy that their cards could no longer be damaged by gum stains[18] The following year, in 1992, Topps ceased using heavily waxed paper to wrap their packs of cards and began using cellophane plastic exclusively, thus eliminating the possibility of wax stains on the top and bottom cards in the packs.[19] Digital trading cards In an attempt to stay current with technology and digital trends, existing and new trading card companies started to create digital trading cards that lived exclusively online or as a digital counterpart of a physical card. In 1995 Michael A. Pace produced "computer based" trading cards, utilizing a CD ROM computer system and floppy discs.[20] In 2000, Topps launched a brand of sports cards, called etopps. These cards were sold exclusively online through individual IPO's (initial player offering) in which the card is offered for usually a week at the IPO price. That same year, Tokenzone launched a digital collectibles platform that was used by media companies to distribute content in the form of digital trading cards. The quantity sold depended on how many people offered to buy but was limited to a certain maximum. After a sale, the cards were held in a climate-controlled warehouse unless the buyer requests delivery, and the cards could be traded online without changing hands except in the virtual sense. In January 2012, Topps announced that they would be discontinuing their eTopps product line.[21] Digital collectible card games were estimated to be a $1.3B market in 2013.[22] A number of tech start-ups have attempted to establish themselves in this space, notably Stampii (Spain, 2009),[23][24] Fantom (Ireland, 2011), Deckdaq (Israel, 2011), and 2Stic (Austria, 2013). Panini launched their Adrenalyn XL platform with an NBA and NFL trading card collection. Connect2Media together with Winning Moves, created an iPhone Application to host a series of trading card collections, including Dinosaurs, James Bond - 007, Celebs, Gum Ball 3000, European Football Stars and NBA. In 2011, mytcg Technologies launched a platform that enabled content holders to host their content on. On July 1, 2011, Wildcat Intellectual Property Holdings filed a lawsuit against 12 defendants, including Topps, Panini, Sony, Electronic Arts, Konami, Pokémon, Zynga and Nintendo, for allegedly infringing Wildcat's "Electronic Trading Card" patent.[25] In 2012, Topps also launched their first phone application. Topps Bunt was an app that allowed users to connect with other fans in a fantasy league type game environment wherein they can collect their favorite players, earn points based on how well they play and trade and compete with other fans. Three years later, the same company launched a digital experiment in Europe (geotargeted to exclude the USA) with its Marvel Hero Attax, using digital as an overlay to its physical product.[26] Value Today, the development of the Internet has given rise to various online communities, through which members can trade collectible cards with each other. Cards are often bought and sold via eBay and other online retail sources. Many websites solicit their own "sell to us" page in hopes to draw in more purchase opportunities.[27] The value of a trading card depends on a combination of the card's condition, the subject's popularity and the scarcity of the card. In some cases, especially with older cards that preceded the advent of card collecting as a widespread hobby, they have become collectors' items of considerable value. In recent years, many sports cards have not necessarily appreciated as much in value due to overproduction, although some manufacturers have used limited editions and smaller print runs to boost value. Trading cards, however, do not have an absolute monetary value. Cards are only worth as much as a collector is willing to pay.[28] Condition Card condition is one aspect of trading cards that determine the value of a card. There are four areas of interest in determining a card's condition. Centering, corners, edges and surface are taken into consideration, for imperfections, such as color spots and blurred images, and wear, such as creases, scratches and tears, when determining a trading card's value.[29] Cards are considered poor to pristine based on their condition, or in some cases rated 1 through 10.[30] A card in pristine condition, for example, will generally be valued higher than a card in poor condition.... Sports cards Sports card is a generic term for a trading card with a sports-related subject, as opposed to non-sports trading cards that deal with other topics. Sports cards were among the earliest forms of collectibles. They typically consist of a picture of a player on one side, with statistics or other information on the reverse. Cards have been produced featuring most major sports, especially those played in North America, including, but not limited to, American football, association football (soccer), baseball, basketball, boxing, golf, ice hockey, racing and tennis. The first set with a sporting theme appeared in 1896, a cricket series by W.D. & H.O. Wills of 50 cricketers. The tobacco companies soon realised that sports cards were a great way to obtain brand loyalty. In 1896 the first association football set, "Footballers & Club Colours", was published by Marcus & Company, a small firm in Manchester. Other football sets issued at that time were "Footballers & Club Colours" (Kinner, 1898); "Footballers" (J. F. Bell, 1902); "Footballers" (F. J. Smith, 1902) and "Footballers" (Percy E. Cadle, 1904).[34] The first stage in the development of sports cards, during the second half of the 19th century, is essentially the story of baseball cards, since baseball was the first sport to become widely professionalized. Hockey cards also began to appear early in the 20th century. Cards from this period are commonly known as cigarette cards or tobacco cards, because many were produced by tobacco companies and inserted into cigarette packages, to stiffen cigarette packaging and advertise cigarette brands. The most expensive card in the hobby is a cigarette card of Honus Wagner in a set called 1909 T-206. The story told is that Wagner was against his cards being inserted into something that children would collect. So the production of his cards stopped abruptly. It is assumed that less than 100 of his cards exist in this set. The 1909 T-206 Honus Wagner card has sold for as much as $2.8 million.[35] Sets of cards are issued with each season for major professional sports. Since companies typically must pay players for the right to use their images, the vast majority of sports cards feature professional athletes. Amateurs appear only rarely, usually on cards produced or authorized by the institution they compete for, such as a college. Many older sports cards (pre-1980) command a high price today; this is because they are hard to find, especially in good quality condition. This happened because many children used to place their cards in bicycle spokes, where the cards were easily damaged. Rookie cards of Hall of Fame sports stars can command thousands of dollars if they have been relatively well-preserved. In the 1980s, sports cards started to get produced in higher numbers, and collectors started to keep their cards in better condition as they became increasingly aware of their potential investment value. This trend continued well into the 1990s. This practice caused many of the cards manufactured during this era to stay low in value, due to their high numbers. The proliferation of cards saturated the market, and by the late 1990s, card companies began to produce scarcer versions of cards to keep many collectors interested. The latest trends in the hobby have been "game used memorabilia" cards, which usually feature a piece of a player's jersey worn in a real professional game; other memorabilia cards include pieces of bats, balls, hats, helmets, and floors. Authenticated autographs are also popular, as are "serially numbered" cards, which are produced in much smaller amounts than regular "base set cards". Autographs obtained by card manufacturers have become the most collected baseball cards in the hobby's history. This started in 1990 in baseball when Upper Deck randomly inserted autographs of Reggie Jackson into boxes. They are commonly referred to as "Certified Autographed Inserts" or "CAI's". Both the athlete's and card company's reputations are on the line if they do not personally sign these cards. This has created the most authentic autographs in existence.[citation needed] These cards all have some form of printed statements that the autographs are authentic, this way, no matter who owns the autograph there is no question of its authenticity. CAI's have branched out into autographs of famous actors, musicians, Presidents, and even Albert Einstein. Mostly these autographs are cut from flat items such as postcards, index cards, and plain paper. Then they are pasted onto cards. In 2001, a company called Playoff started obtaining autographs on stickers that are stuck on the cards instead of them actually signing the cards. There is strong opposition against these types of autographs because the players never even saw the cards that the stickers were affixed to.[citation needed] The competition among card companies to produce quality sports cards has been fierce. In 2005, the long-standing sports card producer Fleer went bankrupt and was bought out by Upper Deck. Not long after that, Donruss lost its MLB license. Currently, Topps is the official baseball card of the MLB." (wikipedia.org) "A Refractor Card is a trading card that has a reflective coating and displays a rainbow when held at a specific angle. They are parallels of base set issues and were introduced with the release of the 1993 Topps Finest Baseball set. Later releases have confirmation of a Refractor on the back of the card in the form of either an R or the word Refractor printed, usually, beside or beneath the card number, but the first Refractors did not include this designation and are therefore sometimes more difficult to differentiate from base issues.... Variants There are many Refractor variants that have been produced over the years, though most are simple color swaps of the base Refractors. These variants are typically serial numbered, but that is not always the case. The very first Refractor variant that was available was the Embossed Refractor, in 1997. [1] Variants that typically appear in Topps Finest, Topps Chrome, and Bowman Chrome releases often include Gold, Blue, Red, Orange, Green, and Black. Less often, Refractor color variants including Pink, Purple, and White can be found. Usually, the Orange and Red Refractor parallels are extremely rare and have low serial numbers, while the Blue and Green ones are more common. This is not always the case, though, and tends to vary slightly from set to set and year to year. In addition to regular Refractors and color swap Refractors, Topps Chrome and Bowman Chrome (and on occasion Topps Finest) sometimes include a parallel called an Xfractor or X-fractor. They typically have a checkerboard background design in addition to the regular Refractor finish and sometimes have serial numbers. Xfractors sometimes have color swap issues available or even Die-cut versions, too. Bowman's Best sets have a unique issue called an Atomic Refractor that is much more rare than the regular Refractor parallel. Atomic Refractor parallels typically have serial numbers that are 4 times as low as the regular Refractors. For example, if a regular Refractor is numbered out of 400, then the Atomic version would be numbered out of 100. If the regular Refractor is numbered out of 100, the Atomic one would be numbered out of 25. In addition to the lower serial numbers, Atomic Refractors feature a different background design than regular Refractors. The rarest Refractor variant is called the SuperFractor. It is a card that has a production run of just 1 and is serial numbered 1/1 (or sometimes "01/01," "001/001," or "One-of-One"). The backgrounds of SuperFractors have a gold spiral design, usually. There are even SuperFractor variants such as White SuperFractors, Bordered SuperFractors, and Die-cut SuperFractors in certain releases. These SuperFractor variants are all serial numbered 1/1, as well.[2] In recent years, some new Refractor variations have appeared in products. Among these include, but are not limited to Blue Wave Refractors (and color swaps of those), Sepia Refractors, Prism Refractors, Mosaic Refractors, and Pulsar Refractors. Some Refractor variants were tested and found to be not popular and therefore discontinued. One example of this is the Pigskin Refractor which appeared in the 2009 Topps Finest Football release. There have even been some special edition Refractors variants for specific purposes such as Camo Refractors, which feature a camouflage border pattern and were issued to honor the US Armed Forces, and BCA Pink Refractors, which were issued for Breast Cancer Awareness. " (wikipedia.org) "An insert card is a card that is randomly inserted into packs of a sports card offering. These insert cards are not part of the regular numbering system of a set of sports cards and they tend to have a unique design.[1] Another term for insert cards is chase cards. Insert cards either have their own numbering system (although some insert cards may have no number). Insert cards are found less frequently than base cards. Autographed cards, memorabilia cards and parallel cards are also classified as insert cards. Insert cards are randomly inserted into packs at a specific ratio. A 1:24 ratio specifies that on average one of every 24 packs will contain a card from that insert set.... Types of inserts Non-rare to rare cards that are randomly inserted into packs can be inserted in various ratios like 1 per 24 packs. Not only is an Insert Card often different from the main set, but its numbering tends to be different (examples: numbers on the back can be SP1 or SP2). Issuing these cards would not be possible without the approval of both Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association.[3]     A parallel card is a sports card that is identical to a base card in the same sports card offering. The difference is attributed to a visual element. These elements can include foil stamping, a different design, autographs or memorabilia swatches that the base card did not have. Such cards usually have smaller print runs than the original and can lead to the parallel card being worth more than the base card.[4]     A memorabilia card is an insert card that contains a piece of equipment used by an athlete in an athletic competition, such as part of a bat, jersey or cap. These inserts are often highly prized by collectors.[5]     An autograph card is an insert card that is autographed by the player.     Serially numbered cards: Insert cards, memorabilia cards and parallel cards may be serially numbered. The rationale is that each card is numbered sequentially. The serial number of the card is stamped onto the card itself. A card may be numbered 1 of 500.[6] Notable inserts     In 1998, the Upper Deck Card Company purchased a Babe Ruth bat at auction for $23,000 (used by Ruth sometime during the period 1923–31). Upper Deck sliced the bat into approximately 550 tiny pieces that could be affixed to limited edition collector's cards. These cards were randomly inserted into packs of various 1999 Upper Deck card product lines released in late 1998.[7] These cards were part of Upper Deck's "Pieces of History" promotion. Upper Deck extended the concept to bats of all of the members of baseball's 500 Home Run Club.[8] The set included the 19 members of the elite 500 Home Run Club. Each card had a piece of game used bat on the card and although not serial numbered, each was limited to a print run of 350. This was the true first Game Used Bat set to be created as Upper Deck had already experimented with game used jersey material cards two years earlier in 1997. There were autographed versions of a few key players. By far the hardest card to find was the Babe Ruth Card. There were two separate Babe Ruth issues, the Piece of History card (Run of 350) and the Piece of History 500 (print run of only 50). These cards were scattered across various Upper Deck 1999 brands and into some year 2000 products. Upper Deck also issued cards of other members that have joined the club over the years. These have included cards of Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Ken Griffey, Jr., Rafael Palmiero, Frank Thomas and Jim Thome.[9] Yankee Stadium legacy The Yankee Stadium Legacy set is a 6,500-card compilation chronicling every single game ever played at Yankee Stadium. The card set was manufactured by Upper Deck and made its official debut by being inserted in random packs of Upper Deck's 2008 Series 1 Baseball.[10] Other cards in the set commemorate some of the most famous sporting events that have taken place at Yankee Stadium. Some of these events include: Lou Gehrig's "Luckiest Man Alive" Speech (July 4, 1939); Babe Ruth's "Final Visit to Yankee Stadium" (June 11, 1948); Joe Louis vs. Max Schmeling heavyweight title bout (June 19, 1936, Schmeling won), the 1958 NFL Championship between the New York Giants and the Baltimore Colts and Muhammad Ali's title defense against Ken Norton (Sept. 28, 1976). The Guinness Book of World Records will certify The Yankee Stadium Legacy as the largest baseball card set ever produced, once all the cards are released.[11] The official recognition will take place only after all of the 6,500 cards are released in Upper Deck's various baseball card launches throughout the year.[12] The various sets where the Yankee Stadium Legacy cards were inserted into were: Spectrum; Ballpark Collection; Piece of History; SPx; Upper Deck Series Two; SP Legendary Cuts (Hobby-only); SP Authentic; UDx; and UD Masterpieces. Upper Deck started a website so that collectors could find out more about the Yankee Stadium Legacy set.[13] Alphanumeric codes found on the backs of Yankee Stadium Legacy cards can be entered at the site, and collectors will can use the site to manage their collections online, and track their collections against other collectors via a leader board. Tommy Baxter, a 36-year-old from Little Rock, Arkansas, was the first collector to put together Upper Deck's Yankee Stadium Legacy (YSL) Collection. Baxter was an avid Cubs fan, and seized the opportunity to become the first collector to piece together the insert set.[14] 20th anniversary program In observance of the 20th anniversary in 2009, Upper Deck released a set that can be found in all of the company's 2009 baseball trading card releases. The massive 2,500 card set commemorated the last twenty years in sports, pop culture, politics, world history and technology.[15] The first cards from the 20th Anniversary Retrospective set were found in 2009 Upper Deck Series One Baseball. An additional element to the set was the 100-card memorabilia set, that was found in all sets beginning with 2009 Upper Deck Spectrum Baseball, (released on February 24). Michael Jordan legacy In April 2009, the company announcement that longtime company spokesman Michael Jordan would be honored with an 1,170-card tribute insert set chronicling every single Chicago Bulls game Jordan played in. The set will begin with his NBA debut on October 26, 1984, through his final Bulls appearance in Game 6 of the NBA Finals on June 14, 1998. The 1,170-card set will pack out across four 2009 Upper Deck basketball products: Lineage (April 1); Radiance (April 29); Upper Deck (Sept. 22); and First Edition (Sept. 29). Each of the cards will include MJ's specific box score stats from the game in question. The set will be given every card some historical significance as the overall set captures every game Jordan ever played with the Bulls, regular-season and playoff battles included. The cards will fall, on average, 1:4 packs across all four brands. In addition to the 1,170 Jordan game cards, Upper Deck also included 100 different game-used memorabilia cards, each one crash-numbered to 23. The cards will sport swatches from Michael's game-worn jerseys. More than 100 different action photos showing Michael through the years were used for card front photography.[16] Champs Hockey Upper Deck's Champs Hockey release from 2008-09 featured insert cards with bone fragments from creatures like the Woolly Mammoth and Woolly Rhinoceros. Articles such as a woolly mammoth femur, Tyrannosaurus Rex tooth, and Triceratops vertebrae were other items found in the bone fragments cards" (wikipedia.org) "The Topps Company, Inc. is an American company that manufactured chewing gum, candy, and collectibles. Formerly based in New York City,[3] Topps was best known as a leading producer of American football, baseball, basketball, ice hockey, soccer, and other sports and non-sports themed trading cards. In 2022, Fanatics announced they were acquiring the company for $500 Million.[4] In the 2010s, Topps was the only baseball card manufacturer with a contract with Major League Baseball.[5] Topps also produced cards under the brand names Allen & Ginter[1] and Bowman.... Company history Beginning and consolidation Topps itself was founded in 1938,[6] but the company can trace its roots back to an earlier firm, American Leaf Tobacco.[7][8] Founded in 1890 by members of the Saloman family, the American Leaf Tobacco Co. imported tobacco to the United States and sold it to other tobacco companies. Eventually, in 1908, Morris Chigorinsky came in control of the company. American Leaf Tobacco encountered difficulties during World War I, as it was cut off from Turkish supplies of tobacco, and later as a result of the Great Depression.[8] Shorin's sons, Abram, Ira, Philip, and Joseph, decided to focus on a new product but take advantage of the company's existing distribution channels. To do this, they relaunched the company as Topps, with the name meant to indicate that it would be "tops" in its field. The chosen field was the manufacture of chewing gum, selected after going into the produce business was considered and rejected.[8] At the time, chewing gum was still a relative novelty sold in individual pieces. Topps’s most successful early product was Bazooka bubble gum,[8] which was packaged with a small comic on the wrapper. Starting in 1950, the company decided to try increasing gum sales by packaging them together with trading cards featuring Western character Hopalong Cassidy (William Boyd); at the time Boyd, as one of the biggest stars of early television, was featured in newspaper articles and on magazine covers, along with a significant amount of "Hoppy" merchandising. When Topps next introduced baseball cards as a product, the cards immediately became its primary emphasis. The "father of the modern baseball card" was Sy Berger.[9] In the autumn of 1951, Berger, then a 28-year-old veteran of World War II, designed the 1952 Topps baseball card set with Woody Gelman on the kitchen table of his apartment on Alabama Avenue in Brooklyn.[10] The card design included a player's name, photo, facsimile autograph, team name and logo on the front; and the player's height, weight, bats, throws, birthplace, birthday, stats and a short biography on the back. The basic design is still in use today. Berger would work for Topps for 50 years (1947–97) and serve as a consultant for another five, becoming a well-known figure on the baseball scene, and the face of Topps to major league baseball players, whom he signed up annually and paid in merchandise, like refrigerators and carpeting. The Shorins, in recognition of his negotiation abilities, sent Sy to London in 1964 to negotiate the rights for Topps to produce Beatles trading cards. They also tried hockey. Arriving without an appointment, Sy succeeded by speaking in Yiddish to Brian Epstein, the Beatles’ manager.[11] Berger hired a garbage boat to remove leftover boxes of 1952 baseball cards stored in their warehouse, and rode with them as a tugboat pulled them off the New Jersey shore. The cards were then dumped into the Atlantic Ocean.[12] The cards included Mickey Mantle's first Topps card, the most valuable card of the modern era. No one at the time, of course, knew the collector's value the cards would one day attain. Currently, a pack of 1952 Topps baseball cards is worth at least $15,000. Incorporation ‹ The template below (Unreferenced section) is being considered for merging. See templates for discussion to help reach a consensus. ›     This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2009) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) Trading card featuring The Diamonds from the series of movie, television and recording stars, 1957 The company began its existence as Topps Chewing Gum, Inc., a partnership between the four Shorin brothers. It later incorporated under New York law in 1947. The entire company originally operated at the Bush Terminal in Brooklyn, but production facilities were moved to a plant in Duryea, Pennsylvania, in 1965 (the Duryea plant closed in 1997). Corporate offices remained at 254 36th Street in Brooklyn, a location in the waterfront district by the Gowanus Expressway. In 1994, the headquarters relocated to One Whitehall Street in lower Manhattan. After being privately held for several decades, Topps offered stock to the public for the first time in 1972 with the assistance of investment banking firm White, Weld & Co. The company returned to private ownership when it was acquired in a leveraged buyout led by Forstmann Little & Company in 1984. The new ownership group again made Topps into a publicly traded company in 1987, now renamed to The Topps Company, Inc. In this incarnation, the company was reincorporated under Delaware General Corporation Law for legal reasons, but company headquarters remained in New York. Management was left in the hands of the Shorin family throughout all of these maneuverings. On October 12, 2007, Topps was acquired by Michael Eisner's The Tornante Company and Madison Dearborn Partners.[13] Under Eisner's direction, Topps began to expand into the entertainment and media business with plans for a Bazooka Joe movie. Former television executive Staci Weiss was hired as Topps's head of entertainment to develop projects based on Topps properties, including Garbage Pail Kids, Wacky Packages, Dinosaurs Attack!, Mech Warrior and Attax.[14] Topps Digital In 2012, Topps began creating digital sports cards, starting with the Topps Bunt baseball card mobile app.[15] After releasing Bunt in 2013 and finding success with it,[16] they expanded their sports card market into other apps including the Kick soccer app in August 2014, Huddle Football app in April 2016, and Skate hockey app in 2017. Along with sports cards, Topps also expanded its marketplace for collectors of digital goods to include non-sports cards on mobile devices. In March 2015 they released their Star Wars: Card Trader app, and in May 2016 they released a Walking Dead trading card app. Following the success of their assortment of digital trading card apps, they once again expanded their marketplace for digital collectors a few years later, releasing a Marvel trading card app in the spring of 2019 and their Disney trading card app in November of that same year. In March 2020, Topps announced a collaboration with WAX.io to make their cards tradable on the blockchain.[17] As of December 2020, Topps has only made Garbage Pail Kids cards available to traders via blockchain but they have announced Alien Quadrilogy collectibles will be coming soon.[18] In April 2021, Topps announced plans to go public via a merger with Mudrick Capital Acquisition Corporation II, a publicly-traded special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). Michael Eisner's firm The Tornante Company planned to roll its stake into the new company while Mudrick Capital would lead an additional investment of $250 million. The deal valued Topps at $1.3 billion.[19] However, reports surfaced within six months of their initial plans that Mudrick Capital Management had backed out of the investment deal.[20][21] In August 2021, it was reported that Fanatics acquired future exclusive licenses with Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association to produce baseball cards.[22] In January 2022, Fanatics announced they had acquired Topps for 500 million USD.[4] Topps Europe Ltd. Topps has a European division, which is based in Milton Keynes, UK. From this office products are launched across Europe, including Spain, France, Germany, Norway, and Italy. This division also co-ordinates products launches across the many other international markets including the Far East, Australia, and South Africa. In 1994 Merlin acquired the Premier League license allowing the company to exclusively publish the only official Premier League sticker and album collection in the UK.[23] The initial success of the Premier League stickers and album collection was so great that it took even Merlin by surprise, with reprint after reprint being produced. In 1995, the Topps Company Inc. completed its takeover of Merlin Publishing. Merlin's official company name changed to Topps Europe Limited, but its products still carried the Merlin brand until 2008 as it was easily recognized by consumers. Topps Europe Limited continues to produce a wide and varied range of sports and entertainment collectibles across Europe. Its range of products now includes stickers, albums, cards and binders, magazines, stationery, and temporary tattoos. Topps Europe Ltd. products Topps Europe Ltd. has continued to launch hugely successful products across Europe. Some of the most successful licenses have included WWE, Pokémon, Doctor Who, High School Musical and SpongeBob. Topps Merlin branded Premier League sticker albums have been popular since their launch in 1994, and in 2007 Topps acquired the Premier League rights for trading cards.[23] Previously, the trading card rights were held by Magic Box International who produced the Shoot Out cards from the 2003/04 to 2006/07 seasons.[24] Match Attax, the official Premier League trading card game, was the biggest selling boys’ collectible in the UK three years running.[25] Being sold across the globe in a number of countries, the collection also holds the title of the biggest selling sports collectible in the world.[23] It is estimated that around 1.5 million children collect it in the UK alone.[25] Following on from the acquisition of Premier League trading cards rights, in the spring of 2008 Topps acquired the exclusive rights to the DFL Deutsche Fussball Liga GmbH for trading cards and stickers until the Bundesliga Season 2010/11. Bundesliga Match Attax was launched in January 2009 and is now available in over 40,000 stockists. The collection is the first of its kind in Germany and has become one of the biggest selling collections in the country. As of February 2016 Topps Match Attax dominated the secondary UK card trading market occupying two out of the top three spots on the www.stickerpoints.com 'most popular soccer collection' list.[26] Topps baseball cards: A history Entry into the baseball card market In 1951, Topps produced its first baseball cards in two different sets known today as Red Backs and Blue Backs. Each set contained 52 cards, like a deck of playing cards, and in fact the cards could be used to play a game that would simulate the events of a baseball game. Also like playing cards, the cards had rounded corners and were blank on one side, which was colored either red or blue (hence the names given to these sets). The other side featured the portrait of a player within a baseball diamond in the center, and in opposite corners a picture of a baseball together with the event for that card, such as "fly out" or "single." Topps changed its approach in 1952, this time creating a much larger (407 total) set of baseball cards and packaging them with its signature product, bubble gum. The company also decided that its playing card model was too small (2 inches by 2-5/8 inches) and changed the dimensions to 2-5/8 inches by 3-3/4 inches with square corners. The cards now had a color portrait on one side, with statistical and biographical information on the other. This set became a landmark in the baseball card industry, and today the company considers this its first true baseball card set. Many of the oil paintings for the sets were rendered by artist Gerry Dvorak, who also worked as an animator for Famous Studios. In 1957, Topps shrank the dimensions of its cards slightly, to 2-1/2 inches by 3-1/2 inches, setting a standard that remains the basic format for most sports cards produced in the United States.[12] It was at this time Topps began to use color photographs in their set. The cards were released in several series over the course of the baseball season, a practice Topps would continue with its baseball cards until 1974. However, the last series of each year did not sell as well, as the baseball season wore on and popular attention began to turn towards American football. Thus cards from the last series are much scarcer and are typically more valuable (even commons) than earlier series of the same year. Topps was left with a substantial amount of surplus stock in 1952, which it largely disposed of by dumping many cards into the Atlantic. In later years, Topps either printed series in smaller quantities late in the season or destroyed excess cards. As a result, cards with higher numbers from this period are rarer than low numbers in the same set, and collectors will pay significantly higher prices for them. The last series in 1952 started with card No. 311, which is Topps's first card of Mickey Mantle, and remains the most valuable Topps card ever (and the most valuable post-1948 card). The 1952 Topps Mantle is often mistakenly referred to as Mantle's rookie card, but that honor belongs to his 1951 Bowman card (which is worth about a third of the 1952 Topps card). The combination of baseball cards and bubble gum was popular among young boys, and given the mediocre quality of the gum, the cards quickly became the primary attraction. In fact, the gum eventually became a hindrance because it tended to stain the cards, thus impairing their value to collectors who wanted to keep them in pristine condition. It (along with the traditional gray cardboard) was finally dropped from baseball card packs in 1992, although Topps began its Heritage line, which included gum, in the year 2001. Competition for player contracts During this period, baseball card manufacturers generally obtained the rights to depict players on merchandise by signing individual players to contracts for the purpose. Topps first became active in this process through an agent called Players Enterprises in July 1950, in preparation for its first 1951 set. The later acquisition of rights to additional players allowed Topps to release its second series. This promptly brought Topps into furious competition with Bowman Gum, another company producing baseball cards. Bowman had become the primary maker of baseball cards and driven out several competitors by signing its players to exclusive contracts. The language of these contracts focused particularly on the rights to sell cards with chewing gum, which had already been established in the 1930s as a popular product to pair with baseball cards. To avoid the language of Bowman's existing contracts, Topps sold its 1951 cards with caramel candy instead of gum. However, because Bowman had signed many players in 1950 to contracts for that year, plus a renewal option for one year, Topps included in its own contracts the rights to sell cards with gum starting in 1952 (as it ultimately did). Topps also tried to establish exclusive rights through its contracts by having players agree not to grant similar rights to others, or renew existing contracts except where specifically noted in the contract. Bowman responded by adding chewing gum "or confections" to the exclusivity language of its 1951 contracts, and also sued Topps in U.S. federal court.[27] The lawsuit alleged infringement on Bowman's trademarks, unfair competition, and contractual interference. The court rejected Bowman's attempt to claim a trademark on the word "baseball" in connection with the sale of gum, and disposed of the unfair competition claim because Topps had made no attempt to pass its cards off as being made by Bowman. The contract issue proved more difficult because it turned on the dates when a given player signed contracts with each company, and whether the player's contract with one company had an exception for his contract with the other. As the contract situation was sorted out, several Topps sets during these years had a few "missing" cards, where the numbering of the set skips several numbers because they had been assigned to players whose cards could not legally be distributed. The competition, both for consumer attention and player contracts, continued until 1956, when Topps bought out Bowman. This left Topps as the predominant producer of baseball cards for the next quarter-century. Beginning in 2010, Topps monopolized the official MLB logos, and they are the only card company who possess that license. They have it exclusively until 2020. Consolidation of a monopoly The next company to challenge Topps was Fleer, another gum manufacturer. Fleer signed star Ted Williams to an exclusive contract in 1959 and sold a set of cards oriented around him. Williams retired the next year, so Fleer began adding around him other mostly retired players in a Baseball Greats series, which was sold with gum. Two of these sets were produced before Fleer finally tried a 67-card set of currently active players in 1963. However, Topps held onto the rights of most players and the set was not particularly successful. Stymied, Fleer turned its efforts to supporting an administrative complaint filed by the Federal Trade Commission, alleging that Topps was engaging in unfair competition through its aggregation of exclusive contracts. A hearing examiner ruled against Topps in 1965, but the Commission reversed this decision on appeal. The Commission concluded that because the contracts only covered the sale of cards with gum, competition was still possible by selling cards with other small, low-cost products. However, Fleer chose not to pursue such options and instead sold its remaining player contracts to Topps for $395,000 in 1966. The decision gave Topps an effective monopoly of the baseball card market. That same year, however, Topps faced an attempt to undermine its position from the nascent players' union, the Major League Baseball Players Association. Struggling to raise funds, the MLBPA discovered that it could generate significant income by pooling the publicity rights of its members and offering companies a group license to use their images on various products. After putting players on Coca-Cola bottlecaps for $120,000,[28] the union concluded that the Topps contracts did not pay players adequately for their rights. MLBPA executive director Marvin Miller then approached Joel Shorin, the president of Topps, about renegotiating these contracts. At this time, Topps had every major league player under contract, generally for five years plus renewal options, so Shorin declined. After continued discussions went nowhere, the union before the 1968 season asked its members to stop signing renewals on these contracts, and offered Fleer the exclusive rights to market cards of most players (with gum) starting in 1973. Although Fleer declined the proposal, by the end of the year Topps had agreed to double its payments to each player from $125 to $250, and also to begin paying players a percentage of Topps's overall sales.[29] The figure for individual player contracts has since increased to $500. As a byproduct of this history, Topps continues to use individual player contracts as the basis for its baseball card sets today. This contrasts with other manufacturers, who all obtain group licenses from the MLBPA. The difference has occasionally affected whether specific players are included in particular sets. Players who decline to sign individual contracts will not have Topps cards even when the group licensing system allows other manufacturers to produce cards of the player, as happened with Alex Rodriguez early in his career. On the other hand, if a player opts out of group licensing, as Barry Bonds did in 2004, then manufacturers who depend on the MLBPA system will have no way of including him. Topps, however, can negotiate individually and was belatedly able to create a 2004 card of Bonds. In addition, Topps is the only manufacturer able to produce cards of players who worked as replacement players during the 1994 baseball strike, since they are barred from union membership and participation in the group licensing program. The monopoly and its end A semblance of competition returned to the baseball card market in the 1970s when Kellogg's began producing "3-D" cards and inserting them in boxes of breakfast cereal (originally Corn Flakes, later Raisin Bran and other Kellogg's brands). The Kellogg's sets contained fewer cards than Topps sets, and the cards served as an incentive to buy the cereal, rather than being the intended focus of the purchase, as tended to be the case for cards distributed with smaller items like candy or gum. Topps took no action to stop them. The Topps monopoly on baseball cards was finally broken by a lawsuit decided by federal judge Clarence Charles Newcomer in 1980, in which the judge ended Topps Chewing Gum's exclusive right to sell baseball cards, allowing the Fleer Corporation to compete in the market.[30] That let Fleer and another company, Donruss, enter the market in 1981. Fleer and Donruss began making large, widely distributed sets to compete directly with Topps, packaged with gum. When the ruling was overturned on appeal in August 1981, Topps appeared to have regained its monopoly, but both of its competitors instead began packaging their cards with other baseball items—logo stickers from Fleer, and cardboard puzzle pieces from Donruss. The puzzles, created by baseball artists Dick Perez for Perez Steele, included Warren Spahn, Hank Aaron, Mickey Mantle and a dozen others.[31] Other manufacturers later followed, but Topps remains one of the leading brands in the baseball card hobby. In response to the competition, Topps began regularly issuing additional "Traded" sets featuring players who had changed teams since the main set was issued, following up on an idea it had experimented with a few years earlier. Topps in the modern baseball card industry While "Traded" or "Update" sets were originally conceived to deal with players who changed teams, they became increasingly important for another reason. In order to fill out a 132-card set (the number of cards that fit on a single sheet of the uncut cardboard used in the production process), it would contain a number of rookie players who had just reached the major leagues and not previously appeared on a card. They also included a few single cards of players who previously appeared in the regular set on a multi-player "prospects" card; one notable example is the 1982 Topps Traded Cal Ripken, Jr. Since a "rookie card" is typically the most valuable for any given player, the companies now competed to be the first to produce a card of players who might be future stars. Increasingly, they also included highly touted minor league players who had yet to play in the major leagues. For example, Topps obtained a license to produce cards featuring the U.S. Olympic baseball team and thus produced the first card of Mark McGwire prior to his promotion to the major league level, and one that would become quite valuable to collectors for a time. This card from the 1984 squad appeared in Topps's regular 1985 set, but by the next Olympic cycle the team's cards had been migrated to the "Traded" set. As a further step in this race, Topps resurrected its former competitor Bowman as a subsidiary brand in 1989, with Bowman sets similarly chosen to include a lot of young players with bright prospects. Topps reissued Bowman as a subsidiary brand in 1989 Also beginning in 1989 with the entry of Upper Deck into the market, card companies began to develop higher-end cards using improved technology. Following Topps's example, other manufacturers now began to diversify their product lines into different sets, each catering to a different niche of the market. The initial Topps effort at producing a premium line of cards, in 1991, was called Stadium Club. Topps continued adding more sets and trying to distinguish them from each other, as did its competitors. The resulting glut of different baseball sets caused the MLBPA to take drastic measures as the market for them deteriorated. The union announced that for 2006, licenses would only be granted to Topps and Upper Deck, the number of different products would be limited, and players would not appear on cards before reaching the major leagues. Although most of its products were distributed through retail stores and hobby shops, Topps also attempted to establish itself online, where a significant secondary market for sports cards was developing. Working in partnership with eBay, Topps launched a new brand of sports cards called etopps in December 2000. These cards are sold exclusively online through individual "IPOs" (or, "Initial Player Offering") in which the card is offered for usually a week at the IPO price. The quantity sold depends on how many people offer to buy, but is limited to a certain maximum. After a sale, the cards are held in a climate-controlled warehouse unless the buyer requests delivery, and the cards can be traded online without changing hands except in the virtual sense. Topps also acquired ThePit.com, a startup company that earlier in 2000 had launched a site for online stock-market style card trading. The purchase was for $5.7 million cash in August 2001 after Topps had earlier committed to invest in a round of venture capital financing for the company. This undertaking was not very successful, however, and Topps unloaded the site on Naxcom in January 2006. The amount of the transaction was not disclosed, but Topps charged a $3.7 million after-tax loss on its books in connection with the sale. Two reissues of the iconic T206 Honus Wagner card by Topps, a 2002 edition featuring blue background with the legend "Topps 206" (left), and a 2019 reproduction of the 1909 original (right) In 2002, Topps revived the T206 set originally released in 1909–11 by the American Tobacco Company under the "Topps 206" brand, with current players. That first revival included the T206 Honus Wagner iconic card, with blue background instead of the original orange.[32] A second revival would be launched in 2010.[33] Topps grabbed collectors' attention early in 2007 when the new card of Yankees' shortstop Derek Jeter was found to have been altered to include an image of Mickey Mantle standing in the dugout and President George W. Bush walking through the stands. In 2009, Topps became the first official baseball card of MLB in over thirty years. The first product to fall under the deal was the 2010 Topps Baseball Series 1. The deal gave Topps exclusivity for the use of MLB and club trademarks and logos on cards, stickers and some other products featuring major league players.[34] The exclusive deal was extended in 2013,[35] then extended again in 2018.[36] It is currently scheduled to go through at least 2025. Again in 2020, the company released a new T206 collection divided into five different series, with the first (50 cards) being released in May 2020.[37] The collection, named "Topps 206", include players from both, Major and Minor League. The 5th series was released in September 2020.[38] Card design Although Topps did not invent the concept of baseball cards, its dominance in the field basically allowed the company to define people's expectations of what a baseball card would look like. In addition to establishing a standard size, Topps developed various design elements that are considered typical of baseball cards. Some of these were the company's own innovations, while some were ideas borrowed from others that Topps helped popularize. Use of statistics One of the features that contributed significantly to Topps's success beginning with the 1952 set was providing player statistics. At the time, complete and reliable baseball statistics for all players were not widely available, so Topps actually compiled the information itself from published box scores. While baseball cards themselves had been around for years, including statistics was a relative novelty that fascinated many collectors. Those who played with baseball cards could study the numbers and use them as the basis for comparing players, trading cards with friends, or playing imaginary baseball games. It also had some pedagogical benefit by encouraging youngsters to take an interest in the underlying mathematics. The cards originally had one line for statistics from the most recent year (i.e. the 1951 season for cards in the 1952 set) and another with the player's lifetime totals. Bowman promptly imitated this by putting statistics on its own cards where it had previously only had biographical information. For the first time in 1957, Topps put full year-by-year statistics for the player's entire career on the back of the card. Over the next few years, Topps alternated between this format and merely showing the past season plus career totals. The practice of showing complete career statistics became permanent in 1963, except for one year, 1971, when Topps sacrificed the full statistics in order to put a player photo on the back of the card as well. Artwork and photography Although the 1971 set was an aborted experiment in terms of putting photos on card backs (they would not return until 1992), that year was also a landmark in terms of baseball card photography, as Topps for the first time included cards showing color photographs from actual games. The cards themselves had been in color from the beginning, though for the first few years this was done by using artist's portraits of players rather than actual photographs and until 1971, Topps used mostly portrait or posed shots. The 1971 set is also known for its jet black borders, which because they chip so easily, makes it much more difficult to find top grade cards for 1971. The black borders would return for Topps's 1985 football set and 2007 baseball set. After starting out with simple portraits, in 1954 Topps put two pictures on the front of the card – a hand-tinted 'color' close-up photo of the player's head, and the other a black-and-white full-length pose. The same basic format was used in 1955, this time with the full-length photo also hand-tinted. For 1956, the close-up tinted photo was placed against a tinted full-background 'game-action' photo of the player. The close-up head shots of some individual players were reused each year. From 1957 on, virtually all cards were posed photographs, either as a head shot or together with a typical piece of equipment like a bat or glove. If using such a prop, the player might pose in a position as if he were in the act of batting, pitching, or fielding. Photographs did not appear in sharp focus and natural color until 1962. However, that year also saw problems with the print quality in the second series, which lacked the right proportion of ink and thus gave the photographs a distinctly greenish tint. The affected series of cards was then reprinted, and several players were actually shown in different poses in the reprinting. Although Topps had produced error cards and variations before, this was its largest single production glitch. In the absence of full-color action photography, Topps still occasionally used artwork to depict action on a handful of cards. Starting in 1960 a few cards showed true game action, but the photographs were either in black-and-white or hand-tinted color; these cards were primarily highlights from the World Series. In addition to basic cards of individual players, Topps sets commonly include cards for special themes, the 1974 tribute to Hank Aaron as he was about to break Babe Ruth's career home run record being one example. The 1972 set finally included color photographs, which were used for special "In Action" cards of selected star players. Thereafter, Topps began simply mixing game photography with posed shots in its sets. Baseball artist Dick Perez was commissioned to paint art cards for Topps beginning in 2006. His art card series include Turkey Red and Allen & Ginter. When used for the cards of individual players, some of the early action photography had awkward results. The photos were sometimes out of focus or included several players, making it difficult to pick out the player who was supposed to be featured on the card. In a few cases, a misidentification meant that the player didn't even appear in the picture. These problems diminished as Topps's selection of photographs gradually improved. Before statistics, biographical information, and commentary became the dominant element on the backs of cards, Topps also featured artwork there. This primarily involved using various types of cartoons drawn by its stable of artists. These appeared on card backs as late as 1982, but gradually declined in the prominence of their placement and the proportion of cards on which they appeared. In 1993, Topps finally managed again to incorporate a player photo on the back as well as the front of the card, after some competitors had been doing so for a number of years. Coping with updated developments The pictures and information on baseball cards sold during one season came primarily from earlier seasons, so Topps used various tactics to give its cards a greater sense of staying current with the times. Before coming up with the idea of a "Traded" set, the company still tried to produce cards of players with their new team if they changed teams in the offseason. This was sometimes accomplished by showing the player without any team cap, or by airbrushing out elements of the former team's logo on his uniform. Cards for rookies could also be prepared by airbrushing over their minor-league uniforms in photos. In one case, Topps even got too far in front of events, as in 1974 it showed a number of players as being with the "Washington Nat'l Lea." franchise, due to expectations that the San Diego Padres would relocate to the vacant Washington, D.C., market. The team designation was the only change, as no new nickname for the franchise had been selected. When the move failed to materialize, Topps had to replace these with cards showing the players still as Padres. On rare occasions, Topps has issued special cards for players who had either died or had been injured. The 1959 set had card 550 as "Symbol Of Courage – Roy Campanella", with a color photo of the paralyzed former Dodger in his wheelchair and a black-and-white photo of him in uniform inserted to the upper left. The 1964 set issued cards for two recently deceased players: Ken Hubbs of the Cubs with a different "In Memoriam" front design compared to standard cards, and Colts pitcher Jim Umbricht's regular card with a special note on the back about his April 1964 death from cancer. In October 2006, Topps was prepping for its annual updated/traded card release, which featured Cory Lidle in a Yankees uniform. After Lidle's tragic death, the cards were pulled and subsequently released with "In Memoriam" on its front. American Football cards Boyd Dowler in a 1961 Topps American Football Card In addition to baseball, Topps also produced cards for American football in 1951, which are known as the Magic set. For football cards Bowman dominated the field, and Topps did not try again until 1955, when it released an All-American set with a mix of active players and retired stars. After buying out Bowman, Topps took over the market the following year. Since then, Topps sold football cards every season until 2016. However, the emergence of the American Football League (AFL) in 1960 to compete with the established National Football League also allowed Topps's competitors, beginning with Fleer, to make inroads. Fleer produced a set for the AFL in 1960, sets for both leagues for a year, and then began focusing on the AFL again. Philadelphia Gum secured the NFL rights for 1964, forcing Topps to go for the AFL and leaving Fleer with no product in either baseball or football. Although more competitive for a time, the football card market was never as lucrative as the market for baseball cards, so the other companies did not fight as hard over it. After the AFL–NFL Merger was agreed to, Topps became the only major football card manufacturer beginning in 1968. In spite of the lack of competition, or perhaps to preempt it, Topps also created two sets of cards for the short-lived United States Football League in the 1980s. Many NFL legends had their first ever cards produced in the USFL sets. These players include Steve Young, Jim Kelly, and Reggie White. This resulted in a controversy when these players debuted in the NFL. Many wondered if the USFL cards should be considered rookie cards because the league did not exist anymore. The situation continued until growth in the sports card market generally prompted two new companies, Pro Set and Score, to start making football cards in 1989. Throughout the 1970s until 1982, Topps did not have the rights to reproduce the actual team logos on the helmets and uniforms of the players; curiously, these could be found on the Fleer sets of the same era, but Fleer could not name specific player names (likely an issue of Topps holding the National Football League Players Association license and Fleer holding the license from the league). As a result, helmet logos for these teams were airbrushed out on a routine basis. After the 2015 football season, Panini was awarded an exclusive license by the NFL for producing football cards. 2016 was the first year Topps did not produce football cards since 1955. Trading cards for other sports Topps also makes cards for other major North American professional sports. Its next venture was into ice hockey, with a 1954 set featuring players from the four National Hockey League franchises located in the U.S. at the time: the Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings, and New York Rangers. In 1958, the O-Pee-Chee Company of London, Ontario, Canada, entered into an agreement with Topps to produce NHL cards (the 1957–58 series) and Canadian football cards (the 1958 series). O-Pee-Chee then started printing its own hockey and football cards in 1961. Similarly, the Topps Company struck agreements with Amalgamated and British Confectionery in the United Kingdom and Scanlen's in Australia. In 1967, with the major expansion of six new NHL teams to the United States, the Topps Company produced a new hockey card set that paralleled the 1966–67 O-Pee-Chee hockey design (the basic television design was in fact first used for 1966 Topps American football series). Starting in 1968–69, the Topps Company started printing an annual Topps hockey set that was similar to the annual O-Pee-Chee hockey set. The Topps and O-Pee-Chee hockey sets shared a similar design from 1968–69 to 1981–82 and from 1984–85 to 1991–92. Topps first sold cards for basketball in 1957,[12] but stopped after one season. The company started producing basketball cards again in 1969 and continued until 1982, but then abandoned the market for another decade, missing out on printing the prized rookie cards of Michael Jordan and other mid- and late-1980s National Basketball Association stars. Topps finally returned to basketball cards in 1992, several years after its competitors. This would be perfect timing, because 1992 was the rookie year of Shaquille O'Neal. In the United Kingdom, where football stickers have been popular over roughly the same period of time as trading cards, Topps acquired the old Amalgamated and British Confectionery firm in 1974, bringing its production methods and card style to Britain. Topps also makes cards for the Scottish Professional Football League. Under its Merlin brand, it has the licence to produce stickers for the Premier League and the national team. Its main competition is the Italian firm Panini. Until 2019, Topps made 'Topps Premier League' stickers and the Match Attax trading card game,[39] and since 2015 it has produced stickers and trading cards for the UEFA Champions League. In 2008, Topps gained the rights to production of WWE trading cards. The first variation of cards were aptly titled Slam Attax, a play on words of the previously popular football trading card game Match Attax (also made by Topps). The first set was released in late 2008 in the U.K., and it was then later released in the United States in mid-2009. This later proved to be a pattern for subsequent Slam Attax sets and variations, with the U.K. getting an earlier release than the U.S.. After failing to take off, Topps ceased production of Slam Attax cards in the U.S. after only two sets, whilst continuing the line in the U.K. and in Europe where in contrast the brand had become more popular. It remains today one of the longest running Topps brands in the U.K.. In 2008,[40] Topps and Zuffa, LLC signed an exclusive agreement to produce mixed martial arts trading cards. Among the included cards were current and former athletes from the UFC. Non-sports products Topps Comics' The X-Files #5 (May 1995), cover art by Miriam Kim Originally, Topps was purely a gum company, and its first product was simply called "Topps gum". Other gum and candy products followed. In imitation of Bowman and other competitors, Topps eventually began producing humor products unrelated to sports. This included stickers, posters (Wanted Posters, Travel Posters), media tie-ins (Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In), book covers (Batty Bookcovers) and toys (Flying Things), plus offbeat packaging (Garbage Candy). More recently, the company published comic books and games. Garbage Pail Kids GPK NATION Challenge Coins The 2020 Topps Licensee of the Year GPK NATION created its own hobby with their Topps Licensed Challenge Coins.[41] Topps licensed GPK to Louis Uncle Louie Gregory and Adam F. Goldberg in 2020 and they have taken the hobby worldwide.[42] Candy and confectionery items The longest-lived Topps product line remains Bazooka bubble gum, small pieces of gum in patriotic red, white, and blue packaging. Bazooka was introduced in 1947 as a bar of gum that sold for five cents. Unlike the gum sold with baseball cards, it was of better quality and capable of selling on its own merit. In 1953, Topps began selling smaller penny pieces with the Bazooka Joe comic strip on the wrapper as an added attraction. Even though baseball cards became the company's primary focus during this period, Topps still developed a variety of candy items. For quite a few years, the company stuck within familiar confines, and virtually all of these products involved gum in some way. Sales declined significantly in the 1970s, however, when this relatively hard gum was challenged by Bubble Yum, a new, softer form of bubble gum from Life Savers. In recent years, Topps has added more candy items without gum. One particular focus has been lollipops, such as Ring Pops. However, Topps has complained that increasing public attention to childhood nutrition undercuts its candy sales. Under pressure by shareholders, the company considered selling off its confectionery business in 2005, but was unable to find a buyer to meet its price and decided to cut management expenses instead. Other brands include Push Pop, Baby Bottle Pop, and Juicy Drop Pop. Non-sports trading cards A 1957 Topps trading card for recording star Little Richard As its sports products relied more on photography, Topps redirected its artistic efforts toward non-sports trading cards, on themes inspired by popular culture. For example, the Space Race prompted a set of Space Cards in 1958. Topps has continued to create collectible cards and stickers on a variety of subjects, often targeting the same adolescent male audience as its baseball cards. In particular, these have covered movies, television series, and other cultural phenomena ranging from the Beatles to the life story of John F. Kennedy. The many Star Wars card series have done well, with a few exceptions. Future screenwriter Gary Gerani ("Pumpkinhead') joined the company in 1972 and became the editor/writer of almost all movie and television tie-in products, most notably the numerous Star Wars sets, while also creating and helming original card properties such as 1988's Dinosaurs Attack!. Many Topps artists came from the world of comics and continued to work in that field as well. The shift from sports to other topics better suited the creative instincts of the artists and coincided with turmoil in the comic book industry over regulation by the Comics Code Authority. Beginning at Topps when he was a teenager, Art Spiegelman was the company's main staff cartoonist for more than 20 years. Other staffers in Topps's Product Development Department at various times included Larry Riley, Mark Newgarden, Bhob Stewart and Rick Varesi. Topps's creative directors of Product Development, Woody Gelman and Len Brown, gave freelance assignments to leading comic book illustrators, such as Jack Davis, Wally Wood and Bob Powell. Spiegelman, Gelman and Brown also hired freelance artists from the underground comix movement, including Bill Griffith and Kim Deitch and Robert Crumb. Jay Lynch did extensive cartooning for Topps over several decades. Drawing on their previous work, these artists were adept at things like mixing humor and horror, as with the Funny Monsters cards in 1959. The 1962 Mars Attacks cards, sketched by Wood and Powell and painted by Norman Saunders, later inspired a Tim Burton movie. A tie-in with the Mars Attacks film led to a 1994 card series, a new 100-card Archives set reprinting the 55 original cards, plus 45 new cards from several different artists, including Norm Saunders' daughter, Zina Saunders. Among Topps's most notable achievements in the area of satire and parody have been Wacky Packages, a takeoff on various household consumer products, and Garbage Pail Kids, a parody of the Cabbage Patch Kids dolls. Another popular series was the Civil War News set, also with Norman Saunders' artwork. Earlier, particularly in the early and mid-60s, Topps thrived with several successful series of parody and satire cards for a variety of occasions, usually featuring artists who also worked at Mad magazine. There were several insult-valentine card series, plus a series of insult epigram cards called Wacky Plaques, several series of well-known-product advertising parody cards, a set of cards featuring the 'mad car-driver cartoons' of artist Big Daddy Roth, and a card-sticker series of fanciful bizarre 'rejected aliens' from other planets, among other semi-subversive outrageous over-the-top concepts designed for the semi-rebellious adolescent boomer market. Although baseball cards have been Topps's most consistently profitable item, certain fads have occasionally produced spikes in popularity for non-sports items. For a period beginning in 1973, the Wacky Packages stickers managed to outsell Topps baseball cards, becoming the first product to do so since the company's early days as purely a gum and candy maker. Pokémon cards would accomplish the same feat for a few years starting in 1999. In the absence of new fads to capitalize on, Topps has come under pressure from stock analysts, since its sports card business is more stable and has less growth potential. In 2015 Topps started to expand its non-sports category by adding more TV shows, as well as sci-fi with its brand-new Star Wars line (expanding into its own Topps virtual card app, similar to Topps BUNT), as well as Doctor Who, with regular autographs as well as vintage cut autographs, screen-worn relics, and more. Disney Channel Topps worked together with the Disney Channel to create trading cards of High School Musical,[43] High School Musical 2,[44] High School Musical 3,[45] and Hannah Montana.[46] Comic books Main article: Topps Comics Drawing on its established connections with artists, in 1993 Topps created a division of the company to publish comic books. Known as Topps Comics, its early efforts included several concepts from retired industry legend Jack Kirby, known collectively as the "Kirbyverse". Topps Comics particularly specialized in licensed titles with tie-ins to movies or television series, though it also published a few original series. Its longest-running and best-selling title was The X-Files, based on the Fox TV show. These comic books featured former Marvel Comics editor Jim Salicrup as its editor-in-chief. Apart of The X-Files, some of the more famous titles included Lone Ranger and Tonto by Timothy Truman, Xena: Warrior Princess, Mars Attacks, and Zorro, which introduced the famous comics character Lady Rawhide. With sales stagnating, the company decided to pull out of the comics business in 1998. Games The Topps Pokémon cards were purely for entertainment, pleasure and collecting, but a new niche of collectible card games was also developing during this period (a Pokémon trading card game was produced simultaneously by Wizards of the Coast). Topps made its first foray into the world of games in July 2003 by acquiring the game company WizKids[47] for $29.4 million in cash, thus acquiring ownership of the rights to the well-known gaming universes of BattleTech and Shadowrun.[48] By inventing yet another niche, the constructible strategy game Pirates of the Spanish Main, this unit managed to reach profitability. Topps shut down Wizkids operation in November 2008 due to the economic downturn, terminating the brand while keeping their intellectual properties as the Topps company.[49] Awards Major-league baseball     Topps All-Star Rookie Team Minor-league baseball See also: Baseball awards § U.S. minor leagues     Topps Minor League Player of the Year Award – also known as the J. G. Taylor Spink Award[a]     George M. Trautman Awards – Also in conjunction with Minor League Baseball, Topps presents the George M. Trautman Awards to the Topps Player of the Year in each of sixteen domestic minor leagues.[50][51]     Topps Short Season-A/Rookie All-Star Team" (wikipedia.org) "The Bowman Gum Company[1] was a Philadelphia-based manufacturer of bubble gum and trading cards in the period surrounding World War II. It was founded by Jacob Warren Bowman in 1927. Bowman produced a line of baseball cards, which were highly popular in the 1940s. Bowman also produced American football[2] and basketball cards. The company was acquired by Topps in 1956, and the brand was discontinued.[3] Topps resurrected the "Bowman" brand in 1989.... History Jacob Warren Bowman, an American chewing gum salesman, started his own company, Gum, Inc. in Philadelphia in 1927. Gum, Inc. started producing Blony bubble gum which immediately became the top selling penny bubble gum in the United States in 1929.[4] The Blony trademark was registered by Bowman on January 13, 1931 (filed June 30, 1930).[5] In 1937, Blony had 60 percent of the sales of bubble gum sold in the U.S., largely due to the fact that, weighing 210 grains, it was the largest piece of bubble gum sold for a penny. With the advertisement "Three Big BITES for a penny", Blony made Gum, Inc. "the biggest firm in the U. S. catering exclusively to the penny gum trade" according to a 1937 Time magazine article. By then, Gum, Inc. occupied five floors and the basement of a building on Woodland Avenue in Philadelphia.[4] Bowman chewing gum wrapper of 1950, with baseball cards inside Blony gum came with color trading cards on various topics. A non-sports example, the 1938 series, Horrors of War featured 288 cards detailing various contemporary conflicts. The motto "To know the HORRORS OF WAR is to want PEACE" appeared on each card, but children nicknamed the series "War Gum".[6] Franklin V. Canning became a partner with Bowman in 1930. Canning, a New York druggist who supplied the pink bubble gum base material to Gum, Inc., also provided working capital in return for 250 shares, half of the company stock. A subsidiary of the Wrigley Company developed a better gum base in 1932, which sold for less than Canning's base. President Bowman demanded that Canning reduce the price of the gum base, which resulted in altercations between the two, and ended in Bowman being ousted from the company in 1936. 1953 Bowman Color baseball card of Ralph Kiner In July 1937, Bowman returned to the company after a long, bitter legal battle which ended in the Pennsylvania State Supreme Court upholding his reinstatement as president of the company. Gum, Inc. had earnings of $49,000 on sales estimated at about $800,000 in the first six months of 1937. In September 1937, Bowman's estranged second wife, Ruth, filed a suit against Bowman for part ownership of Gum, Inc., claiming a verbal agreement to a half-interest in his holdings.[4] Bowman expanded its business when the company started to produce trading cards in the 1930s. The first releases by Bowman were non-sports topics, but the company soon entered to the sports market with its baseball cards of 1939. The company produced a series of cards known as the "Play Ball" sets each year from 1939 to 1941. Production halted after the United States as wartime paper rations were enacted and the company did not return to making trading cards until 1948, then under the Bowman name. After the World War II Bowman emerged with its 1948 baseball card set, which became highly popular.[3] That same year, Bowman also released its first American football card set of 108 cards,[7] and its first basketball cards set.[8] By then, Bowman was competing against Leaf Candy Company, which left the marketplace in 1950,[9] that year Bowman sales of baseball cards alone was $1 million.[1] For a few years, Bowman was the leading producer of baseball cards, but was soon overtaken by rival company Topps Chewing Gum. Bowman produced baseball cards until 1955.[3] After a period in which the two fought to sign players to exclusive contracts for their cards, Topps bought out Bowman in 1956 for $200,000.[1][3] In 1989, the Bowman brand name was resurrected by Topps to use on some of its subsidiary sports card sets. In recent years, the Bowman company has become known as the top brand for rookie cards.[3] Modern sports trading cards Bowman (brand)Bowman brand logo.png Product type    Collectibles Owner    Topps Country    United States Introduced    1989; 33 years ago Previous owners    Bowman Gum Company Website    topps.com Bowman Chrome Another popular trading card set produced by Bowman is the Chrome set. After the success of the Chrome set by Topps, Topps created a Bowman Chrome set in 1997. This was initially fueled by rookie cards of José Cruz Jr. and Travis Lee, but top rookie cards from the set now are of Roy Halladay, Miguel Tejada, Eric Chavez, Kerry Wood, and Lance Berkman. The set continued to be a mainstay, and got a major jump in 2001 following the inclusion of autographed cards. One of the rookies that autographed cards for Bowman Chrome in 2001 was St. Louis Cardinals star Albert Pujols. This card continues to skyrocket in value, worth about $2,500 not graded. In 2002, autographed cards of Major League Baseball (MLB) rising stars such as David Wright of the New York Mets, Joe Mauer of the Minnesota Twins and Bobby Jenks of the Chicago White Sox were inserted into the set. Bowman Draft Picks and Prospects Bowman also creates a set called Bowman Draft Picks and Prospects. This set is like regular Bowman, but shows cards of MLB Draft Picks, participating players from the MLB All-Star Futures Game and MLB rookies that have had previous issues (veteran cards). Usually relic cards featuring swatches from jerseys of All-Star Futures Game players, other memorabilia cards and non-rookie autographs called Signs Of The Future. Bowman "Draft" also has two chrome cards per pack, and the chrome subset has autographed rookie cards and all the parallels from regular bowman chrome. Many stars have had rookie cards in Bowman Draft Picks. 2002 Bowman Draft has rookie cards of Florida Marlins prospect Jeremy Hermida, Oakland Athletics outfielder Nick Swisher, Atlanta Braves outfielder Jeff Francoeur, Tampa Bay Devil Rays shortstop B.J. Upton, San Diego Padres shortstop Khalil Greene and Florida Marlins pitcher Dontrelle Willis. 2003 Bowman Draft Picks has rookie cards of Boston Red Sox pitcher Jonathan Papelbon, New York Yankees second baseman Robinson Canó, Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard, Milwaukee Brewers second baseman Rickie Weeks, Tampa Bay Devil Rays outfielder Delmon Young and Los Angeles Angels shortstop prospect Brandon Wood. This set also includes Grady Sizemore, Mark Buehrle, Ichiro, Chase Utley, J J Hardy, Huston Street, Dontrelle Willis, Josh Johnson, Jay Bruce, Jorge Cantu, Albert Pujols, and Jose Reyes. AFLAC Redemption Set Making its debut in 2004, was Bowman's idea of redemption cards for a set of cards from the AFLAC High School All American game. Players included were Cameron Maybin, Andrew McCutchen, Chris Volstad, C. J. Henry, and Justin Upton. The sets were delayed and not shipped until 2006, and the Gold Refractor cards - originally intended to be 50 redemption sets - "accidentally" had over 50 redemption cards slip into packs, which caused them to be delayed even more. Topps sent out a letter asking customers if they wanted a three-card auto set consisting of C. J. Henry, Andrew McCutchen, and Cameron Maybin. (Justin Upton was later added as a fourth person in the set) or the Gold Refractor set. The Gold Refractor set was shipped before the Auto Set. Here are the final print runs (Base and Base Chrome sets not numbered) 2004 Bowman Draft Picks and Prospects AFLAC Chrome Parallel and Auto Set Print Runs     2004 AFLAC Bowman Chrome Refractor Set (#’d to 500) – 315 in circulation     2004 AFLAC Bowman Chrome X-Fractor Set (#’d to 125) – 107 in circulation     2004 AFLAC Bowman Chrome Gold Refractor Set (#’d to 50) – 34 in circulation     2004 AFLAC Bowman Chrome Autograph Set (#’d to 125) – 90 in circulation Bowman's Best Bowman's Best started in 1994 and was the first Bowman product to have refractors. 1994 Bowman's Best key rookie cards were Jorge Posada, Billy Wagner, and Édgar Rentería. Next years Bowman's Best would be one of the best Bowman sets ever. It had rookie cards of Vladimir Guerrero, Bobby Abreu, Andruw Jones, Hideo Nomo and Scott Rolen. The 1997 Bowman's Best set gave something new to the Bowman's Best brand that would stay with the Bowman's Best brand for a while. This set had rookie cards of Miguel Tejada, Kerry Wood and Roy Halladay, and the refractor parallels, but this time they had inserted autographed cards. Tony Gwynn and Derek Jeter were among the signers in this set, and there were refractor and atomic refractor parallels of the autographed cards. In 1999, Bowman's Best had autographed cards with two autographs on one card. In 2002, Bowman's Best had autographed and memorabilia rookie cards inside the base set. Bowman Sterling Bowman Sterling was introduced in 2004. This set was an immediate hit. Collectors enjoyed the offerings of the set along with the refractor parallels. The base set is made up of rookie cards, veteran game-used cards, autographed game-used cards featuring a jersey swatch from the players jersey alongside an autograph and autographed rookie cards. This set was released again in 2005 and was a hit again. Regular refractor cards are limited to 199 copies and are in regular packs. Black refractors (limited to 25 copies), red refractors (limited to 1 copy) and buyback cards (purchased by Topps and signed by players before returned to packs), are inserted into the box loader packs. Box Loader packs are one per box and encased in a special Topps holder. Bowman Heritage Bowman Heritage is a set that puts today's players on the design of early Bowman cards. These cards have autographed inserts called Signs of Greatness and game used jersey/bat relic cards called Pieces of Greatness." (wikipedia.org) "The Topps Company has created a number of different baseball card products during its existence. They originally started as a chewing gum company, using the baseball cards as a sales gimmick to make the gum more popular, but today it is primarily a baseball card company.... Topps brands Factory sets Topps remains the only baseball card company today to still offer factory sets of their base brand. Their first factory set was offered in 1974 exclusively in the J.C. Penney catalog, but Topps would not begin releasing factory sets again until 1982. The 1982 Topps Factory Set is rare due to J.C. Penney's failure to sell them. J.C. Penney factory sets were available in 1982 in a color box and 1983 (SKU 672-1203), 1984 (SKU 672-1641), and 1985 (SKU 672-2029) in brown boxes. From 1986-1992, Topps factory sets came in two designs, Retail (or Christmas) and Hobby dealer. Retail factory sets were in very colorful boxes and were typically released near Christmas time (and for that reason are sometimes called Christmas sets). Hobby dealer sets were in much plainer boxes until 1993. Topps continues to this day to offer not only retail, hobby, and Christmas sets, but also team themed factory sets (starting in 2004) with bonus cards exclusive to each one. Tiffany sets From 1984-1991, Topps released a limited edition version of both their regular and traded sets called "Tiffany" sets. These sets were released in hobby dealer exclusive factory set format only and are identical to the regular cards, but these were printed in Ireland with white cardboard (instead of the then-standard gray cardboard) with a glossy finish on the front. The color of the inner boxes the Tiffany sets came in as well as the estimated number of sets produced (according to the annual Beckett price guide) are:     1984: Red (0000)     1985: Blue (5,000)     1986: Maroon (5,000)     1987: Violet (30,000)     1988: Green (25,000)     1989: Blue (15,000)     1990: Red (15,000)     1991: Navy (unknown, but believed to be the lowest print run of all, so <5,000) Bowman Stubby Overmire displayed on a Bowman card in 1951. Five years later, Topps acquired Bowman and added it to its brands portfolio Bowman was Topps' main competitor from 1951 until Topps bought out Bowman after the 1955 season. Almost 35 years later, in 1989, Topps resurrected the Bowman brand and created a new annual baseball card set which was unique in two ways. First, the 1989 Bowman cards were 2.5" x 3.75" instead of the standard 2.5" x 3.5" card size (they went back to standard size from 1990 onwards however) and second, its main focus was on upcoming minor league players who Topps believed had a good chance of making it to the majors someday, which continues to be the focus of the Bowman set today. Although the Bowman sets were not very popular in its first three years, that changed in 1992 when Bowman was upgraded to a premium quality set (with UV coating on both sides and a special subset with bronze foil borders), and very limited production. Since then, Bowman has become more and more oriented towards prospects and rookies. New sets from several sister brands, as well as the core Bowman brand itself, continue to be released each year.[1] Since the mid-1990s the vast majority of the MLB's top stars were featured on a Bowman card prior to appearing in any other set. The incredible sustained level of success enjoyed by the Bowman brand has spurred a number of spin-off products, including Bowman Chrome, Bowman Sterling, Bowman Draft Picks and Prospects, Bowman's Best, Bowman Originals, and most recently, Bowman Platinum. The key to the brand's success lies in the fact that Bowman and Bowman Chrome rookie cards are typically the most valuable and sought after of all rookie cards.[2] This is especially true for its baseball card releases. Stadium Club Topps released their first "premium" set in 1991 called Stadium Club. This was the very first major baseball card set to feature glossy UV coating on both sides of the card as well as gold foil stamping on the front and a borderless (or "full-bleed") Kodak photo on the front. The back of the card also featured an image of the player's first Topps card. This set was a major hit at the time with packs costing $5 or more. In 1992, Topps released three different series of Stadium Club cards. There was also a factory set from 1992 in which cards were packed in a reproduction dome stadium, made of plastic, but this was not the same as the regular 1992 Stadium Club set.[3] Topps Finest Topps released their first "super premium" set in 1993 called Topps Finest (or just Finest for short). These were issued in six card packs with 18 packs in a box and 12 boxes per case, and only 4,000 cases were produced. This set was also a major hit with packs costing around $25 at the time. Many hobbyists, however, frowned upon such an expensive set thinking that it was driving the hobby away from younger collectors. Topps also included a Finest All-Star jumbo card (limited to about 1455 of each) in each box (a 4" x 6" version of the All-Star subset) and randomly inserted (1 in 18 packs) a Refractor insert card which was exactly like the regular card but with a rainbow sheen on the front with some of them worth over $1000 at that time. Only 241 of each Refractor were produced and continue to this day to be highly sought after. Topps Heritage / Bowman Heritage / Allen & Ginter Jack Glasscock on a Allen & Ginter card of 1887. Topps has released heritage baseball cards under the Allen & Ginter brand; (right): reissued of the T206 Honus Wagner card, with blue background, released in 2002 In 2001, Topps (for its fiftieth anniversary) released two new retro themed brands, Topps Heritage and Bowman Heritage, as part of its baseball, football and hockey card product lines. The novelty was that the brands had modern players with designs from past years. The baseball cards had the design from 1952 for its 2001 selection of Heritage baseball cards, 1953 design for 2002, 1954 design for 2003, and so on. Bowman Heritage was also started in 2001 and used the following throwback designs:     2001: 1948 Bowman     2002: 1954 Bowman     2003: proposed 1956 Bowman design (original 1956 set was not issued due to Topps' buyout of Bowman after 1955)     2004: 1955 Bowman     2005: 1951 Bowman     2006: 1949 Bowman The Bowman Heritage brand was retired after the 2007 release, replaced by the much more popular and emerging Allen & Ginter brand that captivated collectors with its 2006 debut. In 2019, Bowman Heritage returned as an online-only exclusive product using the 1953 Bowman design.[4] Topps Heritage became a baseball exclusive brand in 2007 where it is still an active brand to this day.[5] It is widely considered to be one of the most popular perennial preseason baseball card release. Topps T206 The T206 name (originally issued in 1909-11 by the American Tobacco Company) has been revived by Topps (under the "Topps 206" brand) a total three times, the first in 2002 with a second revival in 2010.[6] Again in 2020, the company released a new collection divided into five different series, with the first (50 cards) being released in May 2020.[7] The collection, named "Topps 206", include players from both, Major and Minor League. The 5th series was released in September 2020.[8] The iconic Honus Wagner card was reissued by Topps in 2002, with variations on its background color. The card was printed with the original orange color of 1909 (#179), and also in blue (#307) and red (#456).[9] In 2020, a new Honus Wagner card was issued by the company (#45) as part of the second wave (of 5) released that year.[10] Topps Project 2020 In 2020 Topps released Project 2020, an 400 card online exclusive set which featured 20 artists rendition of 20 iconic Topps Cards.[11] Topps baseball cards outside the United States A Canadian licensed version of the Topps set was produced by candy company O-Pee-Chee from 1965 until 1992. From 1970 onward, the cards were bilingual in order to comply with Canadian language laws.[12] There were also licensed version Topps sets issued in Venezuela from 1959 to 1977, with some changes and the addition of winter league players.[13] In the late 1980s, Topps issued two sets for the United Kingdom market of American baseball players, complete with explanations of key baseball terms on the cards. Products by year Each year, Topps faced the challenge of designing new cards to distinguish them from the year before. The 1952 - 56 sets were varied in presentation, but each were the same size, 2 5/8" x 3 3/4". The '52, '53 and '54 sets were vertical, the '55 and '56 sets horizontal. In 1957, the 2 1/2 x 3 1/2" size card became standard. Also, the design changed dramatically and was now a photograph of the player and not a painting (particularly 1953). The 1957 set is one of the most sought after by hobbyists due to the photographic quality and simple card design. The 1957 set is almost borderless, and the player name, team name, and position are printed in small letters so the photograph of the player is the dominant feature. More colorful designs and larger borders resumed again until the highly popular 1961 set, which again has smaller borders and less obtrusive team names, player names, and positions. Until 1964, the colors of the borders, print, letters, etc. was random. Starting with the '64 set, Topps began a trend where each team had their own color scheme. For example, every Dodger card in the 1964 set featured the team name "Dodgers" in red across the top of the card, with the player name and position written in a powder blue field along the bottom of the card. Topps generally had 10 different color scheme designs per year, one for each team in their respective league (National and American). Thus, one team in each league shared the same color scheme with one team in the other league. Starting in 1966, Topps assigned a color scheme to each team that would repeat itself in the 1968 and 1969 sets. The schemes were as follows:     Yellow printing on a red background: Dodgers & Yankees     Yellow printing in a green background: Giants & Senators     White printing on a violet background: Pirates & Red Sox     White Printing on a blue background: Reds & Twins     White printing on a lavender background: Braves & Angels     Red printing on a gray background: Phillies & Indians     Red printing on a yellow background: Cardinals & Tigers     White printing on an orange background: Cubs & White Sox     Black printing on a lime green background: Astros & Orioles     Yellow printing on a purple background: Mets & Athletics The 1969 set introduced two new color schemes to accommodate the expansion teams that began play in that year:     Black printing on a pink background: Expos & Royals     Yellow printing on a brown background: Padres & Pilots Player depictions Players generally gave multiple poses for Topps, and Topps chose which one to put on a card. Among these were head shots of the player with no cap, in case he was traded or the team moved. In 1966, the Braves moved from Milwaukee to Atlanta, so every card of a Braves player in the early series of cards is a head shot with no cap, or the cap logo is obstructed or hidden in some way (profile or cap tilted up). Only in the later series are there cards with Braves players wearing the new cap with the letter "A". The same is true for the Angels, whose move from Los Angeles to Anaheim caused a change in their cap logo from and "LA" to a "CA" as they switched from being called the Los Angeles Angels to the California Angels. In later years, Topps developed an airbrush technique where the cap logo would be manually altered or blacked out. For example, the 1968 Athletics, after moving from Kansas City to Oakland, are pictured wearing blacked out caps with green bills. Topps generally put the biggest stars on card numbers ending in x00 or x50. For example, in the 1966 set, Mickey Mantle is card #50 and Sandy Koufax is card #100. In 1965, Willie Mays is card #250. Other star players were put on card numbers ending in zero (10, 20, 140, 270, etc.) and minor stars were put on cards ending in "5". Topps continues this numbering system (at least to a degree) today. " (wikipedia.org)
  • Condition: Ungraded
  • Autographed: No
  • Set: 2015 Bowman's Best
  • Catalog #: FI-DS
  • Product: Single
  • Player/Athlete: Dansby Swanson
  • Sport: Baseball
  • Parallel/Variety: Atomic Refractor
  • Original/Reprint: Original
  • Manufacturer: Topps
  • Team: Arizona Diamondbacks
  • Features: Parallel/Variety, Rookie, Serial Numbered, Atomic Refractor
  • Season: 2015
  • Player: Dansby Swanson
  • League: Major Leagues
  • Card Attributes: Atomic Refractor, Numbered, Prospect
  • Series: Bowman's Best - First Impressions 2015
  • Type: Sports Trading Card
  • Year: 2015
  • Era: Modern (1981-Now)
  • Country/Region of Manufacture: United States
  • Card Manufacturer: Topps

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