2011 Topps Opening Day

Schedule Release Date: March 19, 2011
Box Configuration: 7 cards per pack, 36 packs per box
SRP: $36/box

Box Break:
1 Insert Per Pack

My Thoughts:
A set called Opening Day being released 2 weeks before the actual opening day, it just does not seem right.

This set is made for 2 specific types of collectors, children and set collectors and at roughly $1 per pack you can get quite a bit for your money. I am not certain about what is included in each box but Topps has come with some interesting hits in such a budget box. This does take me back to the 1990s when boxes were loaded with baseball cards and ugly inserts and a collector wasn't worried about getting an auto or relic card that would pay for the box.

Some of the interesting inserts in this set include parallels #/2011, printing plates (Hobby boxes only), Superstar Celebrations and Luck Charms (Team Mascots). 3D cards are making a return in the Opening Day Stars sets and glow-in-the-dark cards are back in the Under The Lights insert along with Presidential First Pitches featuring presidential first pitches throughout history (Hobby boxes only).

Another oddity making an appearance in the set are the intentional error cards in the Spot The Error insert, another gimmick card by Topps… who would have figured?


Pros:
Affordable

Interesting Inserts (3D cards, Glow-In-The Dark cards, Error cards and “shiny” cards)


Cons:
Another baseball set showcasing the same exact players as the base sets.

Team logos, Topps logos, Opening Day logos... to many logos hurts a design and this proves it

Gimmicky


Rating:
The World Series is still to begin and we are 5 months away from Opening Day's release a lot may change before this set sees the light of day so I will not be rating the review since it is still to early. There are some nice opportunities here, I am a fan of the glow-in-the-dark cards, but I am not a fan of building a release totally on gimmicks.