2010 Topps Heritage Baseball Product Review
Good: Strong base set, classic design, compelling checklist.
Bad: Lack of innovation.
The Bottom Line: 2010 Topps Heritage certainly doesn't reinvent the wheel, but its still an above average product that is worth checking out.
Design
I'm personally a huge fan of the 1961 Topps baseball set, so 2010 Topps Heritage scored big designwise for me right out the door. As always the chrome parallels are very nice touch, especially the refractors. One of the subtle design changes in this year's set is the fact that the short printed base cards have white backs to distinguish them from the brown backed regular base cards. My true introduction to Topps Heritage was the 2007 set, and the lack of distinguishing characteristics for the short printed cards annoyed me to no end.
Checklist
While I love to see Topps Heritage in the month leading up to spring training each year, one of the byproducts of the early release date that the checklist of rookies tends to be fairly weak. Such is the case with this year's release, with the notable exceptions of Madison Bumgarner and Buster Posey.
A new insert set, Chase '61, which chronicles Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, and Roger Maris' historic 1961 home run chase joins several familiar insert sets like Then and Now and New Age Performers.
Value
Topps Heritage always wins high grades in the value department for me, simply because it is such a complete product. This year's product is no different, though
Enjoyability
I'm personally not as high on the brand as I once was. This isn't so much a result of anything 2010 Topps Heritage did wrong persay, as it follows the formula of its predecessors perfectly. Perhaps that is the problem. How much is too much of a good thing? Topps Heritage is a great set still, don't get me wrong, but unless the brand is re-energized in 2011 I see it fading away into relative mediocrity in the near future.
Box Break
The highlights of my box break:
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Ben Barron
This product has a good base set. It has a old school feel with new players. You can also find boxes reasonably priced. I’d say it is a good product for collector on a budget. If you like throwback designs this is the baseball set for you. 4 out of 5