1996 Zenith Diamond Club Real Diamond

Set Size: 20 cards

Design Notes: A foil border in the shape of a diamond surrounds the player's photo, with the Zenith logo in an upper corner and a large portion of the bottom devoted to the set name and player's name. In the real diamond version, a small diamond is mounted at the base of the diamond. The backs contain a sepia photo of a baseball field in the background, with a player photo and short highlight paragraph.

Parallels and Similars: The regular version uses Pinnacle's Dufex technology, but there is no diamond.

Distribution: Regular cards were inserted one per box, and cards with real diamonds were found one in every 350 packs.

Thoughts: Pinnacle Brands tried a whole bunch of "gimmicky" ideas in the 1990s, including what I believe is the first card to contain an embedded gem. The actual diamond is pretty small and unimpressive, but the card is quite rare for its time. Actually, the diamond sticks out from the surface of the card a bit. I wonder if people pulling these from packs in 1996 were upset that the card preceding the diamond card most likely had a small dent in the back. Did it damage multiple cards? Or was there a filler card inserted to fix this? In addition to probably being the first embedded-gem card, it has to be one of the first "manu-relic" cards too!

2011 Bowman Chrome Throwbacks

Set Size: 25 cards

Design Notes: The set uses the 2001 Bowman design, with black and red borders (the black got cut off by my scanner) and a grey/silver arc with a facsimile player signature.

Parallels and Similars: Three refractor versions were made.

Distribution: Cards were randomly inserted into packs of 2011 Bowman Chrome.

Thoughts: Is 10 years long enough to do a throwback insert? I think Bowman's design has been quite stagnant and really the 2011 design isn't much different from the 2001 design. This is a set I have zero interest in.

2011 Bowman Chrome Futures

Set Size: 25 cards

Design Notes: A silver background that resembles a futuristic computer disc is the background behind a player photo, the top and bottom are black with light blue highlights at the bottom. The backs are blue and black and contain a "scouting report" with some career highlights and strengths.

Parallels and Similars: There are four parallel versions, some of them numbered. All use various forms of refractor technology.

Distribution: Cards were randomly inserted into packs of 2011 Bowman Chrome.

Thoughts: If there was a set that ever looked like it was designed by the set designers of Minority Report, this would be it. The use of futuristic shapes and blue and black really hits that home.

2001 Topps HD Images of Excellence

Set Size:

Design Notes: A really thick card. The background is obscured by an opaque overlay of the insert set's name. The photo really stands out in this product, printed in high resolution. This set carries a 2000 copyright, as it was released in December.

Parallels and Similars: An aluminum version parallels this regular insert set, and is about four times as rare.

Distribution: Inserted 1 in 8 packs of 2001 Topps HD.

Thoughts: I really think Topps should have done without the invasive background text on this set, and instead kept it to a small logo or bit of type in a corner. The Topps HD concept was meant to showcase high quality images. However, even with the background, Tom Seaver's photo seems to be bright and fresh, if a little blue. I've always campaigned for sets with high quality photography, and this set came pretty close. Unfortunately, the thick (50-pt) plastic card stock and high price ($3.99/pack of four) probably drove away many collectors. Plus, Topps' Gold Label and Stadium Club products also featured high quality photography at the time.

2007 UD Black Game Day-Box Score Autographs

Set size: 42 cards

Front Design: The horizontal cards have a box score from a significant game in the player's career - for example, the Travis Buck card's box score above highlights his first career home run and reaching base 5 of 6 plate appearances. The left side of the card has (from top to bottom) the UD Black logo, a small photo with a serial number, the game date, and a team logo. The right side of the card has a dark box with a silver-pen autograph.

Back Design: The back has the same basic layout as the front, with design elements changed. The middle has a highlight writeup from the game and an authenticity statement, the left contains the card number, team logo, game date, and licensing logos, and the "autograph" area contains the location of the game celebrated on the card.

Parallels and Similars: Two parallels, numbered to 10 and 1/1, were also issued. There are other Game Day sets (ticket autos and lineup card autos) in the release.

Distribution: Cards were randomly inserted into packs of UD Black - a two-pack-per-box product where every card in the set is autographed, and each pack contains only one card. The Game Day Box Score set is serial-numbered to 50.

Thoughts: Any UD Black card is a good card - all cards are autographed and numbered to 99 or less. Players like Travis Buck can come cheap, though this is a landmark release and commands a premium because of its initial pack price. I like the idea of a set that highlights a specific event, as this set does. It's more than just an autograph!

Forgotten 2011: 2011 Topps Marquee Monumental Markings

Set size: 75 cards

Front Design: A player photo, usually a portrait, is overlaid with foil across the bottom. The lower portion of the card has an on-card autograph of the player represented, followed by his name. The cards are serial numbered in the lower-right portion of the photo.

Back Design: The backs have a grey frame. A box at the top has the player's name, team, and position, which is followed by a short biography. An authenticity guarantee follows. At the bottom of the grey frame is the card number, and beneath the frame is a tan/gold fancy victorian design.

Parallels and Similars: A gold parallel version exists.

Distribution: Cards were randomly inserted into boxes/packs of Topps Marquee. The Monumental Markings set appears about one per box. The serial numbering for any specific player depends on that player's popularity (and thus cost for obtaining signatures) - superstars like Sandy Koufax signed only 10 cards, and many of the "common" players signed up to 600 copies.

Thoughts: This set was forgotten soon after its release due to another high-end issue arriving within a couple weeks. It's my favorite high-end set of the year. I could never afford Triple Threads or Tribute, and this set provides cards that are just as attractive at a better price point. Plus, all the autographs here should be on-card, which is important for today's collectors.

2008 Allen & Ginters Mini Pioneers of Aviation

Set size: 5 cards

Front Design: A painting of an aviation invention appears above it's name in a color cloud. The bottom of the card has the 2008 Allen & Ginter logo.

Back Design: The top has the Pioneers in Aviation title graphic followed by the card number in a shield. The remainder of the card back is a list of crazy flying machines and their inventors.

Parallels and Similars: None.

Distribution: This unadvertised insert set was randomly inserted into packs of 2008 Allen & Ginter at a rate of about 1 in 6 boxes.

Thoughts: This would be another fun mini set to collect if it wasn't so rare. While the 2008 design leaves a lot of empty space on the card front, the subjects in this set are much more fun than, say, countries. It's more unique. If only these cards had video of them trying to fly - that would be the icing on the cake.

2008 Allen & Ginter Mini Team Orange

Set size: 10 cards

Front Design: The fronts look the same as the 2008 Allen & Giner set, with a painting of a fictional member of Team Orange, followed by old-timey text of the "player's" name and the Allen & Ginter 2008 logo.

Back Design: "The World Champion"s and "Team Orange" are across the top, followed by the player's name. A paragraph describing the player's abilities follows.

Parallels and Similars: As mentioned, this set is based on the 2008 Allen & Ginter set. It can be distinguished easily by the "Team Orange" text across the top of the back, and the prefix "TO" before the card number.

Distribution: The cards were one of the "rare" inserts in 2008 Allen & Ginter, inserted one card for every six boxes.

Thoughts: Many people don't like the gimmicks and non-sport subjects in Allen & Ginter, and for them there are other throwback sets or just the base set (though that includes plenty of non-baseball subjects). I like fun sets like these, showing a bit of creativity from the Topps design team. Many of the fictional characters portrayed in Topps sets (this set, and Gypsy Queen's Gypsy Queen insert set are good examples) are based on actual Topps employees. See this post for details. I would love to have a full set of Team Orange cards, but given their rarity (and thus premium), it seems to be a bit too much to take on.

1991 Classic/Best Gold Bonus

Set size: 20 cards

Front Design: The white-bordered cards have a dashed line leading from the Classic/Best logo in the upper left corner to the player's name, in gold foil at the bottom. In the bottom border is the team name and player's position.

Back Design: The backs have a thin black frame and the player's major league affiliate logo as a background. The top row has the card number (BC prefix), the player's name in a red oval, and position. Following are the player's biographical stats, prior professional statistics, and information on how the player was acquired. The bottom of the vertical cards have the Classic/Best logo, MLB logo, and minor league team logo.

Parallels and Similars: This set is in the same design as the regular 1991 Classic/Best set.

Distribution: Cards were inserted one per jumbo pack of the Classic/Best minor league full set.

Thoughts: In 1991, only a few sets had gold foil: Stadium Club was the first major issue full set, and the Desert Storm parallel of Topps' flagship issue had a gold foil stamp. 1991 Leaf had an insert with gold foil, and a few of the 1991 Bowman cards had a small gold foil stamp. So this set ranks up there with some of the more "innovative" issues of the year. There are some players in the set that became successful at the major league level, including Ivan Rodriguez, Jim Thome, and Arthur Rhodes. Mike Schmidt, hardly a minor leaguer, is card number 1 in the set.

204 UD Diamond All-Star Promo

Set size: 60 cards

Front Design: A player action shot is placed inside a quadruple-matte frame of red and white, with his name at the bottom of the photo and "pick the starting lineup and win!" near the bottom. His position is in a blue flag at the left, and a code for entering the contest is beneath the photo in an oval box.

Back Design: The back has all the details for entering the contest, which involved picking the All-Star team starting lineup. The winner would win tickets to a 2004 World Series game.

Parallels and Similars: There is an e-card version which I believe would have allowed the lucky holder to instantly win a prize.

Distribution: While called "promo" cards, these didn't promote Upper Deck's Diamond Collection All-Star set, as they were inserted into packs of that product. There was also a Diamond Collection "Pro Sigs" issue released in 2004.

Thoughts: For a flimsy game card tossed into packs of Diamond All-Star, the design isn't too bad. Featuring different players on the front make these somewhat collectible in their own right. If only these cards had that red border around the photo done as a die-cut paper frame (similar to Gypsy Queen). Then they would be really cool!

1993 O-Pee-Chee World Champions

 Set size: 18 cards

Front Design: The white bordered cards have a color photo with a thin black frame. The O-Pee-Chee logo is at the top, while the player's name is in a gold-colored bar near the bottom. The Blue Jays 1992 World Champions logo is also at the bottom beside the player's name.

Back Design: The colorful backs have a second color photo in the upper right, with the card number, player's name and position, and the Blue Jays logo to the left. His 1992 postseason stats are in a burnt-orange box in the center of the card, and a postseason highlight in English and French is at the bottom of the card.

Parallels and Similars: The cards have the same general design as the 1993 O-Pee-Chee issue, except for the gold bar at the bottom (regular cards have silver bars).

Distribution: These cards were inserts in 1993 O-Pee-Chee packs.

Thoughts: Sets celebrating World Series champions were inserted into several issues around this time - Fleer inserted them into factory sets, for instance. These days, Topps issues commemorative World Series Champion sets in time for Christmas, but there are no insert sets documenting the postseason that I can recall. The O-Pee-Chee design of this year is attractively simple, and the multi-color backs are pleasant to look at.

1998 Pinnacle Performers Swing for the Fences

Set size: 51 cards (50 cards + 1 exchange card)

Front Design: The front of the card contains a background with several lightly-shaded numbers, over which his cut-out photo appears. His name runs up the left side, the Pinnacle Performers logo is at the top, and the Swing for the Fences logo is at the bottom.

Back Design: The back has a card number in the upper-left and the game rules.

Parallels and Similars: No similar cards, though a similar contest was run the prior year in Pinnacle products. There are home run point cards that go along with this contest.

Distribution: These player cards were inserted 1:2 packs of Pinnacle Performers.

Thoughts: There were no winners in this contest, as Pinnacle went bankrupt before redemptions could occur. The exchange card would have provided the recipient with an autographed Juan Gonzalez baseball. None of the upgraded cards were released. As for the contest, there were similar programs done in the 1990s (including the Crash The Game contests run through Upper Deck's Collector's Choice line). It would be fun to see Topps do a contest like this instead of simple wrapper redemption programs.

2003 Donruss Signature Team Trademarks

Set size: 40 cards

Front Design: The team logo appears in a shuttered background on this horizontal card. A white translucent border across the tops holds the Team Trademarks "logo" with the team logo again; a player photo is off to the side, and the player's name and position are in a fading white bar across the bottom. The Donruss Signature Series logo is also at the bottom of the card. The card design is done in team colors.

Back Design: The team logo is repeated as the background, and the Team Trademarks logo is repeated from the front beneath a box with serial numbering. The card number is in the upper-right, followed by a fading-in white banner with the player's name and position. A biography follows on the right side of the card.

Parallels and Similars: There are two regular parallels and six autographed parallels of this set.

Distribution: This "base" insert is serial numbered to 500, and inserted randomly into packs of 2003 Donruss Signature Series.

Thoughts: Although there are cases of bigger wastes of card space, this issue is a perfect example of a design made specifically for autographs. The large empty space between Glavine, his name, and the Mets logo at the top of the card was created as a place to put a signature. While I appreciate an autograph card where the autograph is well-placed, I could do without the non-autograph version. That said, several Japanese autograph and relic issues come in versions without relics or autographs, and will provide a way for me to collect those sets without spending large sums of money.

1998 Ultra Top 30

Set size: 30 cards

Front Design: "Top 30" in large print surrounded by steel-looking "+" symbols is the background behind a player photo. The player's name and position is in the lower right corner in team colors, and the Ultra logo is in the upper left corner.

Back Design: A second player photo is on the left, on top of the "+" background. The Top 30 "logo" is repeated at the top right, followed by the player's name in a team color, a short biography in black text, the card number in the same team color, and a team logo.

Parallels and Similars: None.

Distribution: Cards were inserted one per pack of 1998 Ultra Series 2 retail.

Thoughts: It's a simple design that works. I like the shiny fronts with the attractive set logo in the background. The card just stands out among others. The front isn't cluttered with crazy geometric lines, and it's obvious what the insert set means - the best 30 baseball players of 1998 (as far as Fleer was concerned). At one per pack, it's an inexpensive set to collect.

2000 Aurora Dugout View Net-Fusions

Set size: 20 cards

Front Design: A player photo over a baseball facility background fills most of the card, but the key gimmick here is the real net used in the card to make it look as though you're sitting/standing behind a guard rail. The set's name is along the left side, and the player's name, team and position are in the lower right. The net across the bottom is real and is embedded in a die-cut portion of the card.

Back Design: The net (and it's "railing") are visible on the back, which is aligned veritcally. Another photo background is behind the player's name, team, and position again, followed by a short highlight biography. The cards are numbered in the usual Pacific manner inside a white circle listing the set name.

Parallels and Similars: No other sets look like this, though there are other net-fusion sets issued by Pacific.

Distribution: Cards were inserted one in every 37 packs of Aurora.

Thoughts: I love many of the Pacific gimmick cards around this time, including the net fusion sets. They're tough enough pulls that building a set is a real challenge.

1996 Select Claim to Fame

Set size: 20 cards

Front Design: A color player portrait is bordered by marble pillars or columns and background, with Claim to Fame "etched" into the marble arch above the photo. The player's name and team are printed in foil beneath the photo. The cards are die-cut around the pillar and arch.

Back Design: The marble background is repeated, with a gold "plaque" describing the player's Hall of Fame-worthy highlight. Cards are numbered at the top, and among the trademark and copyright logos at the bottom is a rectangle proclaiming the card is one of 2100 sets produced.

Parallels and Similars: No parallels, though other sets have similar-looking designs. This set is easily identified by the name at the top and the 1996 Select logo between the photo and player name.

Distribution: Cards were randomly inserted into packs.

Thoughts: I love this set, with its super-glossy feel and die-cut edges. The card tends to fall out of stacks, but properly sleeved it can be enjoyed. Pinnacle Brands inserts of this era are usually attractive and somewhat limited.

1997 New Pinnacle Spellbound

Set size: 50 cards, with each player between 4 and 7 cards

Front Design: A swirling etched-foil design from the center of the card is covered by a letter from the player's name or nickname, which is outlined in gold foil and contains a color photo of the player. The player's name is at the bottom in gold foil, beneath the name of the set and the letters for that player in white. The position of the letter on the card is highlighted in yellow. Gold foil in the middle of the vertical borders spells out the word "SPELLBOUND" when the player's cards are placed in order.

Back Design: A grey swirling background copying the front design is behind a rectangular box with a color photo; the card number and set name is above, and an oval box at the bottom of the photo identifies the location of the letter.

Parallels and Similars: There are additional Spellbound sets in future issues, including a 1997 racing set.

Distribution: Cards were inserted 1:19 packs of New Pinnacle.

Thoughts: This concept would be taken several steps further in the future with the Letterman patch cards, and depending on your tastes, this version could be much better. It's less expensive, if you can locate the cards for your favorite player, though cards for players like Cal Ripken book as high as $15 each. The micro-etched foil screams late-90's insert gaudiness, and a series of these in a matted frame would look great on the wall.

1997-98 Score Board Autographed Collection Autographs

Set size: 24 cards

Front Design: The player's photo appears in a gray circle with white horizontal stripes. The card's background contains black and red stripes, with a black V running the vertical length of the card. The player's name is at the top in grey letters. An on-card autograph is on a white oval beneath the photo, with a Score Board authentic autograph watermark. A set-identifying logo carries a 1998 issue date.

Back Design: The tan backs contain the Score Board logo and an authenticity statement, with a Score Board logo looking to be embossed on the card. The cards carry 1997 copyrights.

Parallels and Similars: None known.

Distribution: Cards were inserted 2:9 packs of Score Board Autographed Collection.

Thoughts: For an unlicensed issue, this is a fairly nice autographed card set. The autograph is on-card, and the design is bold but not overwhelming, unless seeing lots of horizontal lines remind you of the blinds in your grandmother's house, which smelled like old people and had so many nice things that you weren't allowed to run around and play like you were at home. And what was up with all those little trinket boxes on the coffee table with random buttons and other found objects? Don't those objects have a home? Kerry Wood is the only name I recognize in this set, other than Helms, and Woods wasn't inserted into packs. Helms played for the Marlins through the 2011 season, but has probably seen his last MLB pitch. By the way, I haven't posted in a few days because I've been busy with my Japan preparations.

2007 Topps Allen & Ginter Mini Flags (Flags of All Nations)

Set size: 50 cards, standard "mini" tobacco size

Front Design: The art for each country has a flag on a fancy pole waving over a background of a world map. An additional map of the nation and its surrounds is shown in a circle beneath the flag, similar to a magnifying glass enlarging the detail on the world map behind it. Topps Allen & Ginter's Flags, Brooklyn, New York is printed beneath the art.

Back Design: The monochromatic backs have an advertisement for the set at the top, followed by a checklist of the entire set.

Parallels and Similars: There are several tobacco-era non-sport mini sets similar to this design , of which several focused on national flags. This set should not be confused with any of those, due to the copyright information at the bottom and several other features which identify it as a modern release.

Distribution: Cards were randomly inserted into packs of 2007 Topps Allen & Ginter.

Thoughts: I enjoy the non-sport mini sets Topps puts in Allen & Ginter, even if I don't always collect the whole set. From an interest standpoint, I'd love having a set of national flags in mini card form. There's only one problem - while the set is called "Flags of All Nations" there are about 154 nations missing from the checklist. I understand there are countries in turmoil and which may not have a flag, but Iraq and Iran are missing. Neither Korea is on the list.Where is Sweden? Topps should have gone full-speed with this set and issued flags for all the countries that have one. When will Transnistria get its due?

2001 Fleer Premium A Time for Heroes

Set size: 20 cards

Front Design: A clock face contains the team logo, with the set, player, and team names beneath. The player's photo is placed beside the design, with a background pattern that resembles what one might see looking at dirty linoleum tile while intoxicated.

Back Design: The backs repeat the design elements from the front with an explanation of how the player shown is a hero.

Parallels and Similars: None known.

Distribution: Cards were inserted into packs of 2001 Fleer Premium at a rate of 1:20.

Thoughts: I like the use of a clock, since it's not seen on baseball cards as a design element too frequently. I'm not sure what the idea was behind the background, which really does look like a blurry picture of someone's kitchen floor or dated wallpaper.