1998 Ultra Diamond Producers

Set Size: 15 cards

Design Notes: The front has a color photo and foil highlights over a wood background with a felt border; the back carries over the diamond design from the front with a highlight biography.

Parallels and Similars: None known; this set name was used over a few years, though.

Distribution: This was the most difficult inset to pull from Series 1 packs of 1998 Ultra, at one per 288 packs.

Thoughts: Using three interesting card materials (wood, prismatic foil, and felt), the card stands out from most of the rest of the 1998 Ultra inserts. Add to that the difficulty in pulling a single card, and you have one of the most surprisingly valuable sets from the 1990s. Top-tier players in the set are easily valued around $50! I like the set for the "gimmicky" use of different materials. It doesn't look that bad, either.

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.