Beckett

Prince William, Kate Middleton will appear in baseball card set

By Chris Olds | Editor

The Queen will now include some royalty.

Topps unveiled its plans for a new baseball card set styled in the fashion of an 1887 release some time ago, but on Friday the longest-running manufacturer of baseball cards announced a little something extra in packs of the forthcoming 2011 Gypsy Queen baseball cards.

Prince William and Kate Middleton — two members of Britain’s Royal Family — will appear on a card.

Building on the product’s “jewels” theme — which includes bonus cards of various gypsys (yeah, we’re mystified, too) –  a  “Royal Jewels” card can also be found in packs.

No word on a card of Enrico Palazzo, though.

Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an e-mail to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

Topps-Heavy NFL Experience Starts Today

By Andrew Tolentino | Assistant Editor

The entire city of Dallas is buckling down for a swarm of Super Bowl guests and a flock of football fandom. Barreling at the head of the herd, Topps officials are arriving with a bag of hobby exclusives.

Starting today, the out-of-town manufacturer is setting up shop at the NFL Experience. Through Sunday, Feb. 6, attendees to stop by the Topps booth for free sample cards, prizes and other interactive festivities.

Among Topps’ top-rated activities is  the company’s wrapper redemption program. Booth visitors who open three packs of 2010 Topps/Bowman football cards  will receive limited Super Bowl XLV cards featuring host-city players and other NFL superstars.  The players in this 7-card set are: Dez Bryant, Tony Romo, Miles Austin, Sam Bradford, Drew Brees, Tom Brady and Michael Vick.

Available for purchase at the booth, 2010 Topps Football Complete Sets come in commemorative Super Bowl XLV boxes. This big-game-dedicated offering also comes with five exclusive Super Bowl Moments cards featuring the likes of Drew Brees (SB XLIV), Santonio Holmes (SB XLIII), David Tyree (SB XLII), Tom Brady (SB XXXVII) and Adam Vinatieri (SB XXXVI).

On top of the Super Bowl Moments bonus, show-goers who purchase the  2010 Topps Complete Set will also receive one limited-edition patch card, specifically created for this NFL Experience. These special incentives include Super Bowl veterans like Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith, Tony Dorsett, John Elway and Drew Brees.

The NFL Experience kicks off today with an opening ceremony at 6 p.m. at the Dallas Convention Center.

Checking out 2010-2011 Upper Deck’s NHL Ultimate

By Susan Lulgjuraj | Contributing Editor

With the NHL All-Star Game in less than a week, it’s never a bad time to look at hockey cards.

2010-2011 NHL Ultimate is gearing up to be a very impressive product on Upper Deck’s calendar, which is currently scheduled for mid-April.

We know how Ultimate works. You get one pack per box, and the hits can be worthwhile. Collectors can snag rare cards of players such as Alex Ovechkin, Mark Messier or Taylor Hall.

There are just four cards in a pack, but collectors get one autograph, one memorabilia and one rookie card in each pack. A 15-box case will yield one autographed-memorabilia card, three to four patch cards and three “A” Level autos on average.

Many of the best past and present players are included.

The NHL shield patch cards already seem to be favorite for some collectors.

Look for more pictures after the jump.

Susan Lulgjuraj is a contributing editor for Beckett Media. You can email Susan here. Follow her on Twitter here.