What to Expect from Topps Sold at Target and WalMart in 2009.

Thanks to blowoutcards.com for the tip. The retail exclusives for Walmart and Target will be back for 2009 Topps Series I. And this time, not only will there be exclusive cards depending on where you buy them, but in what package form you buy them.

One of the key insert sets in 2009 Topps Series I is called Legends of the Game, or based on what words actually appear on the cards, Legendary Lineage. There are twenty-five cards total in this set. And it looks like the retail exclusives are going to be gold and platinum versions of each of these cards.

A while back, I wrote about the Cereal Boxes that Topps will be selling at the big box stores (and online) this year. Included in every box will be one refractor card. It looks like if you buy your Cereal at Walmart, you will get a platinum refractor as all the cards are numbered PR1, PR2, etc. If you buy your Cereal at Target, however, the cards are numbered GR1, GR2, etc. Care to bet that this means gold refractor?

Here are the ten cards that will be inserted into packs of 2009 Topps Series I that are exclusive to Target:

• LLG-1 Ted Williams
• LLG-2 Jackie Robinson
• LLG-3 Babe Ruth
• LLG-4 Honus Wagner
• LLG-5 Lou Gehrig
• LLG-6 Nolan Ryan
• LLG-7 Mickey Mantle
• LLG-8 Thurman Munson
• LLG-9 Cal Ripken Jr.
• LLG-10 George Sisler

Buying the Cereal box at Target could net you one of these cards:

• GR-1 Ted Williams
• GR-2 Bob Gibson
• GR-3 Babe Ruth
• GR-4 Roy Campanella
• GR-5 Ty Cobb
• GR-6 Cy Young
• GR-7 Mickey Mantle
• GR-8 Walter Johnson
• GR-9 Roberto Clemente
• GR-10 Jimmie Foxx

Series I packs bought at Walmart will include any of these ten cards:

• LLP-1 Ted Williams
• LLP-2 Bob Gibson
• LLP-3 Babe Ruth
• LLP-4 Roy Campanella
• LLP-5 Ty Cobb
• LLP-6 Cy Young
• LLP-7 Mickey Mantle
• LLP-8 Walter Johnson
• LLP-9 Roberto Clemente
• LLP-10 Jimmie Foxx

The Cereal boxes at Walmart will have one of these cards included in the box:

• PR-1 Ted Williams
• PR-2 Jackie Robinson
• PR-3 Babe Ruth
• PR-4 Honus Wagner
• PR-5 Lou Gehrig
• PR-6 Nolan Ryan
• PR-7 Mickey Mantle
• PR-8 Thurman Munson
• PR-9 Cal Ripken Jr.
• PR-10 George Sisler

Notice a pattern with these checklists? Yes, Williams, Ruth, and Mantle appear in all four sets (they were the three faces of the boxes of cereal). But the players on the base cards at one store are the refractor cards at the other store. Since this includes seventeen of the twenty-five players that the Topps Company is honoring in 2009, that leaves us waiting for Roger Maris, Carl Yastrzemski, Johnny Mize, Christy Mathewson, Tris Speaker, Mel Ott, Rogers Hornsby, and Pee Wee Reese to make their appearance in series II. But what happens to the fourteen players that either appear on one or the other sets? Do they come back in series II also? Does that mean guys like Nolan Ryan and Cal Ripken will only get regular gold cards, but none in platinum?

Again, it's just a preliminary checklist, and everything is subject to change. But February 4 is only two weeks away...and I will take any information that I can get. As these look to be parallels of the regular insert set, I think I'll wait for these to show up on eBay if I plan on buying them. These are not going to be high on the must have list for me. But if they look really good...

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama