What is Topps Strategy in delaying the release of 2024 Topps Heritage Update and a Holiday wish

 I am pretty sure there will be a 2024 Topps Heritage Update.  I don't think Topps canceled it.

More recently (at least 2008) Heritage update has come out between October and December. I believe last year (middle of December) was one of the latest release dates for Heritage update. 

That late release date did not seem to push back the release of 2024 Heritage that much.

The trend has been that the first 3 sets released in a new baseball collecting season has been the Flagship, Heritage and Bowman. But I noticed those dates have been getting later.

In 2019, Bowman release 4/17 and in 2024 it released 5/10.

In 2019, Heritage released 2/27 and in 2024 it released 4/10.

My guess is that we will get 2024 Heritage update in the middle or late January and 2025 Heritage (1976 design) will not come out until the middle or late May.

This is completely different from my younger collecting days. Usually by opening day I had my Topps (or Fleer, Donruss) set completed. By opening day I had all my 792 cards to look at by the beginning of the season.

With Topps going to two series, getting all (or most) of the cards of players for the beginning of the new baseball season occurred with the Heritage set (though Heritage set has been withholding some players for the update set like Tatis, Bregman and Guerrero in 2024).

Now this will not most likely occur until the middle to late May.

This is a reason why I miss the Gypsy Queen set - while it was not large (it was 300 cards) and it was being released before open day.

I wish Topps would release a set (Maybe Bowman going back to 220 or larger) that would have all the stars and a decent representation of players for each of the teams by opening day. (Topps Big League with its pokeman system and foil cards just doesn't cut it)

 

The Top sports card sets to debut in the 21th Century - No1. Tim Horton NHL Hockey

 I have been a big critic of Upper Deck over the years but them teaming up with Tim Horton to produce Hockey Cards is probably the best new idea / new set of the 21st Century,

Granted this set is a slight evolution from the earlier McDonalds Hockey sets but it is distinct on its own and has its own flavor and I can't think of anything quite like it except maybe the Denny's sets from the early 1990s.

You get all the stars and all the teams are represented on the 120 card checklist (up from 100 cards). The one recent draw back since Covid the stats have been a year behind. The cards have a unique feel and look unlike anything else out on the market. The cards are easy to get, affordable, fun to pack break and put together sets.

The 21st century has really not offered much new but this is the best of the best.