Variety is the Spice of Trading

A recent trade package from Trading Card Database member Ryans0625 reminded me about the wide variety of choices we as collectors have.  Sure Topps is the only company with an MLB license to produce cards, but there are so many different ways you can collect.  Take your pick from being a set, team, or player collector, or you may have a theme you chase.  Since it is rare for the player I collect to have any new cards produced, I am mainly a team collector.  If it is a Cardinal, I will take it.  Any and all regardless of type or brand.

 I have inserts like these 2016 Topps Update 3000 Hits Club.

If inserts are not your thing, how about refractors.

I know a lot of collectors chase Topps Gold cards.

If Topps Gold are too boring, how about some colored parallels.  2011 Diamond Anniversary, 2012 Gold Sparkle, or 2013 Emerald are just a few colors of the Topps rainbow.

If you like shiny and serial numbered, Bowman Chrome has a ton of options like this 2017 Green Shimmer card numbered to 99.

How about some die cuts.  2002 Topps Ten had some, or you can go back to 1998 when Leaf made some cool looking Fractal Matrix cards.

If you cannot stand Topps, head back to the late 1990s when Upper Deck was producing hundreds of Mark McGwire inserts each year.

There were a few base cards included in the trade, but I was too lazy to scan them.  I gotta say this was one of the most colorful and diverse Cardinals packages I have received in a long time.