Nonsense Newsletter No. 79: Disney gets into the game, change is good, Vida Blue, Topps Chrome tennis... and More!
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In this week’s edition of The Nonsense Newsletter, John Dudley takes a look at Disney’s delve into the hobby, Lorcana. I examine my own life and decide that change is a good thing. Don’t miss a break battle tonight between Mike Gio on Sports Cards Nonsense shop on CSL and Eddie from Gio Breaks. We also have a Quick Hits section that will blow your mind! So don’t be shy, sit back, kick back, grab your favorite beverage and enjoy the heck out of this week’s edition of The Nonsense Newsletter.
Contributor: John Dudley
If you hang out in card groups online, or listen to award-winning podcasts, you’ve probably heard the word Lorcana being bandied about. Even if you haven’t, you’ve probably heard it discussed as the Disney Trading Card Game. With Kakawow being a surprise hit, Disney is having a moment in the hobby, and many are convinced that the next big thing in the hobby is Disney’s Lorcana, out this summer.Â
Let’s see if the prediction makes sense and we should be all Hakuna Matata about the product, or if we should just Let It Go. No more Disney jokes, I promise. It is safe to keep reading.
Contributor: John McTaggart
It’s been a while since I started writing for this little newsletter.
I have literally loved every minute of it, and appreciate every single one of you who have opened, read, subscribed and taken time out of your Friday afternoon to check out my columns.
It’s an absolute honor to be able to do this.
Sports cards are my passion and have been since I was a little kid.
The journey has been amazing, and I can’t wait to see where it leads going forward.
That said, I’ve made a decision to continue to share this journey, experiences and stories with all of you. However, I’m also going to try to sprinkle in some more in-depth columns moving forward.Â
By the NumbersÂ
By the Numbers is a weekly look at the sports card hobby with a strong emphasis on numbers of course.Â
This week we talk about Creed Willems, new releases coming up and other news around the hobby!
Quick Hits
Grading News- Looking deeper into April’s grading numbers, hockey is the only clear winner when we look at grading by sport. TCGs got hit especially hard as BGS, SGC, and CSG all saw substantial downturns in that section of the hobby. Most troubling though is basketball is still declining. I thought with more new products out we’d see substantial increases by now. The increase might show up next month, but if it doesn’t that is a red flag for a sport (or at least the last couple of rookie classes) that seems to be on the rebound otherwise.
Vintage- If you are anywhere near my age, which is mildly older but not old, then you know exactly what I’m talking about when I say the name Vida Blue. Not only was his name memorable, but his ability to hurl the ball over the plate with great success was legendary. Blue passed away earlier this week and Sports Collectors Daily did an amazing job looking back at him, and on his hobby, Check it out by clicking here.
Hobby News- I won’t call it a sleeper hit because way too many folks are predicting big things for it, but it Topps Chrome Tennis is a new potential hobby darling. Tennis is popular but has had relatively few products and none as nice as Topps Chrome. This has the potential to be viewed like the first F1 cards where collectors just wanted the first quality offering of their favorite players sparking demand. The autos are hobby only and limited to at most 50 copies, but my guess is they will be tough pulls meaning you have to be happy with parallels as the main draw for hobby boxes. With a small checklist though, the odds of getting a parallel of a star player are high. This is also up there for the longest delayed product as this is actually the 2021 version of Topps Chrome Tennis.
Hobby News- Surprising no one, basketball is getting the newly college-licensed Bowman U treatment. A bit of a surprise though, is that we get more Wembanyama autos and also Caitlin Clark. Clark was a media darling and part of a surge in popularity of the women’s game. She’s sure to be a draw for Bowman U. Well done by Topps, but I prefer Leaf for an NCAA tourney memento who struck while the iron was hot and released autos of Angel Reese recreating her now-famous ring taunt.Â
The Sports Card Nonsense newsletters reflect the opinions of only the authors and contributors. They are for informational purposes only and are not a recommendation for purchases or of an investment strategy or to buy or sell any assets.