2012 Topps Five Star Baseball Cards

Product Review

2012 Topps Five Star Baseball Product Review

Reviewed By Mike Smeth

Good: Huge big hit potential, Extremely strong checklist, Limited Print Run, All autographs are on-card

Bad: Widespread condition issues, Box cost, Too many low quality one-color jersey patches, Too much repetition of checklist subjects from subset to subset

The Bottom Line: When I first heard that Five Star was making the jump to the Baseball Diamond I was thrilled. Unlike some of the folks who are reading this review, I wasn't collecting sports cards back in the early 2000s when the super-premium sports card set was introduced by Upper Deck Exquisite debuted, thus . So I was really pumped to be around for the first truly super-premium baseball card set.

Alas, the freshmen offering of Topps Five Star Baseball is plagued by an uncharacteristically high number of issues that keep it from realizing its true potential. Far and away the biggest of the problems is the condition of the cards. There have been numerous reports from collectors across the country regarding damaged pulls they made. The number one complaint is card chipping. It's important to note that the majority of cards show minor damage or no damage at all. But at this price point, there really is no excuse for delivering damaged cards to collectors.

Before you fork over $400 bucks for a box of Five Star make sure your expectations are realistic. You will be buying a product that gives you better odds of pulling big names and bit hits then any other product on the market. But just because the probability is higher doesn't mean its a sure thing. You can also expect to pull a very nice selection of current MLB star and MLB Hall of Famer autographs. Heck, you might even pull one of the many multi-auto book cards or a jumbo patch card.

I don't think I've ever pulled autographs of more then 1 Hall of Famer from a single box (the exception being multi-auto cards). I pulled 2 Hall of Famer autographs and 1 soon-to-be first ballot Hall of Famer autograph from my 2012 Topps Five Star Baseball box. And opening the box was a ton of fun.

I really hope that Topps cleans Five Star up and comes back with a vengeance in 2013 as I like having a super-premium brand in the baseball card industry. However, in the meantime 2012 Five Star Baseball has already dropped to the $360's, making it an increasingly tempting option for big hit thrill seekers with the money to spare.

Card Design: 1.0/5.0

I really don't know what Topps was thinking when they designed 2012 Five Star Baseball. We're talking about the most high end baseball card product ever released. Topps has far and away the best overall product designs of any card manufacturer, so it would stand to reason that they would put the entire might of their highly talented design team towards creating what was supposed to be the crown jewel of their 2012 baseball card product lineup. It's not that the product looks bad. It just doesn't look like the Rolls Royce of baseball card sets should look. The best looking cards in the set are the multi-color patches and the Silver Ink Autographs, which look fantastic. And though I'm not impressed with the overall set design, I will say that the cards looks better in person then they do in scans.

Whoever was in charge of QC and gave the go-ahead to have this product packed out and sealed for shipment really, really dropped the ball. Because there is absolutely no excuse for having so many condition related problems in a $40 per box product, much less a $400 per box product.

That said, I haven't seen many Five Star Baseball cards with serious damage. A couple of the cards in my box had rounded corners and/or chipping, but the damage wasn't too serious, and thus didn't have much of an impact on the aesthetic appeal of the card. But for people looking to have their cards professionally graded, this sort of damage will be a much bigger deal.

Checklist: 4.3/5.0

Condition issues aside, 2012 Topps Five Star Baseball delivers a very strong all-around checklist. Does it guarantee that you will pull $100+ hits in every box? No - but it does give you the best odds I've ever seen of pulling multiple autographs of MLB All-Stars, Hall of Famers and/or hot rookies from a single hobby box. There is definitely something to be said for that.

There are a couple of qualms I have with the checklist. First off, there is too much repetition in the checklist from subset to subset. The problem with that is it negates some of the value of the limited print run of the set as it drastically increases the amount of autographs many of the players have in the set, thereby hurting their value on the secondary market. My other issue is the inclusion of a bit too many lower tier players in the set. Players like Dan Uggla, Dave Kingman, Edgar Martinez, Bill Buckner, Luis Tiant, John Kruk and Paul O'Neil simply have no business in this product. But percentage wise these players make up a small minority of the overall checklist - though that offers little in the way of reassurance if you find yourself breaking a box with more then one of the players taking up autograph spots that could have been occupied by big name stars.

Value: 3.0/5.0

Condition issues aside, 2012 Topps Five Star Baseball delivers a very strong all-around checklist. Does it guarantee that you will pull $100+ hits in every box? No - but it does give you the best odds I've ever seen of pulling multiple autographs of MLB All-Stars, Hall of Famers and/or hot rookies from a single hobby box. There is definitely something to be said for that.

If you aren't comfortable shelling out that kind of cash for Five Star given the condition concerns and the polarizing reviews, Topps' has several other premium MLB releases from this year that I'd highly recommend - 2012 Tribute Baseball and 2012 Triple Threads Baseball. Topps Tribute actually packed out their hits in factory sealed plastic cases, which means the condition of the cards overall were fantastic. For the price of one box of Five Star you could purchase 2 hobby boxes of Triple Threads. Just a couple of alternative options to keep in mind.

The Fun Factor: 4.0/5.0

There is something about opening a premium product like 2012 Topps Five Star Baseball that just can't be matched by any mid-price product. Some people might say its a form of gambling. I wouldn't go that far. All I know is that the box break was very intense. Despite lasting only a couple of minutes, the excitement leading up to the break was just as enjoyable.

If you enjoy high end products and you have the disposable income, I think that Five Star is worth a shot. Don't do it expecting to open the best product ever made. Don't do it expecting to open the best product this year. Instead, do it because it gives you better odds of striking gold then virtually any other baseball card on the market. And most importantly, do it if this sounds like a product you would enjoy. But remember that there are some great alternatives like 2012 Topps Tribute Baseball and 2012 Topps Triple Threads Baseball, so go with the product that resonates best with you.