Category Archives: Hobby Pack

2022 Topps 206 Star Wars Wave 1 Hobby Box Break

This release sort of came out of nowhere. After a few years of successful 206 Baseball releases, Topps has expanded this branding to include Star Wars. At a time when the enthusiasm for 206 Baseball seems to be dropping, this wave of Star Wars sold 25,102 packs. That notable in part because the first wave of baseball this year saw roughly half that print run, but also contained twice as many cards in the wave (100 Baseball to 50 Star Wars). It will be interesting to see if that enthusiasm continues with a set that doesn’t seem to have a clear public plan, yet.

This release also sees a major departure from what the original T206 set was. In the original, the main parallels for the set are tobacco advertisements on the backs of the cards, with the fronts not changing. Topps replicated these parallels for Baseball, but has avoided them for Star Wars. Instead, we see the familiar “star field” parallels return once again. Perhaps Disney did not want their property associated with tobacco? There is one parallel with the back changed, to a plain Star Wars logo.

A box advertises ten cards, including two parallels. This box contained:

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2022 Topps 206 Wave 2 Hobby Box Break

The second wave of the 206 release follows with a similar format to wave one, with 100 cards. The print run is down a bit from the first wave to 8,532 packs. This wave also introduces a bit of a departure from the normal format relating to the T206s. A new back is included which is identified as All Star Background, featuring a small image of Hollywood on the back.

This wave also contains the chance at a couple of image variations, one of which is from a previous wave, as well as a few autographs. A box still advertises ten cards, including two parallels, but it seems some parallels are being treated as extra cards in these.

This box contained:

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2021 Topps 206 Wave 10 Hobby Pack Break

The Topps 206 set comes to an end with Wave 10, finally arriving in the first week of 2022. With a print run of 10374 packs, it comes in a little bit lower than Wave 9. This time, Uzit backs replace Cycle for this wave. There are also ten short prints of superstars not otherwise featured in this wave.

A box features one pack, containing ten cards. Those ten cards include eight base, and two parallels.

This box contained:

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2021 Topps 206 Wave 9 Hobby Pack Break

Wave 9 features minor league cards paying homage to the original T206 release. Prospects are featured in their minor league uniforms. Unsurprisingly, the print run has rebounded significantly with collectors looking for these prospect cards. With a print run of 11,668 packs, this wave sees one of the highest runs in 2021. For this wave, Carolina Brights are replaced by Hindu Red backs. There are also a small number of major leaguers featured in their minor league uniforms as short printed inserts.

A box contains one pack, with ten cards, including eight base and two parallels.

This box contained:

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2021 Topps 206 Wave 8 Hobby Pack Break

The print run for Wave 8 rebounds slightly from Wave 7’s series low, but still comes in at 8,752 packs. Maybe the fatigue is starting to set in with so many waves this year. It really does resemble its namesake, in being a monster of a set. Sweet Caporal returns to replace Tolstoi after one wave.

These boxes contain a single pack, containing ten cards, eight of which are base, while two others are parallels. Much to my surprise, it seems this hard and fast rule may not always be the case.

This box contained:

9 Base
1 Base Piedmont Back
1 Base Sweet Caporal Back

2021 Topps 206 # Luis Aparicio
2021 Topps 206 # Archie Bradley
2021 Topps 206 # Patrick Corbin
2021 Topps 206 # Andre Dawson
2021 Topps 206 # Andre Dawson
2021 Topps 206 # Dock Ellis
2021 Topps 206 # Adam Frazier
2021 Topps 206 # Nomar Garciaparra
2021 Topps 206 # Michael A. Taylor
2021 Topps 206 # Frank Viola
2021 Topps 206 Piedmont # Barry Zito
2021 Topps 206 Piedmont # Barry Zito
2021 Topps 206 Sweet Caporal # Fergie Jenkins
2021 Topps 206 Sweet Caporal # Fergie Jenkins