Trader's Retreat - Box Break and Review
2015 Bowman Inception Baseball
By Jim Van Nest
July 23, 2015
BoxOfficeProphets.com
Configuration: One Pack per Box, Five Cards per Pack
Set Breakdown
58 Card Prospect Autograph Set
Parallels: Blue #/150, Green #/99, Gold #/50, Orange #/25, Red #/5, Black 1/1
14 Card Rookie Autograph Set
Parallels: Blue #/150, Green #/99, Gold #/50, Orange #/25, Red #/5, Black 1/1
25 Card Autograph Set - 1 per case
Parallels: Orange #/25, Red #/5, Black 1/1
32 Card Autographed Relic Set
Parallels: Green #/99, Gold #/50, Orange #/25, Red #/5, Black 1/1
35 Card Autographed Jumbo Patch Set - #/50 or less
Parallels: Red #/5, Black 1/1
20 Card Autographed Logo Patch Set - #1/1
20 Card Autographed Letter Book Card Set - #/2
15 Card Bowman Black Collection Autographs - #/25
Parallels: Red #/5
20 Card Future Stars Autographed Relic Set - #1/1
Parallels: Laundry Tag - #1/1
26 Card Origins Autograph Set - #/25
Parallels: Red #/5, Black #1/1
6 Card Quad Autographed Relic Book Set - #/10
Inception Baseball is back for its third installment and is being billed as one of the most high-end Prospect sets of the year. Along with the four autograph cards and one autographed relic card per box, this year's set also guarantees one On-Card autograph per case! Also, keep an eye out for the sweet Future Stars Autograph Relic Cards which feature unique game-used jersey patches from the 2014 All-Star Futures Game.
Autographs
As a rule of thumb, the Bowman brand in baseball is known for its inclusion of tons of prospects you might not find in other sets of cards. Bowman Inception continues the trend toward prospects as you can see by the four Autographs pulled in our box. We start with Base autos of Red Sox Double A outfielder Manuel Margot and White Sox Double A pitcher Francellis Montas. The thick stock cards are really quite nice. They feature the well known Inception design with a glossy photo on top of a flat background which gives the cards an almost 3D appearance.
Our other two autos are parallels. The first is a Blue parallel of Phillies AA pitcher Ben Lively. As you can see, the card is the same as the base, but with a blue background and is numbered 49/150. Our final autograph is a green auto of Royals AAA pitcher Christian Binford. Obviously, the background on this card is green and the card is numbered 6/99. Again, these cards are incredibly well done and probably represent some of the nicer cards these players have out there to date. Further, all four of these cards are on-card autographs and you certainly can't beat that!
Autographed Relics
As promised, our box did contain one Autographed Relic card and it is a Redemption. It's also a Gold Parallel that will be numbered to 50. The card is of Rangers outfielder Joey Gallo. So, we're thrilled that we pulled a low numbered parallel, but a little bummed that it's a redemption. That being said, I went out and did a search and found the next picture, which is a scan of a Renato Nunez Gold parallel Auto Relic. I put this in the review so that you can get an idea of what this Joey Gallo card will look like, once redeemed. It's a horizontal card featuring a sticker auto placed above a piece of game worn jersey.
Final Thoughts on 2015 Bowman Inception Baseball
Giving a grade to a product like Inception is sometimes hard for me. I am a collector and a $80 box is right in my wheelhouse. I can't go much more high end than that. However, when I break it down as $80 for five cards, $16/card. I have a hard time justifying that kind of ROI in my trading life. However, a product like Inception is not necessarily made for a collector like me. So, I have to review the product as if I'm that type of collector. And let me tell you, the quality of these cards is top notch.
I have always liked the Inception design and the idea of every single card you pull being an autograph is super intriguing to me. If you do some research on this set, you'll see some amazing low numbered hits, including Futures Game patches and Letter booklets. So, for those higher end traders out there, you really have to pick up some Inception. But to feel like you're getting your money's worth, you're probably better off picking up a case and really going for the gusto.
If you'd like to see the live break of the box that accompanies this review, well, just click Right Here!
Ratings
Innovation: 4
Fun: 5
Value: 4
Rebuy: 3
Total– 16/20 - I'd rate 2015 Bowman Inception an B-!
NPN Information
NPN 2015 Bowman Inception BB
PO BOX 763
Pittston, PA 18640
Limit – 1 Request Per Household
Postmarked by: October 7, 2015
Received by: October 14, 2015
For our Canadian collectors, your entry will need to be accompanied by the answer to this skill question: 13 x 3 + 22 – 1 = ?
Once again, thanks so much to our sponsors at Topps for giving us the opportunity to review this great new product. For more information on all of their products, you can check them out at www.Topps.com. You can also follow them on Twitter: @toppscards. For all the great new trading card updates coming to BOP, be sure to give me a follow as well: @vannestjc. 'Til next time, take care.