2024 Topps Chrome Update Photo Variation – How to Spot the Difference
It seems that Christmas has come early for sports cards collectors, with the release of 2024 Topps Chrome Update Baseball.
Everyone is going nuts over the Rookie Debut Patch Auto 1/1 cards, as they should. These cards are stirring so much commotion, that celebrities, top ranking CEO’s, fellow athletes, all want a piece of the action.
If you are lucky enough to score a few packs, a blaster, or even a hobby box - you are ripping through like you are Charlie Bucket looking for that golden ticket. As you dissect each pack, carefully sorting, you start making piles of your favorite players. You are separating the inserts, patches, numbered cards from the common cards. After all of this you realize, there are photo variations.
If you are like me, you don’t rip enough wax to know which cards are the variation versus which card is the base. Instead of going to Ebay, trying to search for the player, and seeing if you can spot the difference, there is an easier way.
On the back of every card, below the stats, and below the description of the player, there are codes on every single card. In the bottom right hand corner, if the number ends in 715, this is just a base card. However, if you have a card ending in 853, you have lucky enough to score 1 of the 25 players that have a variation.
You can also check out Beckett, to see the full list of variation cards, as well as some pictures of what the variations will look like.
These cards can be extremely valuable as well. Per Ebay sold, the Paul Skenes Image Variation RC on average the past few days has hovered around $180+, with the color variations going for a lot more.
If you haven’t looked yet, go back into your piles, make sure you are not sitting on a goldmine!
