The Hobby Boards

Hi All -

My sister wanted me to help find the "best Matt Olson" card for $100-150 to give to my brother in law for their "Paper" anniversary. I'm realizing I know next to nothing about Topps sets, but realizing some of the newer stuff suffers from the same issues as Panini.

Is there any current/recent Topps game dated set? A well respected game worn set? Or is looking for an on-card and 'player-worn' patch combo the best I'm likely going to get from Topps?

Thank you!

Are we talking any year of Olson? Or only in Braves uniform?

Try doing an advanced search on here by name: https://www.tcdb.com/
you can then filter by year, etc..

daeve wrote: ↑Tue Aug 15, 2023 11:19 am Are we talking any year of Olson? Or only in Braves uniform?

I’d prefer a braves uni, just seems limited. I don’t follow baseball but my brother in law grew up in Oakland so I doubt it matters. I saw a few nice patch autos in the range from Oakland, but only unaffiliated with Atlanta so far

Ok, patch autos aren't in my area of expertise, but I don't think you're going to find something from a really good set and game worn for under $150. I do see you can get RC year stuff like 2017 Immaculate RPAs for under $100. I generally care more about on-card autos than having a guy in licensed stuff, but design or card aesthetics also matter to me.

I guess all of that to say without knowing your BIL it's tough to pinpoint exactly what to go after, but if it were me in your shoes I'd go after something with a RC tag I think. With my taste I'd probably go after either a refractor from Topps Heritage or one of the Autos - which seems can be had for around $100. They have a classic "rookie pose", card design, rc tag, on-card auto, and are licensed.

Thank you!! Appreciate the guidance

Yo. So I actually collect Olson. I know his cards well.

First thing you should do is figure out for sure which uniform he wants. I noticed you said "I'd prefer a Braves uni." But this card isn't for you. It's for him. The uniform may matter to him. He may want Oakland.

Then again. Do you think he wants a patch or auto? Or would he just want a cool card?

I feel like you need more info on what he may want.


Then try to find something with a cool photo / design. For A's uniform, I really like the 2019 flagship Olson. It's a really nice shot of him watching what is likely a home run off his bat. A gold refractor of that card could be really nice.

And if this guy isn't a hardcore card collector and is more of an Olson fan, maybe don't try to get cute and just go with a Topps Chrome rookie refractor of some sort. Maybe his Sapphire rookie.


If you have any other questions, let me know. I know Olson's cards very well.