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Due to a faulty alignment when the foil was applied to card fronts, some cards can be found with mismatched names and logos.
When 1998 Topps Gold Label hit the market, unless you were aware of the vague tip on how to differentiate the different classes, it was really hard to distinguish what was what. When Topps hooked it up with 1999 Topps Gold Label they accompanied it with an easy to notice Class identifier on the backs of each card, which was incredibly helpful.
I really like the concept behind this product. Any given player has three Class variations with each Class having three label color variations and finally a 1/1 for each of the three Classes of each of the three versions for a grand total of 18 possible variations to chase. To me, this makes for an exciting and challenging rainbow to complete. Granted, most of us collectors will never see our guys 1/1s but we do have realistic chances of obtaining the other 9 versions. Let’s have a closer look at what we’re up against here. Below, find title and Classes accompanied by odds of pulling that card. H = Hobby; R = Retail.
- Gold Label (base) – Class 1 (1:1); Class 2 (1:2); Class 3 (1:4)
- Black Label – Class 1 (1:8H / 1:12R); Class 2 (1:16H / 1:24R); Class 3 (1:32H / 1:48R)
- Red Label – Class 1 (1:118H / 1:148R); Class 2 (1:237H / 1:296R); Class 3 (1:473H / 1:591R)
- One to One – 1:1,200H / 1:1,600R (same odd regardless of class or label color)
The Breakdown:
Let’s get a better perspective here. Based on market research, this product’s stats are roughly as follows. I use the term roughly in a somewhat liberal manner given that outside of packaging, prices may vary.
- Box = 24 packs
- Pack = 5 cards
- Cards per box = 120
- Suggested Retail Price (SRP) = $70/box, $3/pack
- Complete set = 100 cards
Let’s keep going. Below find the hard data, how much money you’re expected to put into pulling a particular card. To keep it simple, we’ll focus specifically on Hobby prices per pack at a $3 SRP. Keep in mind that the numbers below will always be higher for Retail. Lastly, we’ll look at how many packs and boxes you’d have to bust to find any Class from any Label and any particular player in said Class for each Label. Everything is depicted in the chart below. Let’s see what we’re up against.
Gold Label:
- Class 1: (1:1 pack or 1:1 box) $3 for a Class 1; (1:20 packs or 1:1 box) $60 for a particular player
- Class 2: (1:2 packs or 1:1 box) $6 for a Class 2; (1:40 packs or 1:2 boxes) $120 for a particular player
- Class 3: (1:4 packs or 1:1 box) $12 for a Class 3; (1:80 packs or 1:4 boxes) $240 for a particular player
Black Label:
- Class 1: (1:8 packs or 1:1 box) $24 for a Class 1; (1:160 packs or 1:7 boxes) $480 for a particular player
- Class 2: (1:16 packs or 1:1 box) $48 for a Class 2; (1:320 packs or 1:14 boxes) $960 for a particular player
- Class 3: (1:32 packs or 1:2 boxes) $96 for a Class 3; (1:640 packs or 1:28 boxes) $1,920 for a particular player
Red Label:
- Class 1: (1:118 packs or 1:6 boxes) $354 for a Class 1; (1:2360 packs or 1:102 boxes) $7,080 for a particular player
- Class 2: (1:237 packs or 1:11 boxes) $711 for a Class 2; (1:4740 or 1:204 boxes) $14,220 for a particular player
- Class 3: (1:473 packs or 1:21 boxes) $1,419 for a Class 3; (1:9460 packs or 1:406 boxes) $28,380 for a particular player
One to One:
- 1:1,200 packs or 1:51 boxes (same odd regardless of class or label color): $3600 for any Class; (1:24000 packs or 1:1029 boxes) $72,000 for any particular player (assuming none had been pulled)
Think about it, in order to pull a 1/1 of any particular player, you’d have to open over a thousand boxes of this stuff! I don’t even know what a thousand boxes looks like. I can’t even conceptualize that amount of boxes of 1999 Topps Gold Label, heck any product for that matter! It might take you weeks to open up all those boxes which would set you back a cool $72k! In today’s economy, that’s a good down payment on a nice little house!
As you can see, Topps Gold Label was an army strong release for its day. I hope my calculations will come in handy the next time you happen upon a Red Label or any Class from any Label for that matter from 1999 Topps Gold Label baseball. Good luck!
To see what’s currently on eBay from 1999 Topps Gold Label, click here.
Set Information:
1999 Topps Gold Label is a 100-card set distributed in 4-card packs with an SRP of $3.99.
| Set | Total Cards | Print Run(s) | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class 1 | 100 | – | 4:1 |
| Class 1 Black | 100 | – | 1:12 R; 1:8 HTA |
| Class 1 Red | 100 | 100 | 1:148 R; 1:118 HTA |
| Class 1 One to One | 100 | 1 | 1:1200-1600 |
| Class 1 Black One to One | 100 | 1 | 1:1200-1600 |
| Class 1 Red One to One | 100 | 1 | 1:1200-1600 |
| Class 2 | 100 | – | 1:4 R; 1:2 HTA |
| Class 2 Black | 100 | – | 1:24 R; 1:16 HTA |
| Class 2 Red | 100 | 50 | 1:296 R; 1:237 HTA |
| Class 2 One to One | 100 | 1 | 1:1200-1600 |
| Class 2 Black One to One | 100 | 1 | 1:1200-1600 |
| Class 2 Red One to One | 100 | 1 | 1:1200-1600 |
| Class 3 | 100 | – | 1:8 H; 1:4 HTA |
| Class 3 Black | 100 | – | 1:48 |
| Class 3 Red | 100 | 25 | 1:591 |
| Class 3 One to One | 100 | 1 | 1:1200-1600 |
| Class 3 Black One to One | 100 | 1 | 1:1200-1600 |
| Class 3 Red One to One | 100 | 1 | 1:1200-1600 |
| Race to Aaron | 10 | – | 1:20 R; 1:12 HTA |
| Race to Aaron Black | 10 | – | 1:80 R; 1:48 HTA |
| Race to Aaron Red | 10 | 44 | 1:3343 R; 1:2695 HTA |
| Race to Aaron One to One | 10 | 1 | – |
Base Set Checklist:
1999 Topps Gold Label is a 100-card set that features a reflective rainbow finish on 35pt card stock. Each card in the set is paralleled 18 different times across the label colors, classes, and One to Ones.
To see what’s currently on eBay from 1999 Topps Gold Label, click here.
| Card # | Player(s) | Card # | Player(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mike Piazza | 51 | Curt Schilling |
| 2 | Andres Galarraga | 52 | Ken Caminiti |
| 3 | Mark Grace | 53 | Brad Fullmer |
| 4 | Tony Clark | 54 | Bobby Seay RC |
| 5 | Jim Thome | 55 | Orlando Hernandez |
| 6 | Tony Gwynn | 56 | Sean Casey |
| 7 | Kelly Dransfeldt RC | 57 | Al Leiter |
| 8 | Eric Chavez | 58 | Sandy Alomar Jr. |
| 9 | Brian Jordan | 59 | Mark Kotsay |
| 10 | Todd Hundley | 60 | Matt Williams |
| 11 | Rondell White | 61 | Raul Mondesi |
| 12 | Dmitri Young | 62 | Joe Crede RC |
| 13 | Jeff Kent | 63 | Jim Edmonds |
| 14 | Derek Bell | 64 | Jose Cruz Jr. |
| 15 | Todd Helton | 65 | Juan Gonzalez |
| 16 | Chipper Jones | 66 | Sammy Sosa |
| 17 | Albert Belle | 67 | Cal Ripken Jr. |
| 18 | Barry Larkin | 68 | Vinny Castilla |
| 19 | Dante Bichette | 69 | Craig Biggio |
| 20 | Gary Sheffield | 70 | Mark McGwire |
| 21 | Cliff Floyd | 71 | Greg Vaughn |
| 22 | Derek Jeter | 72 | Greg Maddux |
| 23 | Jason Giambi | 73 | Paul O’Neill |
| 24 | Ray Lankford | 74 | Scott Rolen |
| 25 | Alex Rodriguez | 75 | Ben Grieve |
| 26 | Ruben Mateo | 76 | Vladimir Guerrero |
| 27 | Wade Boggs | 77 | John Olerud |
| 28 | Carlos Delgado | 78 | Eric Karros |
| 29 | Tim Salmon | 79 | Jeromy Burnitz |
| 30 | Alfonso Soriano RC | 80 | Jeff Bagwell |
| 31 | Javy Lopez | 81 | Kenny Lofton |
| 32 | Jason Kendall | 82 | Manny Ramirez |
| 33 | Nick Johnson RC | 83 | Andruw Jones |
| 34 | A.J. Burnett RC | 84 | Travis Lee |
| 35 | Troy Glaus | 85 | Darin Erstad |
| 36 | Pat Burrell RC | 86 | Nomar Garciaparra |
| 37 | Jeff Cirillo | 87 | Frank Thomas |
| 38 | David Justice | 88 | Moises Alou |
| 39 | Ivan Rodriguez | 89 | Tino Martinez |
| 40 | Bernie Williams | 90 | Carlos Pena RC |
| 41 | Jay Buhner | 91 | Shawn Green |
| 42 | Mo Vaughn | 92 | Rusty Greer |
| 43 | Randy Johnson | 93 | Matt Belisle RC |
| 44 | Pedro Martinez | 94 | Adrian Beltre |
| 45 | Larry Walker | 95 | Roger Clemens |
| 46 | Todd Walker | 96 | John Smoltz |
| 47 | Roberto Alomar | 97 | Mark Mulder RC |
| 48 | Kevin Brown | 98 | Kerry Wood |
| 49 | Mike Mussina | 99 | Barry Bonds |
| 50 | Tom Glavine | 100 | Ken Griffey Jr. |
Race to Aaron:
1999 Topps Gold Label Race to Aaron is a 10-card set that features color action shots in the foreground of MLB’s top hitters chasing two of Hank Aaron’s all-time records: Career HRs and RBIs. A silhouette portrait of Hank Aaron appears in the background. Each card in the set is paralleled 4 different times.
To see what’s currently on eBay from 1999 Topps Gold Label Race to Aaron, click here.
| Card # | Player(s) | Card # | Player(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| RA1 | Mark McGwire | RA6 | Nomar Garciaparra |
| RA2 | Ken Griffey Jr. | RA7 | Ken Griffey Jr. |
| RA3 | Alex Rodriguez | RA8 | Alex Rodriguez |
| RA4 | Vladimir Guerrero | RA9 | Juan Gonzalez |
| RA5 | Albert Belle | RA10 | Barry Bonds |
I remember this set and the confusion that went with it! Also the debate over these cards if they were even to be considered “cards” since they weren’t paper, but plastic. Very pretty looking cards and a great contender with Flair Showcase.
Jeremy,
Welcome back! Great contribution here and good call on noticing that Topps Gold Label is very similar in production type to that of Flair Showcase from the same year. I hadn’t really thought about that but it’s so correct. Both releases are made of plastic instead of classic paper. Very nice!
I have been trying to get a rough value on a 1999 topps gold label A Rod, red 17/50 card I pulled from a pack 11 years ago, anything?
According to current perceived market value, your ARod is worth around $40-50. As for actual market value, that number could be more or less depending on what the market is willing to bare. If you’re still unsure, list the card on eBay and pull it moments before auctions end. This will give you a better idea of what the card is worth. As with anything, a cards value is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. Best of luck. Come back and let us know how it performs on the secondary market. 🙂
I have a Roger Maris topps Gold label / 98 Home run race , HR1 Red label . Numbered. 33/61 , I believe it to be a very rare card , could you please tell me what this card is worth
Hi Joe,
Nice card! A great way to gain an understanding of actual marketing value of your card is to check eBay Completed Listings.
I was looking at completed listings on Ebay and noticed a Barry Bonds 1/1 sold. I am a little confused because the card looks like the red version of the race to Aaron but it is stamped 1/1 on the back of the card. I thought the red version is numbered out of 44. Can you provide any info on that particular card?
Hi Brad,
This was a confusing issue when it was released. As you may know, there are three separate classes of the base card for each player (1, 2, and 3) and three separate label foil color variations for each card (Gold, Black, and Red) for each of the three classes. This makes for a total of 9 different versions of any card in the set. Each of the 9 cards can also be found as a 1/1. That Bonds that you saw there was the 1/1 version of the Red Race to Aaron card. I hope this helps. 🙂
So are you saying there are three 1/1 race to aaron cards for Bonds? Black, red, and gold? One other thing I thought was interesting was it appears there is a 1 above bonds head on the front of the card. I don’t see that on the other cards. Go on Ebay and take a close look at the card. Also how do you tell which card is the one to one card of Bonds? There should only be 1 card made correct? From what I understand there shouldn’t be a one to one black, red, and gold version of the race to aaron cards.
Hi Brad,
Upon closer look, for Barry Bonds, 10 1/1’s exist: one for each of the three classes with each of the three label colors, and one for Race to Aaron. It looks like the 1/1 for the Race to Aaron card depicts the red label. All 1/1’s have “1/1” printed to the right of the portrait on the backs of the cards.
i was wondering if anyone can help me on a rough estimate of an gold label Alex Rodriguez class 3 red label? Can’t seem to find it anywhere online.
Hi there,
The best, and typically considered most accurate estimate of current market value of a card is to check eBay’s completed Sold listings.
I have a 1999 Mark McGwire Topps Gold Label Race to Aaron Gold 1/1 and am looking to sell it. I had it put away and recently found it. I know the value of his cards are in the basement, but is it worth it to have it graded?
Hi Joseph,
If I owned the card, I wouldn’t bother getting it graded. Given its 1/1 status, desirability isn’t likely to be significantly enhanced by a slab. As a player collector, when I see a 1/1, whether or not its graded has no impact on my desire to own the card. In some ways, I prefer the card to be raw. This is, however, just my opinion.
I have a 99 gold label class3 red 19/25 Barry Larkin with Jeff Bagwell stamped on front with gold logo not red and a Larkin card back with the numbers 19/25 stamped but no foil, can you give me an idea of how to price this, pack pull from 99 in NM to mint condition
Hi Danny,
Thanks for the message. Since there was faulty alignment during production, many errors like yours were produced and issued. The easiest way to gauge market value is to list them on eBay and the market decide final value. Another way would be to find a completed sale of a similar error.
thank you for getting back to me on this, as usual you will get what ever someone else wants to pay….thanks again