Best Topps Set By Decade

The most interesting thing about the Topps flagship set is the evolution of the product. Think about it, the set has changed with the times going from the iconic 1952 set all the way to the present day "wave" set in 2018. Through it all, each decade seems to have brought its own style of cards. For example, the 70's were all about color while the 2010's sets were based off more sleek designs, eventually leading to borderless cards.

All in all, each decade of Topps flagship has brought with it sets that continue to stand-out year after year. Each and every decade with the possible exception of the 2000's, has created a set that has remained one of the most iconic in not just Topps history, but baseball history as well.

This is why even though I've done a top 10 Topps flagship sets list a while ago, I've had a couple opinions change since then. Furthermore, I like the idea of approaching my favorite Topps sets by decade more than in a top 10. So, here are my favorite Topps sets by decade. We begin with the 1950's. 

I realize that 1956 Topps is a very well-liked set by many bloggers, and don't get me wrong, I do like the set quite a bit. But the card size kind of ruins it for me. I prefer the standard size cards over the larger vintage cards from some of the 50's sets which is part of the reason why I chose 1959 as my favorite set from the 50's. Additionally, it takes the best parts of the '58 set but includes actual images instead of just putting a player in front of a red or green or yellow background. I like seeing grass, dirt, and sky on my cards, and you get that with '59 Topps while still including the unique colors like yellow and pink that made 50's cards so special.

Since making my top 10 Topps cards list, the main change I've made is regarding the 1960 Topps set. I originally placed 1962 Topps above it, but since then, I've realized how much I truly love 1960 Topps, enough to rank it as my favorite Topps set from the 60's. The only all-landscape card set in Topps history certainly has a lot going on. A headshot of the player, player name in 2 different colors, a logo, a black and white photo next to the headshot, and finally, the team name a position along with the continuation of unique color combinations. Yet, the best part would have to be that there somehow isn't too much going on. In fact, there's just enough to make this the busiest Topps set of all-time, and definitely one of the best.

There wasn't a whole lot of debate for the 70's. After all, 1972 Topps is my favorite baseball card set ever made, probably because I've been collecting it for so long that I've grown to love each detail of the set more than that of any other set. The photos included in the set are pretty great considering they are from the 70's, the color choice for the photo border and the team name text never fail to disappoint. Once again, colors like pink and light blue and every color in between make their way into this 787-card set. It's hard to imagine, but I think I'll like the set even more once I collect the final 8 cards that I need.

In the decade where Fleer and Donruss joined the game, oddball sets were everywhere, and the junk wax era had begun, Topps didn't have a ton of incredible sets especially when you consider what they had put out the decade before in the 70's. However, their one main bright spot is a pretty big one in 1983 Topps, a set that takes the classic and fun colors from the 50's-70's and modernizes it to make it fit for 1983. It even takes a page out of 1960 Topps' book by including not 1, but 2 photos of the player on each card. Only a handful of sets have done that, and even fewer have been able to pull it off. To me, 1983 Topps pulls it off.

I don't know 1990's baseball cards at all. In fact, it's the only decade in which I cannot recognize any set by year, probably because there's just way too many 90's baseball cards to keep track of, even if we're just talking Topps. However, the early years of the 90's created 2 well-done sets in 1991 and 1992. Only 1 could be chosen, so I went with the 1991 set that included some of the greatest photos to ever make it to a baseball card. Don't believe me? Search for Wade Boggs' and/or Benito Santiago's cards from the set. Then you'll see what I'm talking about.

The 2000's were when Topps truly went for modern and never looked back. Yet somehow, there's nothing too modern about the 2008 Topps set. It' just a well-done product that doesn't have too much going on nor does it have to draw too much attention to itself. My favorite part, which happens to be everyone else's as well since the set is rather minimal, are the colorful letters above the Topps logo. Like it's done for most Topps sets, this detail includes different colors depending on the team. However, I think red and blue works best, especially when the photo is taken in front of the ivy like it is for Carlos Zambrano here.

Yes, even the 2010's have produced a stand-out set, and that set is 2015 Topps. The thing about this set is that next to 1972, it was the easiest choice for this post. In fact, other than 2015, 2018, and maybe 2017, I don't like any of the Topps Flagship sets from the 2010's. This is what I meant at the beginning of this post. How did we get from the iconic 50's sets to here? The low-points of the 2010's (2012, 2014, 2016) compared to the low-points of, say, the 1960's really sheds light on how much this set has changed. Still, if Topps could make a set like 2015 every couple of years, they'd have people talking for decades to come.