Topps has just released their 2022 edition of the popular Gypsy Queen set. Fans of the set love the retro design elements as well as the standout inserts and parallels you can find. Things are not different this year as each box has two guaranteed autos and more than enough parallels to make this a fun set to collect. Coming in at a tidy $129 a box in some places, this is a reasonable set to collect.
Let’s get to the breakdown.
24 packs per box/8 cards per pack
- 16 Inserts
- 4 GQ Gems (1 in 6 packs)
- 2 See the Future Crystal Ball Die-Cuts (1 in 12 packs)
- 6 Color Parallels (1 in 4 packs)
- 1 Burnt Umber #/399
- 1 Indigo #/250
- 1 Turquoise #/199
- 1 Gold Chrome #/50
- 2 Chrome
- 2 GQ Autographs (1 in 12 packs)
- 1 SP (1 in 24 packs)
- 1 Missing Nameplate (1 in 24 packs)
- 179 Base Cards
- 155 Veterans
- 24 Rookies (RC badge on card)
First things first – I really dig this design. The cypher nameplate and ornate corners really give this set a steam punk vibe that makes this a really unique set. You can really get a sense of this old school aesthetic when holding the SP retired stars (Don Drysdale pictured here).
Like most sets nowadays, Gypsy Queen features a bevy of inserts, especially colored parallels. We were lucky to pull inserts at the published rates with the GQ Gems, See the Future die-cuts and GQ Autographs popping up exactly when we thought they would.
The GQ gems are half cards but have a gold-foiled tinge to them while the See the Future die-cuts are shaped like a crystal ball, hopefully giving you a glimpse into these young stars’ bright futures.
Colored parallels are numbered which will give you a good sense of just how rare these pulls are. We were fortunate enough to pull a gold Chrome card #/50 though they were not mentioned in the Topps preview. Nonetheless, a burnt umber, indigo, and turquoise also found their way into our hands along with two regular Chromes.
The Chrome are hard to spot below but the Oneil Cruz was #/50 while the Devers and Sheets were both simple Chromes.
Of course, the missing nameplate parallel is pretty synonymous with Gypsy Queen now and we were able to snag one Lourdes Guriel Jr. To top off our luck, we pulled a Don Drysdale SP as well. Always nice to get some old-school HOFers.
Finally, the best for last. The first autograph pulled was for rookie Patrick Muzeika of the Mets. Our excitement was tempered until we pulled a Miguel Cabrera auto minutes later. Non-rookie autos are #/25 and this is a fantastic pull. Cabrera has just recently joined the 3000 Hits club and his HOF plaque is getting polished, waiting for the man to officially join when eligible. No doubt this is a quality auto!!
We had a blast breaking this box and we’re actually looking forward to pulling some more.
Overall Rating = A
Pros
- Great looking aesthetic provides and old school feel
- Small checklist at 300 (not including SPs) makes it relatively easy to collect
- Two guaranteed autos per box is a huge deal in this day and age and since there is such a small checklist, the odds are high that you’ll get one you like
- Low price-point
Cons
- The low price point, especially in comparison to other high-end sets, may lead some folks to not value this set as highly as others
- You may not be able to get good value on the re-sell market
