1952-1956
Oversized painted portraits[3]
Large cards with painted or hand-coloured portraits, facsimile signatures and team logos. The 1952 design is the template collectors still recognise.
Active Medium
Topps
Topps is the longest continuously operating major American card manufacturer, maker of the 1952 Mickey Mantle rookie and the modern flagship, Chrome and Bowman lines.
Topps at a glance
Topps is the longest continuously operating major American card manufacturer, maker of the 1952 Mickey Mantle rookie and the modern flagship, Chrome and Bowman lines.
Full history, sources and grading notes below. Last verified · Published · Confidence: High
Company history
From chewing gum to cardboard[1][2][3]
Topps was founded in 1938 by Morris Shorin as Topps Chewing Gum, a Brooklyn confectionery business. The company moved into trading cards as an advertising vehicle: a card inside a penny pack gave children a reason to buy gum and gave the brand a durable place in the household. Early issues included novelty and entertainment sets before the company committed to baseball.
The 1950 and 1951 issues tested the format. The 1952 set is the one that became canonical: a large-format, full-colour portrait series with a facsimile signature and a team logo, sold in six-card wax packs. It also contained Mickey Mantle's first Topps card, now the most recognisable vintage card in the hobby.
The baseball monopoly years[1][2]
Topps signed players individually and built a licensing position that competitors struggled to match. From the mid-1950s through the 1970s it was effectively the only major American baseball card maker, and its yearly flagship release became the calendar around which the hobby organised. The company expanded into football, basketball and hockey, and into entertainment sets ranging from Star Wars to Garbage Pail Kids.
The monopoly ended in 1981 when Fleer and Donruss won the right to issue baseball cards. Topps responded with design experimentation, parallel brands and, eventually, the premium and technology-driven products that define the modern market.
Chrome, Bowman and the Fanatics era[1][2][4]
Topps Chrome, introduced in the 1990s, translated the chromium-stock finish into a collector language of refractors, colour parallels and numbered autographs. Bowman became the standard prospecting brand for minor-league and rookie autographs. Heritage recreated vintage designs for modern players, creating a second collecting lane built on nostalgia.
In 2022 Fanatics acquired Topps and folded it into Fanatics Collectibles. Topps regained the Major League Baseball licence from 2026 and remains the reference point for American flagship baseball cards. Graders still use Topps's 1952–1979 output as the benchmark for vintage centring, stock and print-defect expectations.
Timeline
Dated milestones with a source for each event. Hover a marker for the short label; the list below carries the detail.
View timeline events
| Year | Event | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| 1938 | Company founded | Morris Shorin establishes Topps Chewing Gum in Brooklyn. |
| 1950 | First baseball cards | Topps issues its first baseball card set. |
| 1952 | The canonical flagship | The 1952 Topps set introduces the modern large-format colour card and the Mantle rookie. |
| 1957 | Standard size | Topps moves to the 2.5 × 3.5 inch format that becomes the hobby standard. |
| 1981 | Monopoly ends | Fleer and Donruss enter the baseball market after antitrust litigation. |
| 1993 | Topps Chrome era begins | Chromium-style technology becomes a defining modern Topps product family. |
| 2001 | Heritage launched | Topps Heritage recreates vintage designs for current players. |
| 2022 | Fanatics acquisition | Fanatics acquires Topps and places it within Fanatics Collectibles. |
| 2026 | MLB licence returns | Topps regains the official Major League Baseball trading-card licence. |
- 1938Company founded[1]
Morris Shorin establishes Topps Chewing Gum in Brooklyn.
- 1950First baseball cards[1]
Topps issues its first baseball card set.
- 1952The canonical flagship[3]
The 1952 Topps set introduces the modern large-format colour card and the Mantle rookie.
- 1957Standard size[2]
Topps moves to the 2.5 × 3.5 inch format that becomes the hobby standard.
- 1981Monopoly ends[2]
Fleer and Donruss enter the baseball market after antitrust litigation.
- 1993Topps Chrome era begins[1]
Chromium-style technology becomes a defining modern Topps product family.
- 2001Heritage launched[1]
Topps Heritage recreates vintage designs for current players.
- 2022Fanatics acquisition[1]
Fanatics acquires Topps and places it within Fanatics Collectibles.
- 2026MLB licence returns[1]
Topps regains the official Major League Baseball trading-card licence.
Brand identity
- “The Official Card of Major League Baseball” (1952-present)[1]
Design evolution
Image pending
1957-1979
Standard-size photography[2]
The 2.5 × 3.5 inch card, photographic portraits, coloured borders and the annual flagship numbering system.
1990s-present
Chrome, foil and parallels[1]
Chromium stock, refractors, serial-numbered colour parallels and on-card autographs make the modern Topps product a multi-tier chase.
People & places
People
Morris Shorin[1]
Founder · 1938-1960s
Founded Topps Chewing Gum in Brooklyn and guided its move into baseball cards.
Sy Berger[2]
Card product pioneer · 1950s-1990s
Long-time Topps executive credited with shaping the 1952 set and the company's player relationships.
Places
Image archive
Local, provenance-recorded images. Captions and source credits are part of the record; a missing section is shown as an explicit gap rather than filled with a placeholder.
Card fronts & backs
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Packs & boxes
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Advertising & ephemera
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People & characters
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Places
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Catalog footprint in PreGradeCards
Aggregated from the sets and products catalogued by this site. Counts describe our coverage, not the manufacturer’s complete output.
283sets catalogued
1database aliases matched
8decades represented
View data table
| Category | Value |
|---|---|
| 1950s | 9 |
| 1960s | 21 |
| 1970s | 35 |
| 1980s | 36 |
| 1990s | 47 |
| 2000s | 21 |
| 2010s | 14 |
| 2020s | 152 |
- Baseball 190
- Basketball 51
- Football 27
- Other 24
- Soccer 8
- Hockey 3
- MMA 1
View data table
| Category | Value |
|---|---|
| Baseball | 190 |
| Basketball | 51 |
| Football | 27 |
| Other | 24 |
| Soccer | 8 |
| Hockey | 3 |
| MMA | 1 |
Notable sets
| Year | Set | Why it matters | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1952 | 1952 Topps Baseball | The first modern flagship and home of the Mickey Mantle #311 rookie. | [3] |
| 1968 | 1968 Topps Baseball | The burlap-border design and the Nolan Ryan/Jerry Koosman rookie card. | [2] |
| 1993 | 1993 Topps Finest | An early chromium-style premium set that foreshadowed Chrome. | [1] |
| 2001 | 2001 Topps Heritage | Launched the vintage-reissue lane with the 1952 design. | [1] |
| 2018 | 2018 Topps Chrome | Shohei Ohtani and Ronald Acuña Jr. rookie-year Chrome cards. | [1] |
Grading notes
How this manufacturer's stock, cutting and production method affect the four grading pillars.
Centring[2]
Vintage Topps cards were cut on mechanical shears and often sit visibly off-centre. A 60/40 or better front is strong for 1950s–1970s issues; modern Chrome is judged far more strictly.
Print defects[2]
Print snow, fisheyes and roller marks are common on 1970s–1980s Topps stock. They are manufacturing defects but are still graded as surface flaws.
Chrome surface[1]
Topps Chrome and Finest surfaces scratch and scuff easily. Surface grades dominate the final number, and a single visible scratch can cap a card below gem mint.
How to identify Topps cards
1950s-1960s
Heavy card stock, white or cream reverse with statistics and a gum-stain rectangle; the Topps name appears in the copyright line.
1970s-1980s
Thinner stock, vivid team-colour borders, and a wax-pack wrapper design that changes every year; backs carry a cartoon and full stats.
1990s-present
Chromium or foil stock, a refractor rainbow, and a serial number or autograph on premium inserts; check the copyright line for the exact product year.
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Frequently asked questions
What is Topps best known for?
Topps is best known for its flagship baseball card sets, Topps Chrome and Bowman. The 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle #311 is the company's most famous card.
Is Topps still making cards?
Yes. Topps operates under Fanatics Collectibles and produces baseball, football, basketball, hockey, soccer, racing and entertainment cards.
Why are vintage Topps cards often off-centre?
Vintage cards were cut in high-volume production with mechanical shears. Off-centre borders are normal for the era and are graded relative to the print run, not modern tolerances.
What is a Topps refractor?
A refractor is a chromium-stock card with a reflective rainbow finish, introduced through Topps Chrome and Finest. Refractors and colour parallels are the main modern Topps chase.
Sources & methodology
Every factual claim in the profile is tied to the numbered sources below. Translated sources are tagged with their original language. Media provenance is recorded per image; images are stored locally and credited to their source.
- Topps corporate history (accessed 2026-11-06 · EN)
- Wikipedia: Topps (accessed 2026-11-06 · EN)
- PSA CardFacts: 1952 Topps (accessed 2026-11-06 · EN)
- Cardboard Connection: 1952 Topps Baseball (accessed 2026-11-06 · EN)
Unverified or incomplete
- The Duryea place photographs show the borough, not the former Topps production plant. The Sy Berger portraits are eBay listing images of historical photographs and are credited to the listing source, not relicensed.
Cite this profile
PreGradeCards Research. “Topps.” Card Manufacturers Directory. Last verified 2026-11-07. https://pregradecards.com/manufacturers/topps
Found an error? Report a correction with the source you are relying on.
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