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The replacement version of the 1998 Flair Showcase Legacy Collection Roberto Alomar card was purchased on January 5, 2017. After 17 different tick marks on the tracking record, it finally arrived on February 9, 2017. It was stuck somewhere for 30 days. I had to report this as missing twice to the Post Office. Only after the second attempt was the tracking record updated. I’m glad I finally received this card because I’ve been itching to blog about it for a while.
While I’m putting this in the Errors category, this isn’t technically an error; it’s a replacement. However, this isn’t a typical replacement card commonly procured via an attempt to replace a damaged card. This was an actual pack-issued replacement. The replacement process happened during the manufacturing and development phase of production. The foil text color on typical 1998 Flair Showcase Legacy Collection parallels is blue (shown on the left). In contrast, the foil color on typical 1998 Flair Showcase Masterpiece parallels is purple (shown on the right). The example of the Roberto Alomar 1998 Flair Showcase Row 1 Legacy Collection shown on the right has a combination of blue and purple foil text color. The Legacy Collection logo is printed in standard blue foil text while Alomar and the Flair Showcase logo is printed in purple foil text.
Backstory on how these combo-color text examples entered market:
A few sheets of 1998 Flair Showcase Legacy Collection parallels were backdoored i.e., stolen from the vendor (Fleer/SkyBox). As a result, a run of Row 0 parallels have surfaced featuring no name script above the stats and the serial number printed below the stats. Since the cards, themselves, are authentic but were stamped after they were stolen, these are considered ‘aftermarket’ examples but are often marketed as promos on the secondary market.
Because those sheets were missing from the total required to print the the full run of Legacy Collections, Flair used the remaining Masterpiece sheets and stamped them with the Legacy Collection logos and respective serial numbers. These are quite a bit rarer than the standard issued full blue foil text Legacy Collection examples. The Alomar shown above is the first one I’ve ever seen on the open market but there’s believed to be between 6 and 7 examples of each card in the Row 1 set that feature the combo-color foil text.
Comparing Pack-Issued and Aftermarket Examples:
To give you an idea of how to distinguish between the two different types of Row 0 examples, the pack-issued and the aftermarket, the following scan is provided for assistance. Here is a visual reference of the two different Row 0 Legacy Collections for comparison:
Here are the specific differences between the two versions:
Left: This is the correct pack-issued version. It features the script with the players name above the stats box. The serial number is on the left side of the card and the “of” between the numerator and denominator features an “O” (the letter O) in the word.
Right: This is the backdoored aftermarket example. The script with the players name above the stats box is missing. The serial number is printed along the bottom edge of the card and the “of” between the numerator and denominator features a “0” (the number zero) in the word.
Aftermarket to Market: In a story shared via the Beckett News blog on September 2, 1999, Fleer/SkyBox issued a release indicating they obtained an injunction in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania prohibiting a CA dealer from selling unauthorized cards purchased from a third party that were made by the manufacturer. The cards were unauthorized examples of 1998 Flair Showcase Legacy Collection parallels that were stolen from the vendor prior to production completion. Once stolen, they were then stamped with serial numbers and introduced into the market. Aftermarket examples of the Row 0s can be identified by their lack of player name script above the stats and serial number printed below the stats on the card backs.
Here’s where it gets interesting.
Comparing Pack-Issued and Replacement Examples:
The following image features a side-by-side back comparison between the intended release and the replacement release of 1998 Flair Showcase Legacy Collection Row 1 parallels. Notice how the back of the replacement version appears identical with the only difference being the SEC number being 0. The replacement card is an authentic piece. You can tell because the “OF” between the numerator and denominator features an “O” (the letter O) in the word and not a “0” (the number zero) as shown on the aftermarket example.
To see what’s currently on eBay from 1998 Flair Showcase, click here.
Beckett Media brings us the following video featuring one excellent and insanely impressive collection of Flair Showcase cards. I highly recommend a complete viewing but if you’re pressed for time, these combo-color text variations are discussed at 11:43.[1]Hobby Q&A: A Masterpiece of a Basketball Collection. www.youtube.com
References
| ↑1 | Hobby Q&A: A Masterpiece of a Basketball Collection. www.youtube.com |
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I have the Tony Clark Row 0 aftermarket as well. No name on the back and the serial number is directly below the stats, as shown in your Frank Thomas image. It wasn’t mentioned in the listing as such, and at first I was upset but after awhile, I realized it wasn’t worth getting upset over.
I’ve noticed that the aftermarket Row 0s aren’t terribly rare but I think they’re still important to the full run of cards available for any one player in the set.
Very interesting comments on this Flair Legacy issue. Also to be noted is that the row 0 cards “back-doored” were only cards numbered 1 thru 60 of the 120 card set. I have busted over 300 boxes of this product and have a complete 480 card Legacy set all with factory packed cards with the player name in blue foil on the back. It may be a one-of-a kind! I’m currently working on a second set, about 85% complete. The rarest card in the set is the # 29 Ricky Ledee Row 0 real Legacy. I have only seen 2 in 20 years of working this set including my PSA 10 and 1 that I resold many years ago.
I’m always looking for more comments and info on this unique set.
The row 1 Purple Legacy cards are super rare and I’m guessing only 5 or 6 of each exist. I have a few including the Jeter Purple Legacy. I only know of 1 other.
I’m also holding the Row 0 Masterpiece cards of Bonds, Gwynn, Clemens and a few others that I pulled from packs. This has to be thee most interesting set I have dealt with in 50 years of collecting.
Wow, John! That’s incredible information to hear. I can only assume you broke 300 boxes during, or around the time the product came out; sealed boxes in today’s market have proven to be difficult to find. You’ve really accomplished quite the impressive task with completing a full 480-card Legacy set. Really amazing stuff. Thanks for reading.
Hello, Just read this. Very interesting information. I am interested in any Biggio cards you may have from this product.- Thanks.
Hi, Michael. Thanks for reading; I’m glad you liked it.
John, if you have any Biggio cards for sale, my email is mdoug18217@aol.com. Thanks!
Hey Patrick,
I’ve recently come across a collection of these cards, numbered to 100 with no name, dull finish on the back. Manning rc’s , moss rc’s , basketball, football. Are these worthless?
Hi Vince,
That’s really nice to hear. There’s certainly value there. Send us a message through our Contact page if you’re looking to sell them; we’d be interested in having a look.
I have a question about this set. I pulled 2 cards from the same box Jason Giambi sec. 2 row 0 seat 109. Numbered to 2000. 1 card #0046/2000 seems correct but i got another one #0426/2000 that is printed in the wrong place, over the card #. It looks like it was printed upside down. Anyone else get this error?
Hi, John. Thanks for sharing. If you can send us images of the two cards for comparison, that would help us get a better idea of what you have. Thanks for the comment.