C.A.: 2026 Topps Shoeless Joe Jackson, 1991-themed insert

 (Woof, blog views have taken another downturn, basically in the last two weeks. Maybe everyone was too busy watching the Olympics! Anyway, for those still reading, this is called Cardboard Appreciation and we're at the 365th in a series):

 

As far as I can tell, this is the first time Shoeless Joe Jackson has appeared on a Topps card.

 

I pulled it when I went back for a hanger box of 2026 Topps last week. I opened it at work. When I saw the card I didn't think anything of it other than "that's a weird-looking thing."

 

But later I remembered how MLB removed Shoeless Joe and other deceased ballplayers from its permanently ineligible list last spring, making them available to be voted into the Hall of Fame. Also, since Topps doesn't make a move without MLB approval, that means Jackson (and I assume Pete Rose) are eligible to appear in current baseball cards.

 

Up until now my Shoeless Joe cards have been created by Upper Deck, Donruss/Playoff/Panini/Leaf, various TCMA products, Conlon, Pacific Legends and some reprint issues. I collect him casually since he shares my birthday. But I never noticed that Topps hadn't featured a card of his until now*.

 

I understand the recent reasons but why nothing during the retro craze of the early 2000s or in those 1980s Topps-food product collaborations? My guess is some other company always had the Jackson estate license and Topps never thought he was interesting enough to include in a set, or more likely, he was too controversial to include in a set.

 

No matter what you think of him and whether he belongs in the Hall or not (I'm certainly not getting into that), Jackson should definitely be appearing in baseball cards as one of the on-field greats of the game. If there were two movies made about him, he should have his share of cards.

  

The back. Full career stats! I don't think that's happened too often on his cards. Topps is still being the MLB yes man about the Cleveland portion of his career, even though they were called the Indians for only 1915. Before that they were the Naps.

 

That was the most interesting card from the hanger box, though I also pulled the numbered green-bordered Shota Imanaga card that I showed a couple posts ago from that box, too.

 

I also fared better with Dodgers pulls with two Mookie Betts inserts. Sure, the 2026 inserts are lame, but it's better than pulling inserts of Fernando Tatis Jr., which I have done many more times than the zero times I want that to happen!

 

 

Also pulled this Clayton Kershaw career-closer diamante parallel.

 

Have plenty of work to do for the Dodgers team set. I haven't gotten to looking for team sets online, heck I just ordered an A&G team set and that set's been out for like 3 months. So it's still appreciated when people send me base Dodgers as The Writer's Journey did recently.

 

 

He sent me Mookie Betts' marvelous card, this is his best base card since he became a Dodger.

 

 

 

J.T. also hit the bull's-eye with this Clayton Kershaw card. I was puzzled when I first saw it, thinking it was a fairly recent issue. But then turning to the back I saw it was released in 2014 -- it was an Archives insert that somehow passed me by!

 

I used to be a lot better 12 years ago with tracking down Dodgers inserts, must've been the point when I started slacking off.

 

I haven't purchased any 2026 since but I'll probably pick up something small this week just because the shine hasn't worn off yet. Flagship doesn't have long though. I see the release date for 2026 Heritage is March 18. 

* - Shoeless Joe apparently was in the Topps Living set in 2025, so if you count online exclusives then Topps had made a card before this one.