1997 Bowman
Description
1997 Bowman is a 441-card set. For the first time, Bowman Baseball was released in two series (series one numbers 1-221, series two numbers 222-441). This was also the first year of the, now familiar, "Red/Blue" design convention. The 301 top prospects have blue borders while the 140 veteran stars are designated by red borders.
An unannounced Hideki Irabu card (number 221) was added late to the Series One set, but was produced at the same rate as any other Series One base card. Players that were featured for the first time on a Bowman card also carried a blue foil "1st Bowman Card" logo on the card front.
Rookie Cards in this set include Adrian Beltre, Kerry Wood, Brad Penny, and Eric Chavez in the first series; and Roy Halladay, Aramis Ramirez, Miguel Tejada, Vernon Wells, Jayson Werth, and Lance Berkman in Series Two.
Please note that cards 155 and 158 don't exist. Calvin "Pokey" Reese and George Arias are both numbered 156 (Reese is an uncorrected error - should be numbered 155). Chris Carpenter and Eric Milton are both numbered 159 (Carpenter is an uncorrected error - should be numbered 158).
$125 Guarantee
For the second year, Topps offered collectors to purchase an option to buyback their complete sets. To get the guarantee, collectors had to mail in the Guaranteed Certificate Request Form which was found in every three packs of either series along with a $5 registration and processing fee. To redeem the guarantee, collectors had to send a complete set of Bowman regular cards (441 cards in both series) along with the certificate to Topps between August 31st and December 31st, 2000. Topps would then send the collector a check for $125.
Distribution
24 packs per box, ten cards per pack.
Reviews
Insertion Ratios
| Cards | Total Cards | Numbered To | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base | 441 | - | ? |
| Internationals | 441 | - | one-per-pack |
| Bowman's Best Preview (S1) | 20 | - | 1:12 |
| Bowman's Best Preview Refractor (S1) | 20 | - | 1:48 |
| Bowman's Best Preview Atomic Refractor (S1) | 20 | - | 1:96 |
| Scout's Honor Roll (S1) | 15 | - | 1:12 |
| 1998 ROY Favorites (S2) | 15 | - | 1:12 |
| International Best (S2) | 20 | - | 1:12 |
| International Best Refractor (S2) | 20 | - | 1:48 |
| International Best Atomic Refractor (S2) | 20 | - | 1:96 |
| Blue Ink Autograph (S1, S2) | 89 | - | 1:96 |
| Black Ink Autograph (S1, S2) | 89 | - | 1:503 |
| Gold Ink Autograph (S1, S2) | 89 | - | 1:1509 |
| Derek Jeter Blue (S1) / Green Ink (S2) Autograph | 1 | - | 1:1928 |
Checklist
Base Set
Series One
Veterans (Reds)
Scout's Honor Roll
<sql2wiki database="carddb"> SELECT num,player,info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = "Bowman Scout's Honor Roll"); <sql2wiki>
1998 ROY Favorites
It should be noted that the actual 1998 Rookies of the Year (Ben Grieve and Kerry Wood) are not included. <sql2wiki database="carddb"> SELECT num,player,info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = 'Bowman 1998 ROY Favorites'); <sql2wiki>
International Best
This 20-card chromium-stock set features a variety of players, mostly from overseas. The design in identical to the 1997 Bowman's Best set. Each card is available in the following Refractor parallels.
- Refractor
- Atomic Refractor
<sql2wiki database="carddb"> SELECT num,player,info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = 'Bowman International Best'); <sql2wiki>
Autographs & Game-Used
Autographs
This 90-card set features top prospects with on-card autographs with the Topps Certified Autograph Issue Stamp. All cards EXCEPT the Derek Jeter are available in three different color parallels.
- Blue Ink
- Black Ink
- Gold Ink
The Blue Ink cards are the easiest to find while the Golds are the scarcest.
The Jeter was only available in either blue (Series One) and green ink (Series Two).
<sql2wiki database="carddb"> SELECT num,player,info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = 'Bowman Autographs Blue Ink'); <sql2wiki>