Always Be Collecting: 2006 Fleer

2006 Fleer

Base Set: 430 cards (one series; last 30 cards exclusive to factory sets)
Parallels:

• Glossy: 400 cards (1:12 Hobby, 1:24 retail)
  
• Glossy Gold: 400 cards (1:144)

Inserts:

• Awards Winners: 6 cards*
  
• Lumber Company: 25 cards*
• Smoke 'n Heat: 15 cards*
• Smooth Leather: 14 cards*
• Team Leaders: 30 cards*
• Top 40: 40 cards (two-per-pack, fat pack exclusive)
  
• Stars of Tomorrow: 10 cards (1:10)
• Team Fleer: 15 cards (1:360)

* Stated odds of finding an insert from one of these sets: one-per-pack.

Autogamers:

• Autographics: 9 cards (1:432)
• Fleer Fabrics: 42 cards (1:36 Hobby, 1:72 retail)

Packaging: 36 pack, 10-card Hobby waxboxes; 24 pack, 10-card retail waxboxes; 14 pack, 10-card Blasters; 20 pack, 52-card Fat Pack boxes; factory sets
Notable Cards: The dozens of factory-set exclusive parenth-RCs.
Other Notes:

• First Fleer Baseball set produced by Upper Deck.
• Five years after Fleer-Skybox screwed over set builder by issuing a factory set with additional base set cards, Upper Deck issues a factory set with additional base set cards. Although in UD's defense, 2006 was the first year the MLBPA limited the number of releases to 20, and a dedicated Update set would have counted against that figure.
• First year of the MLBPA's "ROOKIE CARD" icon program; however, most 2006 Fleer cards bearing that icon are not "true" RCs.

Full Set: $40 (NmMT)
Full Set (factory): $50 (NmMT)


2006 Fleer Tradition

Base Set: 200 cards (one series)
Parallels:

• Sepia: (1:3 Hobby, 1:18 retail)
  
• Black & White: (1:9 Hobby, 1:36 retail)
  
• Press Plates: (1:288, Hobby exclusive)

Inserts:

• 1934 Goudey Greats: 100 cards (1:36, Hobby Exclusive)
• Blue Chip Prospects: 25 cards (1:6 Hobby, 1:18 retail)
• Diamond Tribute: 25 cards (1:9 Hobby, 1:36 retail)
• Grass Roots: 25 cards (1:6 Hobby, 1:36 retail)
• Triple Crown Contenders: 15 cards (1:9 Hobby, 1:36 retail)

Autogamers:

• Ken Griffey, Jr. 1989 Fleer Autographed Buyback: 1 card (Hobby exclusive, numbered to 99)
• Traditional Threads: 41 cards (1:41 Hobby, 1:108 retail)
• Signature Tradition: 2 cards (1:1269, Hobby exclusive)

Packaging: 36 pack, 10-card Hobby waxboxes; 36 pack, 10-card retail waxboxes;

Notable Cards: Kenji Johjima and Jon Lester RCs, Ryan Zimmerman, Jonathan Papelbon parenth-RCs.
Other Notes:

• In lieu of releasing an Update set, Upper Deck released this one-off product. They probably would have done better if they went with the Update set.
  
• Much like the 2002, Upper Deck released both a "Fleer Baseball" and "Fleer Tradition Baseball" sets. Unlike 2002, '06 Fleer Baseball is considered to be part of the Fleer/Fleer Tradition "lineage," while '06 Fleer Tradition should not.
• A design that borrows from various Topps sets from the 60s, 70s, and 80s.
• First Fleer set with Press Plates.
  

Full Set: $30 (NmMT)