What is a rack-pack, anyway?

We did not always know everything. Just kidding...really! We still hear new terms that make us wonder who comes up with this stuff. In an effort to make sense of all these weird terms and abbreviations that are part of the hobby of Sportscard Collecting, we have assembled as much information, in one place, as any person can stand.

If this list is of use to you, let us know. We always like to get a pat on the back! Thanks for checking us out.

The Language of Sportscards

A

ABA

The abbreviation for the "American Basketball Association"

Action Packed

Former card manufacturer

Action Shot

A term used to describe cards of players in game situations rather than posed shots

AFL

The abbreviation for the "American Football League"

Airbrushing

The art of touching up a photo to remove imperfections or to update a jersey logo

AL

The abbreviation for Major League Baseball's "American League"

All-Star card

Usually a subset card picturing a player who participated in the previous season's all-star game

Assorted

A mix of cards or items; some duplicates are expected in a lot like this

Auction

Items put up for public sale to the highest bidder. Auctions can be held either in person, by mail, by phone or via the Internet

Auction Catalog

A document listing the items in an auction. Usually some description of the items is included

Authentication

Verification that an item (card, autograph) is genuine

Authorized Issue

A card or memorabilia item properly licensed

Autograph

A signature of a person

Autographed Card

A signature of a person on a card

B

Batter Up

A card manufacturer of the 1930's

Bazooka

A type of Topps Bubble Gum. The Bazooka name has been used to issue cards since the 1950's

Black Sox

A nickname given to the 1919 Chicago White Sox who were accused of deliberately losing the World Series

Blank Back

A card that has nothing printed on the back

Blanket

A term used for a collectible item of the 1910's consisting of a piece of fabric that sometimes featured baseball players.The piece came wrapped around a cigarette pack

Blue Back

In 1951, the background used for one of the two Topps major issues

Border

The part of the card that surrounds the photo in the middle

Bowman

A card manufacturer of the 1940's and 1950's. Bought out by Topps, the Bowman name was picked up again in 1989 and has been used since then

Boxing Card

A card featuring a prize fighter

Break (as in "break some packs")

Opening packs /boxes of a card product

C

Cabinet Card

An over sized trading card, typically issued just after the turn of the 20th Century (i.e. circa 1910-1915) featuring detailed paintings

Card Show

A gathering of collectors and dealers under one roof looking to buy/sell/trade sports cards and memorabilia

Card Stock

The kind and quality of the material a card is printed on

Cello

A term used for an unopened pack, box or case in which there is one grouping of cards in which you can see the top and bottom card

Centering

A reference to how accurately the borders of a card measure to each other. A perfectly centered card is often referenced as "50/50" side-to-side and "50/50" top to bottom

Cereal Box

A box containing cereal which sometimes has sport's cards placed inside the box and at other times on the outside. Some cereal boxes have large images on the front, making the box itself collectible

Certificate of Authenticity

Usually issued to verify that an autograph is legitimate

Checklist

A listing of all the cards in a set. Many pre-1980 checklists were marked, making them scarce in hi grade condition

Chipping

Missing flakes of material on the edges of a card

Coach's Card

A card featuring a coach

Collation

The number of different cards a collector gets in an average box. Also, putting cards in order by card number. Please visit our FAQ section for directions on a remarkably easy way to sort cards numerically

Combination Card

A card featuring more than one person

Common

An average card in a set

Complete Set

All the cards in a set as one unit

Condition

The shape an item is in. Condition is one of the major characteristics in determining the value of a card or collectible

Counterfeit

An illegitimate reprint of a real card, an illegitimate autograph of a player (thought to be quite prevalent on the Internet), or otherwise fake memorabilia items

Cracked (as in "bat")

A bat that has been partially split during game usage

Cracker Jack

A candy manufacturer. Also issued cards in the 1910's and the 1980's

Crease

A wrinkle in a card typically caused by the card being bent

D

Dealer

A person who tries to make a profit by the buying and selling of sports cards and memorabilia

Diamond Star

A card manufacturer during the 1930's

Die-Cut

A card with a cut designed and created at the factory. Die-cuts come in a variety of shapes and sizes

Ding

A small amount of damage to a card, usually a corner

Donruss

One of the leading baseball card manufacturers since 1981. Now part of Donruss/Playoff LP, producing sports trading cards under the Donruss, Playoff, Leaf and Score brand names

Double Header (Topps)

A set issued in 1955 by Topps. Shows two players on the same card

Double Play (Gum Inc.)

A brand of Pre- War cards issued by Gum Inc.

Double Print

A card printed in twice the quantity as a regular card

E

Error Card

A card with a mistake. For example, a card in which the player's photo is not the person identified on the card

EX

An abbreviation for a graded card condition known as "Excellent". This is a mid-level grade typified by reasonable handling

EX-MT

An abbreviation for a graded card condition known as "Excellent-Mint". This is an upper mid-level grade, exhibiting reasonable handling but also having some facets of a Mint card

Exhibit Card

A series of cards issued for more than 4 decades. These cards were available mainly through arcade machines and you could see what they looked like before buying one of them

Extended Set

A set issued as an update to the regular set issued earlier in a season

F

Facsimile Autograph

A printed autograph on a card designed to show what the player's actual signature looks like

Factory Set

A complete set issued by the manufacturer and sold directly to dealers or other resellers of merchandise. A grouping of sets from the manufacturer comes in a case

Fair

This is a lower-level grade for a card, typified by rounded or heavily notched corners, noticeable creases, and noticeable scuffing or tears

Fleer

A long-standing manufacturer of trading cards

Foil Box

A (typically sealed) box of trading cards containing foil wrapped packs

Foil Case

A (typically sealed) case of trading cards containing several boxes

Foil Packs

A pack of cards with a foil wrapper

Food Set

A set issued with a food product (e.g. - Hostess, Tombstone, and French's)

G

Game Used

An item used in an actual game

Gem Mint (Gem MT)

An upper-level grade for a card. A perfect card to the naked eye, while incredibly slight imperfections are allowable when viewing under magnification

Gloss

A shiny, clear coating to the front or back of a trading card

Glossy Set

A complete set of cards featuring glossy fronts or backs. A glossy set is typically an upgraded parallel version of a basic (non-glossy) set

Good

A lower-level condition for a graded card, with noticeably rounded or heavily notched corners, Severely chipped or notched edges, and noticeable creases or tears

Good/Very Good

A lower-level condition for a graded card, sharing characteristics with "Good" and "Very Good" cards

Goudey

A defunct card manufacturer of the 1930's and 1940's

Grade

The overall condition assigned to a card

Gum Card

A card issued with a gum product

Gum Stain

A card in which the gum seeped through and damaged the card

H

Hartland

A manufacturer of statues in the 1950's and 1960's

High Numbers

Cards issued late in a run by a manufacturer when cards are issued in separate series

Hockey Card

Cards featuring hockey players

Hoops

A basketball card manufacturer in the 1980's and 1990's

I

Inserts

Cards which are not part of the regular set. Modern inserts are rarer than the card sets into which they are inserted

J

K

Kellogg's

A cereal manufacturer that included cards in their cereal in the 1970's and 1980's

Key Cards

The important cards in a set

L

Layering

A build up of cardboard layers. Also, the separation of those layers

Leaf

Card manufacturer.Made its first baseball set in 1948. Today, Leaf is operated by Donruss/Playoff and includes such brands as Leaf Certified and Leaf Rookies & Stars

Lithograph

A premium print of artwork or a poster

Lot

A grouping of cards or items. Short for an "auction lot" which specifies a group of items for sale

Low Series

Cards issued by manufacturers at the beginning of a year

M

MLB

The abbreviation for "Major League Baseball"

Manager Card

A card featuring a manager

Memorabilia

Items (jerseys, gloves, balls, bats, pucks, etc.) relating to a game

Mini

A smaller version of a card

Mini-Helmet

A smaller version of a helmet. Primarily used by autograph collectors as an item to get signed

Minor League Card

A card featuring players from minor league teams or leagues

Mint

A high-level grade for a card, typified by being an almost perfect card that may have one very minor flaw visible to the naked eye

MT

An abbreviation for a graded card condition known as "Mint"

N

National

A hobby term given to the National Sports Collectors Convention. A meeting place where a large grouping of collectors and dealers meet each year in different locations

National Chicle

A football card set issued in the 1930's. Considered to be the first major football card set of the 20^th Century

NBA

The abbreviation for the "National Basketball Association"

Near Mint

An upper end mid-level grade that is most commonly found in nice vintage material (i.e. from the mid 1970's and back). Near Mint cards typically display light handling with a reasonable array of minor flaws in addition to several facets of a Mint card

Near Mint-Mint

An upper end grade that is most commonly found in modern material (i.e. from the early 1980's to present day). Near Mint-Mint cards typically display many facets of a Mint card but may have one reasonable flaw (i.e. a touch of wear on the corners) or a handful of minor flaws (i.e. small print spots)

NFL

The abbreviation for the "National Football League"

NL

The abbreviation for Major League Baseball's "National League"

NM

A shorthand term for the condition "Near Mint"

NM-MT

A shorthand term for the condition "Near Mint-Mint"

Non-Sport Card

A card featuring a topic not relating to sports

Notching

Relatively serious damage to the edges of a card typified by noticeable chunks and divots

O

O-Pee-Chee

The Canadian Subsidiary of Topps. O-Pee-Chee issued cards in Baseball, Football and Hockey

Obverse

The front of a card

Off-Center

A card not properly centered

Old Judge

A major card issue of the 18^th Century

Out Of Focus

A blurry image

P

Pack

An unopened collection of cards in which the cards inside are not known

Parkhurst

A hockey card manufacturer of the 1950's and 1960's. The name was revived in the 1990's to issue more hockey cards

Personalized

Items autographed to a particular person. For example, To Wayland, Best Wishes; Mickey Mantle

Philadelphia Gum Co

From 1964 through 1967 this company issued cards of NFL players

Play Ball

This company issued Pre World War 2 card sets

Playoff

Active since 1992, Playoff is one of the leaders in the football category, highlighted by 1998 Playoff Contenders, featuring the industry's first autographed Rookie Cards. Baseball products were added under the Playoff umbrella in 2001

Poor

A low-end grade that is typified by heavily rounded or heavily notched corners, severe print spots, heavy creases, and severe color or focus imperfections

Post

Refers to cards that were issued by the Post Cereal Company

Post-War

Items issued after World War 2

Pre-Accident

Usually meant to describe items signed by Roy Campanella prior to his paralyzing car accident in 1958

Pre-war

Items issued before World War 2

Premium

Items issued as an added bonus for collectors. Usually a mail-in product for a set number of wrappers and some money

Price

How much a collectible costs

Price Guide

A guide to help determine the value of the myriad of sports cards and collectibles issued

Pristine

A high end card grade typified by looking perfect to the naked eye and being Mint when viewed with magnification.

Private Signing

An autograph session with an athlete at a time and/or place not open to the general public

Pro Set

A now-defunct Football and Hockey Card manufacturer of the 1980's and 1990's

Professional Sports Authenticators

Also known as PSA. This company grades and authenticates cards and memorabilia

Program

A printed item purchased at a game so a fan can know who is playing

Promotional Card (Promo)

Card(s) issued to show what the product will look like and to help spur future sales

Q

R

Rack Pack

Rack packs are multi-packs in which one can see the top and bottom card in each section. These racks are issued in boxes and cases

Rarity

How tough something is to obtain. The rarer an item the greater the value

Recolored

An item colored to make it look better than it really is

Red Back

A name given to one of the card sets issued in 1951 by Topps because it had a red back

Red Heart

A baseball set issued in 1954 by this dog food manufacturer

Regional Set

A set issued in a specific area of the country rather than nationally

Reprint

Cards issued to reproduce the originals. Usually designed to be different from the originals

Restored

A card or piece of memorabilia which someone has tried to return to a like-new condition. A restored card is considered to be of very little value

Reverse

The back of a card

Rookie Card

Any league-licensed, widely distributed card to feature a player in his first year of trading cards

S

Score

Football brand under Donruss/Playoff LP. Score also produces Dragon Ball Z and Buffy the Vampire Slayer non-sports cards

Scorecard

A small program basically designed just so a game can be scored

Scored

A program or scorecard which has been scored at the game

Second-Year Card

A card issued during the second year of a player

Secretarial

An item signed by a person's secretary

Series

A section of a set deliberately split up by the manufacturer to distribute at different times of the year. (I.e. First series cards 1-100 are released in April and Second series cards 101-200 are released in July).

Set

A complete accumulation of all the items issued

Short Print

A card issued in lesser quantity than other cards in a set

Show

An event typically held at a public arena or hotel where dealers from around the region (or around the nation for a big show) set up tables to buy and sell trading cards. Professional athletes often make appearances at card shows to sign their collectibles

Signed-In-The-Presence

Autographed in front of the person who owns the card or collectible

Single Signed Ball

A ball with only one signature on it

Skybox

A subsidiary company of Fleer

Slabbed

A card encapsulated in a plastic shell by a grading company

SP

A shorthand term for "Short Print". A short print card is one that is deliberately seeded into packs at a scarcer rate than basic issue cards

Sportflics

A card manufacturer of the 1980's and 1990's. Also spelled 'Sportflix'.

Sporting Life

An old sports magazine

Sports Card

A card featuring a player or team from a specific sport

Sports Collectible

An item featuring a sport issue. Can be almost anything relating to sports

Sports Collectors Universe

The parent name of the company of which PSA is a part

Sports Kings

A multi-sport gum card set issued by Goudey in the mid 1930's

Sports Memorabilia

Usually a game related item relating to any sport

Stain

Damage to an item caused by a substance not intended to be used on it

Stand-Ups

A perforated trading card that can be popped out to stand by itself

Standard Size Card

Cards that measure 2 ½" by 3 ½"

Star Card

A card featuring a better player in a given sport

Starter Set

A grouping of cards designed to give a collector the beginnings of a set

Starting Lineup

Issued by Kenner since the late 1980's - these are statues featuring sports players

Sticker

Cards issued with an adhesive back

Stock

A dealer's inventory - See Also "Card Stock"

Superstar Card

A card of one of the leading players in the game

T

T-206

A tobacco card set issued between 1909 and 1911. This was the most important set issued between 1900 and 1930

Tab

A coupon, usually attached to the bottom of a card

Team Ball

A ball signed by all the members of a team

Team Card

A card featuring all the members of a team

Team Set

A grouping of cards featuring all the issues of the players of a particular team

Test Issue

A set issued as a test to see if a product would sell well

Ticket

The document that gets one into a sporting event. These can become valuable collectibles.

Tiffany set

The name given to the high-definition parallel sets issued by Topps in the 1980's and 1990's

Tobacco Card

Cards issued with tobacco products.The most famous of which is the "T-206" Honus Wagner card

Topps

Perhaps the most prolific manufacturer ever. Topps has been issuing cards since the 1940's in all the major sports

Trade Paper

A periodical about the card collecting hobby

Traded Set

A set issued after the original issue primarily featuring players who were traded since the original issue came out

Trimmed

A card reduced in size from when it was issued, usually to hide miscut or damaged edges and corners. Trimmed cards have very little value

Triple Folder

A large card featuring three sections that fold into each other

U

Unauthorized Issue

A card issue which is not licensed by a league or player's association

Uncut Sheet

A complete sheet of a grouping of cards before it is cut into individual units

Update Set

A set issued after the original issue primarily featuring players who were traded since the original issue came out

Upper Deck

A major card manufacturer since the late 1980's. They issue cards in all four major sports

V

Variation

A card issued with two or more different designs

Vending Box

A grouping of cards issued by the factory in original form without being in any sort of a pack

Vending Case

A grouping of Vending Boxes. Mainly shipped to dealers

Very Good

A lower end condition for a trading card. Very Good cards typically show a good deal of handling with soft corners, scuffing etc

Very Good/Excellent

A lower end condition for a trading card. These cards are typified by slight notching of the corners, chipped or notched edges, and very minor scuffing or an extremely subtle tear

VG

A shorthand term for the condition "Very Good"

VG-EX

A shorthand term for the condition "Very Good to Excellent"

Vintage

Items considered to be older. Generally determined to be Pre-1970

W

Want List

A list of items a collector wishes to acquire

Wax

A shorthand term for sealed wax packs or wax boxes. The term "wax" most often refers to sealed material that was originally released in the early 1990's or back - a time when packs were wrapped and sealed in wax paper wrappers. It can casually reference modern era packs or boxes that no longer use actual wax paper

Wax Box

A sealed (or never opened) box of trading cards featuring wax-paper wrapped packs. It can casually reference modern era boxes that no longer use actual wax paper

Wax Case

A sealed case of trading cards featuring several boxes of cards with wax-paper wrapped packs. It can casually reference modern era cases that no longer use actual wax paper

Wax Dealer

A dealer that specializes in buying and selling sealed packs, boxes or cases

Wax Pack

A sealed pack of trading cards wrapped in a wax paper wrapper

Wax Stain

A dark stain typically found on the back of a cardboard trading card, whereby the wax from a wrapper leaked through the bottom card of a pack

X

Y

Z