By docsilvey

The 2008-2009 USA Baseball Box Set was officially released on January 28, 2009. Produced by Upper Deck, this released marked the eighth consecutive USA Box Set. This set was touted by USA Baseball as the most limited offering ever, with an announced print run of 2,665 sets. Collectors paid a premium for the limited availability, as the MSRP was $250, the most ever for a USA Box Set.

Featuring the 2008 National, 18U and 16U teams, the big draws at the time of release were RHP Stephen Strasburg (NT) and C Bryce Harper (16U). In contrast to the previous four box sets, many people turned profits on this set upon release. Historically, profits from the USA sets were realized after players were drafted and went on to become major league regulars.

The release features a 47-card base set, including each of the individual players from the National Team and 18U Team, while Bryce Harper was the only player from the 16U Team to be featured on his own card (the rest of the 16U Team were placed on cards featuring 3 players). Game-used jersey cards were included featuring a single jersey swatch in the cut-out portion of the “S” of a “USA” pattern, flanked by a picture of jersey fabric that made up the “U” and “A”. Many secondary sellers advertise these cards as “Triple Jersey” cards when, in fact, only a single swatch is inserted. (You can view the entire set checklist here).

Official USA Baseball Press Release

January 23, 2009
Upper Deck and USAB launch box set
Only 2,665 box sets produced, one-quarter of past production
North Las Vegas, Nev. — For years trading card collectors have known that if they want to get in on the hottest baseball diamond prospects, they need to look no further than USA Baseball and its annual box set. Upper Deck has once again partnered with USA Baseball this year to produce the most limited box set ever, short-printed to just 2,665 total sets. The sets include great content from the 2008 National Team, the 18U National Team and the 16U National Team. And for the first time ever, the set will include autographs and jersey cards from the 2008 Chinese Taipei National Team.Each 73-card set will include seven autographs in every box, including three on-card autographs. Collectors will also find six game-used jersey cards including two game-used patch cards. With the set being so limited, Upper Deck was able to sequentially number all of the game-used and autograph cards this year.

Collectors will not need to wait long to find these sets as Upper Deck has already started shipping them. To create additional excitement, USA Baseball fans can find rare autograph cards that feature a starting lineup with nine on-card autographs and the team roster autograph cards with over 20 autographs all on one card.

“We are excited to once again team with Upper Deck to produce the USA Baseball Box Set,” said David Perkins, chief operating officer of USA Baseball. “By featuring the first baseball cards of some of the game’s rising talent and keeping the number of sets limited, we hope to provide collectors and fans with a product with long-term value.”

“The USA Baseball National Teams’ box sets are extremely popular every year, but it was important to us to make them highly collectible by limiting the number we produced,” added Gabriel Garcia, Upper Deck’s Baseball associate brand manager. “To have each of the insert cards sequentially numbered with much less product in the market, we believe we can dramatically enhance the overall value of the sealed sets and singles.”

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