The 2005-2006 USA Baseball National Team & Junior National Team Box Sets were produced by Upper Deck and represented the fourth annual box set release for the USA Baseball organization. The appearance of the Junior National Team (or 18U team as it is now called), was new and generated a lot of excitement among USA Baseball collectors. The box sets were released to the public on December 22nd, 2005. As with the previous three releases, the print run was announced at 10,000 sets for each squad. 24-set cases contained 12 sets of each team’s respective issue. SRP was $29.99 per set at the time of release, and collectors could order sets directly from the USA Baseball website.
With each direct purchase, collectors were rewarded with a special 2005 National Training Center Groundbreaking Promotional Autograph Card. The full NTCG autograph set consisted of 14 unnumbered Team USA alumni cards [image of card fronts | image of card backs] across three color variations (black, blue and red), and were initially given out to individuals in attendance at the August 8th, 2005, groundbreaking for the construction of the new $10.8 million dollar USA Baseball National Training Center in Cary, NC [link to press release]. The players featured in this special set included Anthony Reyes, Brandon League, Brant Ust, Chris Wimmer, Daylan Holt, Jeff Deardorff, Josh Karp, James Loney, John Wilson, Jason Weir, Kip Bouknight, Keoni DeRenne, Mark Rosen, Matt Whitney, and Zack Segovia. These cards are now very hard to find on the secondary market.
In general, both of the 2005-2006 box sets featured base cards of both teams plus a team checklist card. The player base cards were numbered #51-#94 as they were a continuation of the “Living Set” concept that started with the 2003 box set. The card design was the same as the previous two box sets, which was what the “living set” was. This was the final year for this set as the 2006-2007 box set featured a completely revamped design. Each box set contained one autographed card, one autographed card with a game-used jersey swatch, a dual autographed card, and a special clear ”Vision of the Future” acetate card [link to acetate card pic]. There were a total of 10 short-printed acetate cards announced (NT: Ian Kennedy, Max Scherzer, David Price, Matt LaPorta, and Jon Jay; JNT: Greg Peavey, Brett Anderson, Tyson Ross, Marcus Lemon, and Lars Anderson).
New for this issue was the inclusion of green autographed parallels numbered to /2. The green parallel first debuted in the 2004 USA 25th Anniversary Alumni Box Set. The other parallels included black autographs (#’d/475 NT; #’d/495 JNT), blue autograph/jersey (#’d/350 NT; #’d/360 JNT), red autograph/jersey (#’d/100 NT; #’d/100 JNT), dual black autographs (#’d/250 NT; #’d/250 JNT), dual blue autographs (#’d/75 NT; #’d/100 JNT), and dual red autographs (#’d/16 NT; #’d/16 JNT); the green auto parallel line spanned all of these insert sets.
- SET SPECIFIC INFO FROM THE ORIGINAL 11/28/2005 USA BASEBALL PRESS RELEASE:
- 23-Card Regular Issue USA Baseball National Team Set featuring each of the 22 players on the 2005 USA Baseball National Team and a team picture/checklist card.
- 30 National Team Dual-Signature Cards: This insert includes authentic autographs from two of the 22 members of the 2005 USA Baseball National Team. Sets include “Collegiate Connections” – six different cards, ”Team Leaders” – thirteen different cards, and “Future Matchups” – eleven different cards. Look for Black, Blue, Red and Green signatures.
- 22 National Team Signature Jersey Cards: This insert includes an authentic autograph and a piece of an “Opening Day” game-used jersey from one of the 22 members of the 2005 USA Baseball National Team. Look for Blue, Red and Green signatures.
- 22 National Team Signature Cards: Collect an authentic autographed card from one of the 22 members of the 2005 USA Baseball National Team member. Look for Black and Green signature cards.
- 22 National Team Acetate Cards: This insert, “Vision of the Future” includes an acetate card from one of the 22 members of the 2005 USA Baseball National Team.
- 21-Card Regular Issue USA Baseball Junior National Team Set featuring each of the 20 players on the 2005 USA Baseball Junior National Team and a team picture/checklist card.
- 29 Junior National Team Dual-Signature Cards: This insert includes authentic autographs from two of the 20 members of the 2005 USA Baseball Junior National Team. Sets include “Across America” – eight different cards, “Future Category Leaders” – thirteen different cards, and “Future Matchups” – eight different cards. Look for Black, Blue, Red and Green signatures.
- 20 Junior National Team Signature Jersey Cards: This insert includes an authentic autograph and a piece of a “Opening Day” game-used jersey from one of the 20 members of the 2005 USA Baseball Junior National Team. Look for Blue, Red and Green signatures.
- 20 Junior National Team Signature Cards: Collect an authentic autographed card from one of the 20 members of the 2005 USA Baseball Junior National Team member. Look for Black and Green signature cards.
- 20 Junior National Team Acetate Cards: This insert, “Vision of the Future,” includes an acetate card from one of the 20 members of the 2005 USA Baseball Junior National Team.
Filed under: 2005-2006 Upper Deck USA Box Set
Tagged with: 2005-2006 USA Box Set, Baseball Card Set Reviews
