Baseball LEAP 20xx Card Set for History Maker Baseball

Leap into a NEW era of big league baseball with Baseball LEAP 20xx!

We're SO excited to present this one-of-a-kind baseball game card set, a card set that puts you "ahead of the curve" and gives you a glimpse of the bright future of big league baseball! "Baseball LEAP 20xx" is targeted at the year 2040, about fifteen years ahead of this publication date (Christmas, 2024). We've looked at demographic and statistical trends to come up with what we think is a plausible presentation of what baseball will look like in the not-too-distant future.

It's also the ultimate "blue sky" pro season--you really ARE "making history" with this card set, AND you have a great deal of agency in how that history is going to unfold! You can customize your cards in a number of exciting ways, making YOUR "Baseball LEAP 20xx" experience different than anyone else's! (But, more on that in a moment...)

The idea for this set happened very early in the new year (2024). I thought it would be cool to commemorate the "leap" year by creating a new card mechanic that would allow players to "leap ahead" in ability level, based on certain in-game cues. That idea grew into putting this new mechanic as part of an entirely-new, forward-leaning card set. We went to work creating "Baseball LEAP 20xx" in early January, with the goal of having it ready in time for "Leap Day," February 29th. But, it was more work than I had anticipated (as you will soon read about!). So we opted for creating a sub-set of LEAP cards for the new Baseball America card set, launched on Leap Day. After that, we quietly continued work on the full-blown LEAP set as the year unfolded with the idea of releasing it at year-end as part of the holiday sale. And--here it is!

As mentioned at the outset, this card set is designed to be a look into the not-too-distant future of big league baseball. Expansion? Yes. We've added two new clubs, an AL franchise in Nashville and an NL team in Austin, TX. This bringing both leagues to sixteen teams. Game play? Big strikes, big hits, faster play--we expect these trends to continue, and this set reflects it. We've even introduced a new "triple flash" pitching quality, which a few of the LEAP "superstars" will display. (It works the same as the DB FLASH quality, except the pitcher gets THREE in a row (assuming he hits the quality with no outs in the inning!).

However, you should know that this is not exactly a "fictional" set!...

• We've included an (undisclosed!) number of real-life big leaguers from the 2024 season and earlier, and fast-forwarded them to the year 2040 where they would be established ICON stars in their 30s (or, in a few cases, early 40s). We encourage you to look for these "Easter eggs" in the set--each team has at least one! There are also a number of 2024 high school, college and minor league "prospects," who in our world have established themselves as long-time big league pros. You may not recognize them now, but you may be surprised a couple of years from now--"Hey, wait a minute! I KNOW that guy!"

• Umpires--same thing. We've included real-life umpires who could still be on the field in 2040, most of them would be in their late 40s or early to mid 50s.

• Ball Parks have also been fast-forwarded fifteen years. Which ball parks will still be in use in 2040, and which will have been torn down or abandoned? It's impossible to say for sure, but we've done some research and our 20XX Leap! stadium roster represents our best guess. Las Vegas has its (as of 2024, not yet built) state-of-the-art ball park, and there's a domed stadium in Arizona. We've built a brand new Astrodome in the greater Houston area, as well as new stadiums in the two expansion markets and a couple other cities, too. Some existing venues have new stadium sponsors. Ball parks like Yankee and Dodger Stadiums, and Fenway Park are, of course, still in existence. We've included a set of team-specific ball park cards to help you keep track.

As a finishing touch, we've created "faux logo" cards for each team. Obviously, these aren't ACTUAL team logos--we can't use those, they're trademarked. But it adds to the immersion for each team to have its own unique identifying mark.

Let's talk about the "blue sky" nature of this card set. It's said that EVERY team is a pennant contender on opening day (wink, wink), but for Baseball LEAP 20xx, it really IS true!

Each team has a base roster of 24 players of varying abilities. There's also a set of 55 "free agent" players of mostly modest ability, "filler" players which can be assigned to any team. At this point, the teams are more or less equal. But the BIGGEST variable to your card set is the LEAP cards! Your set contains 63 "leap" players, they're considered the stars of the 20xx season. These players LEAP back and forth from star ability to "super star" ability. It won't necessarily be an even split: some players' cards are designed to linger at one level or the other. (You can also opt to ignore the leap mechanic entirely, and use one side of the card or the other, full-time.) But all of the LEAP players are big name, big money stars. And, here's the thing: they are not assigned to any team. They have their own unique color palette, designed to make them stand out from the rest. Thus, you really CAN make ANY team a pennant-favorite with the strategic placement of LEAP players!

Choose the top players and sign them to your favorite club! Hold a draft. Or, deal them out randomly--there's enough for each team to get a couple! Sprinkle the cards in sparingly or liberally, your choice. You could even form two all-star teams of nothing BUT these players, which could run roughshod over the rest of your baseball experience (except for when they play the "other" all-star team!). It's all part of the fun of being commissioner of your OWN baseball universe!

We hope you enjoy the possibilities that Baseball Leap 20xx provides and that it inspires you to some grand undertakings. As we all know, sometimes the fun is in setting everything up, even if you don't ever get around to fully completing the project. We feel like, in that regard, this card set will be a "home run" for you!