It’s a quiet Tuesday morning in New York City, the kind of day perfectly suited for a routine subway commute. Yet, unbeknownst to the bustling crowd of commuters, one particular subway rider is about to stumble upon inspiration in the most unassuming of places. Phil Imbriano, a senior designer at Topps, is on his usual trek to work when his eyes catch an intriguing detail—the corner of the train car dons a red-and-silver badge with sleek lines and elegant curves. Intrigued, Imbriano snaps a photo, subconsciously igniting the chain of creativity that will culminate in the latest Topps Series 1 baseball cards for 2025.
Design is everywhere, Imbriano muses. “I love drawing inspiration from everyday things,” he shares with an artist’s innate passion. From buildings to street signs, he’s learned to keep his eyes open for those sudden bursts of creativity that can be found in the most commonplace settings. While many of us might dismiss these as mere patterns, to Imbriano they are the seeds of a new vision—a vision that has now materialized as Topps’ latest collectible offering.
The 2025 baseball card series, launched today, depicts Imbriano’s discovery with two bold lines gracing the left and top edges. Old-school collectors might experience a delightful déjà vu, reminiscing over the 1982 Topps set, an echo not entirely intentional but perfectly fitting. Imbriano initially drew cues from the woodgrain allure of the 1962 and 1987 sets, but as he put it, the nod to ’82 was an unintended yet welcome bonus. “It blends vintage style with a modern twist,” he acknowledges, with a designer’s knack for happy accidents.
This perfect blend of familiarity and novelty wasn’t a solo endeavor; it emerged victorious from a gauntlet of design submissions. Topps’ internal selection process is as competitive as a pennant race, with over 20 designs battling it out over several rounds. With rigorous scrutiny, the best of these are honed and polished, sometimes even borrowing elements from earlier phases—like the small, refined field graphic indicating a player’s position in the current set.
From the chance subway sighting to this public release, Imbriano’s journey involved weaving around ten different designs before settling on the one that felt just right. It’s the kind of creative process invisible to the end user but crucial to the product’s allure. He reflects on the unseen labor of love, saying, “There’s so much that goes into this process. I don’t think most people realize how much work happens before they ever hold the card in their hands.”
As the designs leap from computer screens to prototypes, the cards are put through a tactile test. For Topps’ Senior Vice President of Product, Clay Luraschi, the transition from digital to tangible is indispensable. “When we’re down to the final five designs, we actually print them out and simulate opening a pack,” Luraschi explains. This method isn’t just a formality; it shapes the tactile experience cherished by millions of collectors. Throughout its 74 editions, Topps cards have journeyed from humble kitchen table beginnings with Sy Berger to this cutting-edge process.
But, as collectors know all too well, the base design is but a gateway into a larger universe. The 2025 Series 1 cards are just one part of a carnival of collectibles featuring crowd-pleasing subsets. Whether it’s the Future Stars collection or the City Connect Swatch Autographs, players and collectors alike can find something to cherish. Los Angeles Dodgers supporters, in particular, will prize the special base-card variations capturing iconic moments—like Freddie Freeman’s whimsical “Freddie Dance” around the bases, sure to bring a smile with each flip of the cardboard.
Honoring tradition while embracing modernity, this year’s set also celebrates the 35th anniversary of the iconic 1990 Topps cards. Known for their vibrant and bold style, these older cards pair seamlessly with Imbriano’s subway-inspired designs, each serving as a testament to the timeless cycle of design evolution.
For Imbriano, each card is more than a piece of paper. “I approach designing cards like I would a movie poster,” he reveals. Every card, in his eyes, is a miniature piece of art that should captivate and stand alone in any collector’s treasure trove. It’s a challenging yet rewarding mindset that Topps, as a brand, cultivates year in and year out, driven by the collector ethos.
“Phil’s design is incredible,” Luraschi praises. In years to come, he envisions these cards swiftly recognizable as relics of 2025, encapsulating a moment in sporting history in vivid design. Topps has once again delivered a fusion of nostalgia and innovation, all sparked by the commonplace inspiration of a subway badge.
