It looks like Topps isn’t the only ones getting in on the variation craze this year.  Upper Deck has announced that 25 cards of the 600 card set have between two and four variations, all with subtle tweaks, naming them ‘Double Take’ variations.  These cards are seeded one per 96 hobby packs, and one per 960 retail packs, and some versions of the ‘Double Take’ variations are up to six times as scarce as others.  The first two players named are Jorge Posada (347, three variations) and Chase Utley (376, four variations).    Upper Deck will announce the rest weekly through June.

This should be a lot of fun for collectors as they seek out the variation cards,” said Gabriel Garcia, Upper Deck’s Baseball brand manager. “We’ll be announcing more and more players every month up until July, so collectors really need to be on top of things to keep track.”

If you need a reason to collect these, by the way….

Autographed baseball memorabilia from Upper Deck Authenticated awaits the first five resourceful collectors who complete the 25-card variation first series set and send it in to Upper Deck headquarters for verification. Note: All sets will be returned to their respective owners once the contest deadline closes. Further information will be revealed in the coming weeks regarding the promotion’s entry rules and deadline.

Time to start the search!