There are two 1983 insert sets and I'll star with the All Star set. The actual 1983 All Star set was a subset of the main set. It consisted of the eight starting All Star position players from each league, plus three pitchers for each.
Four Cubs are in the All Star set. None of the three active players were on the 2017 All Star team, so why are they in the set? Also, Ryne Sandberg wasn't on the 1983 All Star team. Why is he in the set?
The other 1983 set is a rookies set. There was no rookie set in 1983 for Topps to copy. They just made regular looking cards for the players they consider to be the top rookies.
Both of these have had brief appearances with the 2018 Cubs that have not gone well. Tseng's ERA is 13.50 and his is the better of the two. Maples has an ERA of 16.88. I would argue that they are not among the top rookies!
Almost makes you wonder if Topps seriously has a quota of cards that they make mandatory to create for certain players (Bryzzo, Russell, Schwarber) and if the rookies are in a similar boat. Because there is really no reason why Maples and Tseng should be in mid-season sets. All-Stars when you're not All-Stars? Mmm, mmm, mmm. Almost made me wonder if those were errors, given the lay of the land lately with forced errors.
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