The 2008 Topps Baseball Series 1, which was released on Feb. 6, included a card for a Japanese high school pitching phenom named Kazuo “The Uzi” Uzuki.
As many collectors suspected, “The Uzi” was a fabrication. One clue: Kazuo Uzuki means “the first son of April” in Japanese.
Although listed at only 5-foot-11 and 165 pounds (1.8 meters and 75 kilograms), “The Uzi” was said to be known for his devastating 104 mph (167 kph) fastball and was on his way to becoming the first Japan-based high-schooler to jump straight to professional baseball in America.
“The Uzi” rookie card is limited to one out of every 72 packs of cards.