Now THAT is a good question. They do have a statement that says “Any card that is determined to grade NM-MT or better meets Topps standards. Due to the production and handling of the cards, we strive to produce mint or better card(s) but cannot guarantee these conditions. The Topps Company will replace Topps produced cards within 12 months from the release date of the product, which is determined to be damaged or defective from production, after being reviewed by our quality control department.” That’s about all we get, though.
I haven't paid that much attention with S1 cause I have pulled actual garbage base. However, Topps Stadium Club, had awful QC with the chrome cards and numbered stuff. I lost a sale on Ebay because of it. Sent 2 cards back to Topps that came out of my compact box, arguably the 2 most valuable. I don't know what Topps and Fanatics are doing but whatever it is, it ain't good
