Weekend content can get messy fast, so the Vintage Program is worth sorting out before you start burning games for no reason. It dropped on May 29 beside the Old School Event and May Spotlight Drop 4, and it runs on a simple 100 XP track with player cards, packs, stubs, and Game XP mixed in. If you're watching the market or saving resources like MLB 26 stubs, it helps to know which cards you can earn for free and which ones may need to come from packs or the marketplace.

What the Vintage Program asks from you

The path has 20 reward spots, with something unlocking every 5 Program XP. That's a nice pace, because you're not stuck grinding forever between rewards. You'll pick up Luis Arraez at 20 XP, Robbie Ray at 40 XP, Michael Conforto at 60 XP, Lou Gehrig at 80 XP, and Matt Carpenter at 100 XP. Along the way, there are standard packs, a Ballin' is a Habit Pack, a Headliners Random Pack, a Deluxe Vintage Pack, 500 stubs, and around 8,000 Game XP for your broader progression.

Best things to check before you play

• Build your lineup with Vintage Series cards as soon as you unlock them.
• Stack hits, runs, total bases, and home runs in the same games.
• Play at least one Conquest game early so you don't forget the mission.
• Use earned player cards instead of buying every missing piece right away.
• Track Parallel XP closely, because it adds up while you're doing normal stat missions.

You'll notice pretty quickly that this program isn't really about one hard challenge. It's more about not wasting at-bats. If you load into games with random cards, you'll still make progress on general stats, sure, but you'll miss the Vintage Parallel XP that makes the route much cleaner.

Key rewards on the XP path

The mission list gives out more XP than you actually need, which is good news. You only need 100 XP to finish the reward path, but the available missions add up to 150 XP. That means you can skip a task or two if it doesn't suit your roster. The easiest early targets are 31 hits, 18 strikeouts, 17 runs, 47 total bases, 6 homers, and 5 wins. After that, lean into the 2,000, 4,000, and 6,000 Parallel XP missions with Vintage Series players.

Unlocking Vintage Ketel Marte

Ketel Marte is tied to the Vintage Collection rather than the 100 XP program finish. To get him, you need to collect 25 Vintage Series cards, including names such as Derek Jeter, Chase Utley, Larry Walker, Gary Sánchez, Joc Pederson, Nolan Arenado, Xander Bogaerts, Fred McGriff, Tyler O'Neill, Ubaldo Jiménez, and the program cards you earn naturally. Don't rush every purchase at once; prices can move as more people open packs. If you're filling the last few slots and comparing options like MLB 26 stubs for sale, check which cards are cheapest, which are usable in your squad, and which ones help future collections too.