1987 Topps, Tony Gwynn

Card No. 530

I can't think of another Tony Gwynn card I love as much as this one from 1987 Topps....All the elements come together to make this one a sparkler: terrific photo choice, HOF player, and an iconic design concept....Tony was enshrined in Cooperstown in 2007, receiving 97.6% of the vote on his first ballot....Sadly passed away in 2014 at the age of 54....Tony's rookie card can be found in the 1983 Topps set (#482)....Led all of baseball with a .370 BA during the '87 season.

*MK*

1990 Topps, Benny Santiago

Card No. 35

If you were a Little League catcher in the late '80s or early '90s, chances are that you occasionally pretended you were Benny Santiago....Hard as I tried, gunning down a would-be base stealer from my knees never ended well....Beginning with his 1987 Traded rookie though '95, Santiago was listed as 'Benny' on his cards....From '96 to his final card in 2004, he was listed as 'Benito'....The former N.L. Rookie of the Year picked up his third Silver Slugger and his third consecutive Gold Glove in 1990 for San Diego.

*MK*

1981 Topps, Dave Winfield

Card No. 370

Hall-of-Famer Dave Winfield proudly wears the rightful colors of the San Diego Padres on this blazer from 1981 Topps....The '81 base card design marks the seminal occasion of the Topps logo appearing on the card front....This is Winfield's final appearance in a Padres uni, as he donned Yankee pinstripes in the '81 Traded set....Dave's rookie appeared in the 1974 base set....His final Topps card can be found in the '95 set....Winfield earned an All-Star nod and a Silver Slugger Award in '81, his initial season in the Bronx.

*MK*

1999 Topps, Wally Joyner

Card No. 295

Many collectors--myself included--will always associate Wally Joyner with the Angels, but here he is during his San Diego days....1999 marked the second consecutive year that Topps rolled out gold borders on their base cards....Joyner's final Topps cards would come the following year, as the Georgia native appeared in both the 2000 base and Rookies & Traded sets....Wally's rookie card can be found in the iconic 1986 Topps Traded set....Batted just .248 with 5 homers over 323 ABs for the '99 Padres.

*MK*