1983 Topps, Willie McGee

Card No. 49

One of my favorite rookie cards from the decade of the '80s most certainly would be this one of the great Willie McGree....From the off-centered action shot to the sneering inset photo to the backdrop of the Shea Stadium outfield wall, there's just so much to love....McGee was featured in every regular Topps set from 1983 through 1994....Interestingly, his last Topps card was in '94 even though he played through the '99 season....Led the Cards and finished 12th in the N.L with 172 base hits in '83.

*MK*

1990 Topps, Ken Griffey Jr.

Card No. 336

Call me crazy, say what you want: This is Ken Griffey, Jr.'s best Topps card....While it doesn't have the fanfare that his 1989 Topps Traded rookie carries, you can't deny the charm and near-perfection of this card....Full disclosure: I'm a Rookie Cup junkie....Junior's farewell card appeared 20 years later in the 2010 Topps set....Made the first of 13 career All-Star Game appearances and won the first of 10 Gold Gloves in 1990 with the Mariners.

*MK*

2010 Topps, Prince Fielder

Card No. 1

In its nearly 70 years of producing baseball card sets, I can't recollect a more colorful or iconic Card No. 1 of a checklist than this beauty of the ever-affable Prince Fielder....Perhaps the greatest home plate celebration of all-time....This is the one-and-only horizontally-oriented base card of Fielder (not counting subset cards)....Prince's rookie card can be found in the 2006 Topps set....Established a career high and led the league with 114 walks in 2010.

*MK*

1977 Topps, Mike Cuellar

Card No. 162

A lot of folks go in for '75 Topps as their favorite design of the '70s, but I've never been conventional and, therefore, consider the '77 set as my favorite in terms of aesthetics....This happens to be the final entry for Mike Cuellar in the Topps catalog....His rookie appeared in the 1959 set as a member of the Reds....The '69 A.L. Cy Young Award winner and author of four 20-win seasons, Cuellar's career unceremoniously concluded in 1977 with the California Angels (0-1, 18.90 ERA in 2 appearances). 

*MK*

1991 Topps, Darryl Strawberry

Card No. 200

As a lifelong Mets fan, I've always considered this card kinda iconic since it's the final Topps card of Darryl Strawberry in a Mets uni....Of Darryl's 8 Topps cards as a Met (including his 1983 Traded rookie, but excluding any Team Leader and All-Star cards), this is one of only two in which he's not brandishing a bat ('86 is the other)....Straw appeared in the 1991 Traded set later that year in Dodger blue....Led the '91 Dodgers in both homers and RBIs with 28 and 99, respectively. 

*MK*

2008 Topps, James Shields

Card No. 495

Both James Shields and the Tampa Bay Rays found plenty of success in 2008, as the young right-hander notched 14 wins while his club won its first-ever AL pennant....This is Shields' second regular Topps card....His true rookie can be found in the 2006 Updates & Highlights set....James started Game 2 of the '08 World Series, holding the Phillies scoreless over 5 2/3 innings to earn the victory.

*MK*

1975 Topps, Fran Healy

Card No. 251

While his playing career may have lasted just 9 seasons, Fran Healy made a bigger name for himself over his 25-plus years as a TV broadcaster for both the Yankees and Mets....Caught a pair of no-hitters with K.C. and won a World Series ring with the Yanks....This is Healy's fourth Topps card....His rookie card appears in the 1972 Topps checklist....His 3-run, 10th-inning homer broke a 1-all tie and lifted the Royals to a 4-1 victory over New York, 5/21/75.

*MK*