1973 Topps, Ted Simmons

Card No. 85

Not until I sat down to write this post did I realize that Ted Simmons will become a baseball Hall of Famer during the summer of 2021....Simmons will be part of a Cooperstown class that also includes Derek Jeter, Larry Walker and union rep Marvin Miller....Ted authored more than 2,400 hits and batted .286 over 21 seasons....This is his third Topps card....His rookie card appeared in the 1971 set....His final Topps card came in '88....Ted enjoyed an All-Star campaign in 1973, batting .310 and collecting 91 RBIs.

*MK*

2015 Topps, Yoenis Cespedes

Card No. 120

Few big leaguers throughout history racked up more frequent flyer miles in a shorter span of time than Yoenis Cespedes did between 2014 and '15....The Cuban superstar was dealt from Oakland to Boston in July 2014 and was subsequently swapped to Detroit in December of that same year....The Mets acquired Yoenis from the Tigers at the '15 deadline....Cespedes was featured in the '15 Update series as a Met....His rookie card can be found in the '12 set....La Potencia slugged five homers with 33 RBIs in 51 games for the Red Sox in '14.

*MK*

1962 Topps, Jim Fregosi

Card No. 209

Has any franchise experienced more of an identity crisis than the Angels?....The club dropped "Los Angeles" and became "California" in 1965....The "Anaheim" era began in '97 and thankfully they're back to just "Los Angeles" as of 2016....Fair or not, Jim Fregosi the player is probably most remembered as the guy the Mets got from the Angels in the disastrous Nolan Ryan trade....As the little gold star indicates this is indeed Jim's rookie card....The future MLB skipper batted .291 in 58 games for the Halos during the '62 season.

*MK*

1981 Topps, Andre Thornton

Card No. 388

The man nicknamed "Thunder," Andre Thornton is a member of the Cleveland Indians Hall of Fame and is a past Roberto Clemente Award winner (1979)....Clubbed 214 of 253 career homers during his 10 years in Cleveland....On his first three cards--all with the Cubs--he was listed as 'Andy'....Shared a "Rookie Infielders card in the '74 Topps set with three other players, most notably future Royals star Frank White....Appeared in just 69 games for the Tribe in 1981, swatting 6 homers with 30 RBIs.

*MK*

2006 Topps Update, Brandon Phillips

Card No. UH50

Originally a 2nd-round draft selection by Montreal, Brandon Phillips had some excellent seasons for Cincinnati....Was part of the prospects package that Montreal surrendered to Cleveland to acquire Bartolo Colon in June 2002....Phillips snagged four Gold Gloves during his time in Cincy....This is Brandon's first cardboard appearance as a member of the Reds....His initial Topps card is part of the 2000 Update set....Batted .276 and collected 75 ribbies for the Reds in 2006, his first season on the banks of the Ohio.

*MK*

1970 Topps, Brooks Robinson

Card No. 230

If it isn't the 16 career Gold Gloves earned during his Hall of Fame career, surely the nickname "The Human Vacuum Cleaner" would give you a solid indication of Brooks Robinson's level of prowess at third base....Another beauty from Dad's boyhood card collection here....Robinson's rookie card is part of the 1957 Topps set....His 'farewell' Topps card was among the '77 checklist....Finished 7th in A.L. MVP voting following '70 season that saw him clout 18 homers and drive in 94 runs for Baltimore.

*MK*

2002 Topps, Mike Sweeney

Card No. 21

A member of the Royals Hall of Fame and a current member of the team's front office, professional hitter Mike Sweeney gets today's Jukebox nod....The era of colored borders on Topps base cards continued in 2002 with one of my favorite designs of the era....Sweeney made five All-Star teams as a Royal....He's second in team annals in home runs (197) and third in BA (.299)....His first Topps card appeared in the 1997 set....Mike cracked 24 homers and collected 86 RBIs for K.C. during the '02 season.

*MK*