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1952 Topps baseball card of former major leaguer Ray Boone, the first in a long line of major league players from the Boone family. He enjoyed an 11 year major league career with 6 different teams, starting in 1948 with the Cleveland Indians, where he helped win the World Series, the last time that franchise has won a world title. Boone, an infielder, was a two-time All Star. He was followed into the major leagues by his son, Bob, who had a long career as a catcher, and grandsons Brett and Aaron, both of whom were also infielders. The family was the first to send 3 generations of players to the All Star game.

1981 Topps football card of former Oakland Raider cornerback Lester Hayes, who was known for his low, crouching stance while lining up opposite opposing receivers, and also for his extensive use of “Stickum” before it was banned by the NFL. He was nicknamed “Lester The Molester” for his relentless style of bump-and-run coverage. Hayes was an avid Star Wars fan, and in pregame interviews prior to Super Bowl XVIII, he proclaimed himself “the only true Jedi.” The colorful Hayes was more than just a “character”, however. He was a 5-time Pro Bowler, a 2-time Super Bowl champion, the NFL Defensive Player of The Year in 1981, and a member of the NFL’s All Decade team for the 1980s. He is arguably the greatest “shutdown” corner in league history.

1964 Topps football card of former pro player and coach Walt Corey, who starred as a linebacker for the Dallas Texans/Kansas City Chiefs franchise in the American Football League from 1960 until 1966. He was an AFL All Star in ’63. After retiring as a player, Corey was a long-time assistant coach for several teams, with his most notable stint being the defensive coordinator in Buffalo under Hall of Fame head coach Marv Levy. Corey worked for another Hall of Famer – Mike Ditka – as he was the defensive line coach for Ditka during his time as coach of the New Orleans Saints.

From www.CheckOutMyCards.com , a 1978 Topps football card of former Buffalo Bills’ defensive back Tony Greene, one of the most underrated and unsung players in Bills’ history. An undrafted free agent, he played 9 seasons with the team, from 1971 to 1979, and made the Pro Bowl in 1977. Greene had 37 career interceptions for the Bills.

1972 Topps football card of former Minnesota Viking defensive end Carl Eller, who was one of the cornerstones of Minnesota’s “Purple People Eaters” defense that was a dominant force in the NFL in the 1960s and ’70s. He had a long, storied 16 year career in the league, all but one of those years with the Vikings. He played in all 4 of the team’s Super Bowls in that era, all losses. Eller was a six time Pro Bowler, was the NFL’s Defensive Player of The Year in 1971, was named to the All Decade team for the 1970s, and was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2004. Today, Eller serves as president of the Retired Players’ Association, a non-profit group that advocates for retired professional players, and is also active in numerous charities in the Minneapolis/St. Paul community and through the football Hall of Fame. Rumor has it that he is also close friends with one Roy Pohlman.

1960 Topps baseball card of former major league pitcher Dallas Green, who had an eight year major league career, mostly with the Philadelphia Phillies, and was also a long-time major league manager and general manager. As a manager, he was known for his blunt, fiery style. Despite having a career losing record as both a pitcher and manager, Green is revered by Philadelphia sports fans, as he managed the Phillies to the first World Series title in franchise history in 1980. He still works in the team’s front office today, as a senior advisor to the general manager.

1966 Topps baseball card of former Cleveland Indian third baseman Max Alvis, who played 9 seasons in the major leagues and was an American League All Star twice, including in 1965 when he had a great year coming off a lost season in ’64 when he battled spinal meningitis and lost 6 weeks of the year, still managing to hit 18 homers. Today, Alvis is a bank president in his hometown of Jasper, Texas.

With the Stanley Cup Finals about to begin, a good sports card to feature is this 1972 Opeechee hockey card of former NHL player Bob Baun, a hero in the Stanley Cup Finals for the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1964, when he scored the winning goal in overtime against Detroit while playing on a broken leg. Baun, a defenseman, was typical for the era in that he wasn’t much of an offensive threat, but played solid defense and was a good, hard, clean hitter. His NHL career lasted 18 seasons, 11 of them with Toronto, and he helped the Leafs win 4 Stanley Cups.

1961 Topps baseball card of a former member of numerous New York Yankee championship teams, first baseman Bill “Moose” Skowron, who passed away recently. He was an unsung member of some very talented Yankee teams of the era, but was a great player in his own right, as he was an eight-time All Star. He helped the Bronx Bombers win 4 World Series titles in his 9 years with the team, and after being traded to the Dodgers following the 1962 season, he turned around and was a major factor, hitting a home run and batting .385, as the Dodgers swept the Yanks in the 1963 Series. Skowron worked as a public relations representative for the Chicago White Sox from 1999 until his recent death.

From www.CheckOutMyCards.com ,a 1971 Topps football card of former Pittsburgh Steeler quarterback Terry Bradshaw. With the annual NFL draft having just concluded over the weekend, Bradshaw is a good player to feature, since he was the number one overall selection in the draft in 1970 by the Steelers. It turned out to be a terrific choice by Pittsburgh, as “The Blonde Bomber” led the team to 4 Super Bowl titles in his 14 year NFL career. All 14 of those seasons were spent with the Steelers, and although he once was ridiculed by Dallas linebacker Thomas “Hollywood” Henderson as a guy who “couldn’t spell cat if you spotted him the C and and the A”, Bradshaw can be defined as a player in one word – winner. He didn’t compile impressive stats over his career, and was a Pro Bowler only 3 times, but was one of the NFL’s best leaders of all time. He was voted to the NFL’s All Decade team for the 1970s, and elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 1989. Bradshaw is currently a studio analyst on Fox Network’s Sunday NFL television coverage.