no. 530 - carl yastrzemski

Who is the man: Carl Yastrzemski was coming off his last great powerful season when this card was issued. He hit at least 40 home runs for the third and final time in his career and led the league in runs, on-base percentage, slugging, OPS and total bases.

Can ya dig it: This is possibly the tightest shot on Yastrzemski of all of his Topps flagship cards. He looks pretty regal with the Yankee Stadium stands as a backdrop.

Right on: Still not over Yastrzemski popping up to third base for the final out of the one-game playoff against the Yankees in 1978.

You see that cat Yastrzemski is a bad mother: For a good portion of my life, Yastrzemski was "the last player to hit for the Triple Crown," which he was for 45 years.

Shut your mouth: Yaz grew up on Long Island and was a top high school player. The Yankees made overtures toward him and in Yastrzemski's autobiography, he says that a Yankee scout once came to the house and exchanged bonus signing numbers with Yaz's dad. The scout was so shocked by Yastzremski's dad's figure of $100,000, he said the Yankees would never pay that and flipped his pencil in the air. Yastrzemski's dad told the scout, "Nobody throws a pencil in my house. Get the hell out and never come back."

No one understands him but his woman: For a year, Yastrzemski held the major league record for most games played with 3,308. Pete Rose broke it the following season.

(A word about the back): As discussed earlier, Yastrzemski missed out on the 1970 batting title by .0003 to the Angels' Alex Johnson.

no. 65 - 1970 american league home run leaders

Who is the man: Frank Howard is the man again! Gracious, he strikes a frightful pose.

Can ya dig it: The Carl Yastrzemski photo is the same photo that was used on his 1968 Topps card, and then again on his 1969 Topps card. So, three out of four years, you were staring at the same photo of Yaz.

Right on: It is so cool having a card featuring the Capital Punisher, Killer and Yaz.

You see these cats are bad mothers: We'll explore that in future posts.

Shut your mouth: Harmon Killebrew, notoriously quiet and gentle, was once asked if he had any hobbies. "Just washing the dishes, I guess," he said.

No one understands him but his woman: Howard was particularly upset by Washington's move to Texas in 1972. He liked the area and was popular with the few fans the Senators had. "I'm sure Dallas deserves a team," he said. "But I'm sorry it had to be ours."

(A word about the back): Terry Tommy Harper's 31 home runs in 1970 were 13 more than he would hit in any other season if his 15 year career. Check him for steroids!

no. 61 - 1970 american league batting leaders

Who is the man: Alex Johnson is the man. He beat out Carl Yastrzemski for the 1970 American League batting title by .0003 of a point, one of the closest batting races in history.

Can ya dig it: I can dig these leaders subsets because you often get three stars on one card, but I can tell they're going to make for difficult posts to write.

Right on: These are among the greatest-looking leaders cards ever produced by Topps.

You see these cats are bad mothers: For fear of losing material when these players' individual cards come up, I am going to skip this category.

Shut your mouth: Alex Johnson robbed Carl Yastrzemski of a home run during the 1970 season, a home run that would have put Yaz over Johnson for the batting title. Johnson later admitted that a fan in the stands put the ball in his glove.

No on understand him but his woman: The year following Johnson's batting title, the Angels benched him, citing attitude issues. He was later indefinitely suspended. Although reinstated, he wouldn't play for the Angels again and never recovered the form he displayed in 1970.

(A word about the back): I love the in-depth listing of the leaders. Don Mincher, at .246, is a batting leader!!! Topps really needs to bring back the long lists on the backs of cards. Collectors love that stuff. ... Well, at least old collectors like me do.