Former Major League Players Remember the Thrill at Seeing Themselves on a Baseball Card

Jameson Taillon, No.50 of the Pittsburgh Pirates holds up selected Topps baseball cards on National Baseball Card Day before the start of MLB game action against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on August 12, 2017 in Toronto, Canada. Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images

Some former Major Leaguers—who were in baseball for the love of the game long before multi-million-dollar contracts—recall a simpler era and the first time they appeared on a Topps players’ card.

Former pitcher John D‘Acquisto well remembers the first time he saw his image on a card even though that was nearly 50 years ago. D’Acquisto was 23 when he appeared on a 1974 Topps rookie card he shared with three other up-and-coming players.