Both players were magnificent trade pick-ups for the organization, Brock in the memorable trade in 1964 for pitcher Ernie Broglio, and Torre in 1969 for another future Hall of Famer, Orlando Cepeda.
Torre and Brock would produce 200-hit seasons, break records (Brock with his season and career stolen base totals) and even take home a National League MVP when Torre turned the trick in 1971 as he topped the league with his .363 batting average, 137 runs batted in and 230 hits.
Of course, Brock would go on to top 3000 hits, set a new career stolen base record when he retired with 938, and become a first-ballot Hall of Famer when he received 79.7% of the vote in 1985.
Torre would go on to have arguably an even better career as a manager, leading the New York Yankees to four championships, 13 first place finishes overall, and over 2300 managerial wins over 29 seasons.
Hope you enjoy these “specials” as much as I do. I’ve always wished Topps sprinkled them in through the 1970’s and 1980’s as they did the previous two decades.