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Earle Combs A husky six-footer, the quiet leadoff man of the powerful 1927 Yankees covered Yankee Stadium's spacious center field, leading the league's centerfielders in putouts. Combs's specialty was the three-base hit; he had three in a 1927 game, led the AL in triples three times, and collected 154 in his career. A cool, determined player, Combs was often overshadowed by his superstar teammates, but in nine seasons, he batted well over .300. In 1927 he hit .356, leading the AL with 231 hits (a team record until Don Mattingly broke it in 1986). He had a 29-game hitting streak in 1931. The Kentucky Colonel's career came to an end in 1934 when, before the advent of warning tracks, he smashed into the wall at Sportsman's Park chasing a fly ball. His skull was fractured and his career virtually ended. After trying a comeback in 1935, and knowing that the Yankees would bring Joe DiMaggio up the next season, he accepted a coaching job. When DiMaggio arrived, Combs instructed him on the nuances of Yankee Stadium's outfield. Combs left the Yankees during WWII. A good teacher, he returned to coach the Browns, Red Sox, and Phillies. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1970 by the Veterans Committee. Did You Know, on April 18, 1929, Earle Combs became the first member of the Yankees to step to the plate wearing a uniform number when he wore #1 on Opening Day against the Boston Red Sox.

David Cone A right-handed pitcher, Cone joined the AL's Kansas City Royals briefly in 1986 and was then traded to the New York Mets. After going 5-6 in 1987, he had a brilliant 1988 season, leading the NL with an .870 winning percentage on a 20-3 record. Cone won 14 games each of the next three seasons and led the league in strikeouts with 233 in 1990 and 241 in 1991. He set an NL record by striking out 19 hitters in a 9-inning game on October 6, 1991. The Mets traded him to the Toronto Blue Jays near the end of the 1992 season and he returned to Kansas City as a free agent in 1993. Expected to be the team's ace, he had a disappointing 11-14 season despite a 3.33 ERA. The Royals scored only 18 runs in his 14 losses. He rebounded with a 16-5 record in the strike-shortened 1994 season. Cone opened the 1995 season with the Blue Jays, but was traded to the Yankees in mid-season. He had a combined 18-8 record. The following year, though, he went on the disabled list for the first time in his career because of an aneurysm in two arteries in his right shoulder. Once again, Cone bounced back. He went 12-6 with a 2.82 ERA for the the Yankees in 1997 and then put together his second 20-victory season as the team won the 1998 American League pennant. Cone won the sixth and deciding game of the AL championship series against the Cleveland Indians. He also pitched well in his one World Series start, but didn't get the decision. After a 12-6 record in 1999, Cone struggled the following season, when he went only 4-14. The Yankees let him go into free agency and he signed with the Boston Red Sox. Though he showed signs of his old mastery, Cone was on the disabled list intermittently during the season. He then retired temporarily to become an announcer for the Yankees. In 2003, he attempted a comeback with the Mets, but gave it up on May 30 after a strained hip was slow responding to treatment.

Tommy John The famous Tommy John Surgery was named after this man. A sinkerballer with impeccable control, John's major league career spanned 26 seasons and seven U.S. presidents, both ML records. In mid-career, he made history by becoming the game's first "right-handed southpaw" when he had a tendon transplanted from his right forearm to his left elbow to remedy a tear that threatened to drive him from baseball. After breaking in with the Indians, John became an effective starter for the mediocre White Sox from 1965 to 1971, leading the AL in shutouts in 1966 and 1967. He was traded to the Dodgers for Dick Allen before the 1972 season, and in 1973 he led the NL in winning percentage with a 16-9 record. John seemed to be embarking on his best season in 1974, posting a 13-3 mark before injuring his pitching elbow in July. Dr. Frank Jobe performed the revolutionary surgery that saved John's career, and it was amazingly successful. The soft-throwing John joked that he told Jobe to "put in a Koufax fastball. He did, but it was Mrs. Koufax's." He underwent rehabilitation for a year and a half, missing the entire 1975 season, and his 10-10 record in 1976 earned him the Comeback Player of the Year Award. He then won 20 games in three of the next four seasons. John was 20-7 for the Dodgers in 1977 and 17-10 in '78, helping them to the World Series each year. But the Dodgers lost to the Yankees both times. John then signed with the Yankees as a free agent before the 1979 season and won 21 and 22 games in his first two seasons in New York. John was traded to the Angels for Dennis Rasmussen late in the 1982 season and was released in 1985 at the age of forty-two, but after a brief stint with Oakland he returned to the Yankees in 1986 and led the club in innings pitched as a 44-year-old in 1987. He often explained his unusual durability by pointing out that his pitching arm was much younger than his chronological age. John's excellent sinker induced numerous ground balls and double plays throughout his career, and he was usually a fine fielder himself, setting club records with errorless seasons for both the Dodgers and White Sox. On July 27, 1988, however, John tied a ML record by committing three errors on one play. In the fourth inning against the Brewers, John muffed a ground ball for one error and threw wildly past first base for a second. Then, inexplicably, he intercepted the throw home from right field and threw wildly past the catcher. He was released by the Yankees early in the 1989 season.

Dizzy Dean The Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals are arguably the fiercest rivals in the history of baseball, if not the history of sport. Jay Hanna "Dizzy" Dean is one of the few baseball players that experienced both sides of that rivalry. As the anchor for the Cardinals pitching staff, Dean earned four consecutive strikeout titles, led the National League in complete games for four consecutive seasons, and won two games in the 1934 World Series. The Cardinals championship in 1934 was kept in the family as Paul "Daffy" Dean, Dizzy's younger brother, won the other two games of the World Series. Dizzy's career in Chicago lacked the brilliance he conveyed in St. Louis, due in part to an injury suffered in the 1937 All-Star game. His toe was broken by a line drive off the bat of Earl Averill. Dean altered his pitching motion to compensate for the broken toe, injuring his throwing arm in the process. Dean last played in 1947, pitching a four inning shutout for the St. Louis Browns. The three-time 20-game winner was elected to baseball's Hall of Fame in 1953.

Deion Sanders Many people don't know that Deion Sanders was drafted by the Yankees in the 30th round of the amateur draft. Deion Sanders was born on Wednesday, August 9, 1967, and began his Major League baseball career on May 31, 1989, with the New York Yankees. The 22 year-old played for 9 seasons on 4 different teams and ended his big league playing career in 2001. 2-time All-America at Florida St. in football (1987-88); 7-time NFL All-Pro CB with Atlanta, San Francisco and Dallas (1991-94,96-98); led major leagues in triples (14) with Atlanta in 1992 and hit .533 in World Series the same year; played on 2 Super Bowl winners (SF in XXIX, and Dallas in XXX); first 2-way starter in NFL since Chuck Bednarik in 1962; only athlete to play in both World Series and Super Bowl. 2-time All-America at Florida St. in football (1987-88); 7-time NFL All-Pro CB with Atlanta, San Francisco and Dallas (1991-94,96-98); led majors in triples (14) with Atlanta in 1992 and hit .533 in World Series the same year; played on 2 Super Bowl winners (SF in XXIX, and Dallas in XXX); first 2-way starter in NFL since Chuck Bednarik in 1962; only athlete to play in both World Series and Super Bowl. 2-time All-American at Florida St. in football (1987-88); 7-time NFL All-Pro CB with Atlanta, San Francisco and Dallas (1991-94,96-98); led majors in triples (14) with Atlanta in 1992 and hit .533 in World Series the same year; played on 2 Super Bowl winners (SF in XXIX, and Dallas in XXX); first 2-way starter in NFL since Chuck Bednarik in 1962; only athlete to play in both World Series and Super Bowl.