One of the best centerfielders of his generation, today Carlos Beltran was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. He will become just the 3rd Hall of Famer to go in with a Mets cap on his plaque. In addition to what he did on the field his immediately changed how the Mets were viewed both in context of being a destination for free agents and how fans and the media around the league viewed the club.

He’ll often be remembered for that called third-strike, but really, I don’t think there is anyone who’s knees that curveball would not have buckled.

This is my favorite Carlos Beltran card in my collection- his 2005 Topps (first Mets card) autographed one-of-one from the Topps Archives Signature Series Retired Players Edition.