1963 Rookie Stars Pedro Gonzalez/Ken McMullen/Pete Rose/Al Weis

Albert John “Weasel” Weis (April 2, 1938-) hit just six home runs in his career prior to blasting a seventh inning home run in Game 5 of the 1969 World Series for the new York Mets against the Baltimore Orioles virtually icing the series. Al was a switch-hitting middle infielder when he came up with the Chicago White Sox in 1962 and eventually earned a spot in the everyday lineup in 1964 once the Sox traded away Hall of Famers Luis Aparicio and Nellie Fox. Weis played six seasons in Chicago before being traded to the New York Mets in 1968, playing the infield for the Mets until 1971. Though Tommie Agee was the principle of the trade that sent him to New York, new manager and beloved former Met Gil Hodges told Weis that had he not been included in the trade, Hodges would not have approved it. This vote of confidence from Hodges inspired the journeyman infielder and he served as one of Hodges key utility infielders. Al was never a great hitter and batted exclusively right-handed once he joined the Mets, but his fielding helped keep him in the lineup or he was used a defensive replacement. The peak of his career came in 1969 as the “Miracle Mets” made their unlikely run at the World Series against Baltimore. Weis singled in the ninth inning of Game 2 to put the go ahead run to the plate and in Game 5, he hit a solo home run in the seventh to tie the game 3-3 – the Mets then scored two runs in the eighth to close the deal. Al Weis finished his career with a .219 batting average, 346 hits, 195 runs and 115 RBI. He also had a .965 fielding percentage.

Peter Edward Rose (April 14, 1941-) is the arguably the greatest player who ever played the game but is omitted from the National Baseball Hall of Fame. In 1963, Pete Rose broke into the National League with 170 hits, 25 doubles, 41 RBI and a .273 batting average en route to the NL Rookie of the Year Award. Rose’s passion for the game was abundantly clear by the work ethic and intensity he brought to each and every contest, earning him the name “Charlie Hustle” and remembered as much for his head first slides as for his mop-top look. Rose was a 17-time All-Star selection, led the National League seven times in hits and plate appearances, three times in batting average and five times in doubles. Pete Rose was a member of the famed Big Red Machine that won back-to-back World Series titles in 1975 and 1976, and produced three Hall of Famers (Johnny Bench, Joe Morgan, Tony Perez). Rose added another World Series title as a member of the Phillies in 1980. Pete Rose played for the Cincinnati Reds (1963-1978, 1984-1986), the Philadelphia Phillies (1979-1983) and the Montreal Expos (1984). Rose was a perennial Most Valuable Player candidate, finishing in the top 25 in voting 15 times in his career, winning the 1973 NL MVP after batting .338 with 230 hits in 680 at-bats. Pete Rose retired as the all-time Major League leader in games played (3,562), plate appearances (15,861), at-bats (14,053) and hits (4,256) adding 2,165 runs, 160 home runs, 1,314 RBI, 198 stolen bases and a career .303 batting average over 24 years. Three years after Rose retired, he agreed to permanent ineligibility from baseball due to allegedly gambling on baseball when he was a Cincinnati Red player and manager, including allegations that he wagered on his own team. Pete Rose remains on the ineligibility list despite numerous appeals.