On January 19,  1972, 36-year-old Sandy Koufax, the former
Los Angeles Dodgers star, became the youngest player
elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. "This is the only thing
that’s made having to retire early a little easier," says Koufax,
who retired at age 30. "This is the biggest honor I’ve ever
been given, not just in baseball, but in my life."

Koufax made his Major League Baseball debut in 1955.

Koufax, nicknamed "the Left Arm of God,"
turned 90 in December.

SANDY KOZEL

TIM MAGUIRE

Mickey Charles Mantle (October 20, 1931 – August 13, 1995)

Baseball legend Mickey Mantle hit 536 home runs and led the New
York Yankees to seven World Series wins in the 1950s and ’60s.