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In the collection is this limited edition Upper Deck collectors series tribute to the 1971 Tigers signed by Willie Horton, Al Kaline, Mickey Lolich, and Bill Freehan. The 1971 crew won 91 games under skipper Billy Martin, their highest victory total since the 1968 championship season.

Detroit wouldn’t win that many again the until 1983 squad won 92.

Horton was a Tiger mainstay from the time he broke in during the 1963 season until he was traded away early in 1977. A member of the ’68 team that gave Detroit its third World Series crown, Horton represented the Tigers in four All Star games.

Comerica Park is home to a statue of Horton who remains a hero in the city. The slugger stood in his Tiger uniform on a car pleading for peace in the middle of the chaos during 1967 Detroit 12th Street Riot.

The following year he hit a career-high 36 homers for the champs in The Year of the Pitcher. Horton placed second in the AL in homers, slugging percentage, and total bases, finishing fourth in MVP voting. His .285 batting average placed him four spots behind Carl Yastrzemski‘s league-leading .301 clip.

After Detroit traded the 34-year old Horton to Texas in April 1977, he enjoyed one more stellar season. As Seattle’s designated hitter in 1979, Horton hit .279, slugged 29 homers – a total he surpassed only in the ’68 season – and recorded a career-high 106 runs batted in.

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Willie Horton earned a World Series ring with the 1968 World Series. In the 7-game tilt he was an offensive force for the Tigers.

Horton hit .304 with a .448 on-base percentage and a .565 slugging mark. In Game 2 he went 2-for-3 with two RBI and a run scored. He also slammed a second-inning home run to open the scoring. Horton was one of three Detroit players to leave the yard that day. Both Norm Cash and starting pitcher Mickey Lolich also hit dingers.

Shown here is a ticket to Horton’s memorable Game 2 performance. It is signed by the contest’s winning pitcher, Mickey Lolich.