BULLS over KNICKS 103 to 97

PELICANS over ROCKETS 99 to 90

BUCKS over KINGS 108 to 107

WARRIORS over THUNDER 114 to 109

SUNS over HORNETS 111 to 106

HAWKS over CAVALIERS 127 to 98

CELTICS over MAGIC 109 to 92

MAVERICKS over PISTONS 117 to 106

JAZZ over HEAT 105 to 87

RAPTORS over NETS 105 to 89

GRIZZLIES over SPURS 117 to 116

TRAIL BLAZERS over BUCKS 104 to 97

CLIPPERS over PACERS 102 to 100

ROCKETS over NUGGETS 115 to 111

There was always a special connection between former Canadiens captain Saku Koivu and the fans of Montreal. Koivu received a nearly five-minute standing ovation as part of a 30-minute pregame tribute. That brought tears to the eyes of the 40-year-old Koivu, who retired after spending the last five years of his 18-year NHL career in Anaheim. "I always felt that I was respected as a player and for the way I played the game, but what makes me feel humble was the way I was loved by the fans," Koivu said. "Sometimes you think about why it happened, why they took me as their own.”You can't explain it, but there has been a real, unique bond between the fans in Montreal and myself. They've shown their passion and love and support throughout the years and really, it's been amazing."

The ceremony began with a scoreboard montage of photos and a mix of fans and former teammates thanking him and saluting his career. Koivu's wife Hanna, daughter Ilona and son Aatos, along with his father Jukka and mother Tuire were on the ice as he gave a 15-minute speech in English and French without the help of notes. The crowd roared when he said "Montreal truly is the most exciting place to play hockey," and "I will always be a Hab in my heart." The gifted center from Finland, lived through soaring highs and terrible lows in his 13 seasons with the Canadiens from 1995-2009. Koivu choked up as he thanked the team of doctors that saved his life when he diagnosed with abdominal cancer before the 2001-02 season. After a season of debilitating treatments, he shocked the hockey world by returning with three games left. He was greeted then by the Bell Centre crowd that stood and cheered for him for several minutes. Koivu then helped the Canadiens make the playoffs as the No. 8 seed and eliminated the top-seeded The Bruins in the first round.

"That year, the lows I went through and then being able to come back and be a factor in the series, it was a dream come true," he said. "It's like the whole story was written before. "I don't want to use the word regret, but probably the only thing (missing), and I'm not only even talking about winning a Stanley Cup, is really, genuinely competing and maybe being in the finals. Because we saw that a few times, winning in the first and second round, how this city reacts when you win. That year was special." The following season, Koivu had his best campaign with 71 points, but what won over the fans even more was how he started a foundation to raise millions for PET scans to help in cancer diagnosis for others. Koivu was chosen 21st in the 1993 NHL draft and looked to be a future scoring star until his was slowed by a series of knee and shoulder injuries. He was named as Canadiens captain in 1998 and held the position for 10 years.

He joined the Canadiens in 1995, and three months later, star goalie Patrick Roy was traded to Colorado. That sent the team into a downward spiral that took years to stop.

"That first few months, and then having the last game at the Forum and first game at the Bell Centre, I pretty much saw everything that can happen all in that first year," Koivu said. "I realized fairly quickly how big hockey is in this city and this province.”There were a tough few years not making the playoffs, but in the early 2000s, I think everybody saw a complete change and turnaround. Winning the Eastern Conference one year and having talented players coming up pretty much every year, it made a difference. I think the franchise is on that path now and their future is really bright." The setbacks, and the grace and determination with which he fought back and handled them, had much to do with the affection fans developed for the first European player to wear the C for the Canadiens. During his first game at the Bell Centre with the Ducks in 2011, he received another long ovation. "I really didn't know what to expect because I'd seen some former players that played somewhere else come here, and the reception wasn't always as good," he said. "It was a pleasant surprise. "It was like coming home, and when I got the reaction from the fans, I really felt the love and respect." Koivu ended his NHL career with 255 goals and 832 points in 1,124 games. He also played in four Olympics for Finland, winning a silver and three bronze medals. He also led Finland to silver at the 2004 World Cup of Hockey. "I haven't lost the passion for the game," Koivu said. "I just didn't have that push, mentally, anymore to play and compete, and that's why I retired. But I wish that one day I'll still be part of it, in a significant role, somewhere in hockey."

A sixth man has pleaded guilty to playing a key role in illegally providing performance-enhancing drugs to Major League Baseball players and other athletes. Juan Carlos Nunez pleaded guilty Friday to conspiracy to distribute testosterone, which carries a maximum 10-year prison sentence. Court documents say Nunez referred several players to the defunct Biogenesis of America clinic operated by Anthony Bosch. Many of the players referred by Nunez had origins in the Dominican Republic and Venezuela. Bosch has also pleaded guilty along with four others. Prosecutors say performance-enhancing drugs were provided to MLB players.

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Jake Peavy has reached an agreement on a two-year, $24 million contract with the Giants. The deal will pay Peavy base salaries of $7 million in 2015 and $13 million in 2016, the source said. It includes a $4 million signing bonus, a full no-trade clause and an awards package. Peavy, 33, is 139-111 with a 3.53 ERA in parts of 13 seasons with San Diego, the Chicago White Sox, Boston and San Francisco. He is a three-time All-Star who won the National League Cy Young Award with the Padres in 2007. After struggling in Boston last season with a 1-9 record and a 4.72 ERA in 20 starts, he put in a strong performance in August and September with the Giants after they acquired him from the Red Sox on July 26 in a trade for minor league pitchers Edwin Escobar and Heath Hembree. Peavy went 6-4 with a 2.17 ERA and 2.1 wins above replacement with San Francisco to help the Giants make the playoffs as a wild-card entry. He threw 5⅔ shutout innings against Washington in the opener of the National League Division Series but finished the season on a down note, lasting only 1⅓ innings in a 10-0 loss to Kansas City in Game 6 of the World Series.

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Matt Kemp has joined the Padres after San Diego and the Los Angeles finalized a five-player trade. The teams agreed to the trade last week during the winter meetings in San Diego. It was the first of three big deals by new Padres general manager A.J. Preller, who also has added outfielder Wil Myers, the 2013 AL Rookie of the Year, from Tampa Bay and All-Star catcher Derek Norris from Oakland.

The Padres, desperate to pump up the worst offense in the majors, also get $32 million from the Dodgers to help offset the $107 million remaining on Kemp's contract. The Padres' obligation of $75 million to Kemp over five years becomes the biggest deal in club history. Kemp twice made the All-Star team during his time in L.A., as well as winning two Gold Glove and two Silver Slugger awards. His 182 homers rank fourth in Los Angeles Dodgers history. Kemp weighed in on the deal via social media, penning a "goodbye to the city and the fans who have been there since the beginning of my career."

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K.J. Wright has agreed to a four-year contract extension with the Seahawks. The deal is reportedly worth $27 million.

"I'm just glad they chose for me to stick around. It's a blessing," Wright said. "There were times when I wondered if I would be here or not, but they told me they would find a way to make it happen and they did. I had a number in my head and they exceeded it." Wright was the team's fourth-round draft choice (99th overall) in the 2011 NFL draft. He has started 54 of 58 games played and recorded 333 tackles (224 solo), 6.5 sacks, one interception, 14 passes defensed, four forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries in his career.

"In the offseason, we identified K.J. as one of our core players moving forward and aimed to keep him as a part of the Seahawks family for a long time," general manager John Schneider stated in a team release. "The timing of this signing gives us the ability to keep as many of our core players together as we possibly can. Since Day 1, K.J. has been a true professional in his daily approach and we are excited for K.J., his family and the 12s to keep him in the organization." In the postseason, he has started three of four games played, with 24 tackles (13 solo) and two passes defensed. Wright has started at all three linebacker spots for the Seahawks, but his best spot is weakside linebacker, where he now plays. "K.J. is the epitome of a team guy," said Seahawks coach Pete Carroll in the release. "We are excited to reward a player of his caliber for all the hard work he has put in over the years to become an important piece of our defense."

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Dallas Eakins was fired as coach of the Edmonton Oilers, who have lost 15 of 16 games and are well on the way to missing the playoffs for the ninth consecutive season. General manager Craig MacTavish will coach the team until the job is given to Todd Nelson, who is being promoted to interim head coach from Edmonton's American Hockey League affiliate in Oklahoma City. MacTavish did not say when he would return to the front office. MacTavish called Eakins an "excellent coach" but said something had to be done after the losses piled up. The general manager acknowledged his share of the blame, saying there was "blood all over my hands" because he "put the lineup together."

"I'm not here to absolve myself of accountability," MacTavish said at a news conference. The Oilers, once the jewel of the NHL, won five Stanley Cups between 1984 and 1990. Now, MacTavish said, all aspects of the organization, including him, remain under scrutiny. Edmonton has 19 points through 31 games, last in the Western Conference. The Oilers went 36-63-14 under Eakins in parts of two seasons, including 7-19-5 this year. Nelson is the Oilers' fifth head coach in seven years. The firing came just over a week after MacTavish gave Eakins a vote of confidence, saying then the coach still had command of the dressing room and it was up to the players to turn the season around.

"The losses have an emotional toll on everybody in the organization, at least they should, in particular the coaching staff," MacTavish said. "I think the fact we weren't able to get any traction at all after that, it led me to believe the time was right for a coaching change." The poor play has resulted in poor attendance for a team that has not made the post season since 2006. Rows of empty seats are common at Rexall Place and tickets can be had for fire sale prices. Hockey operations boss Kevin Lowe and owner Daryl Katz has not escaped criticism. Eakins, with a four-year deal, was seen as an X's and O's wunderkind, on the cutting edge of the new generation of coaches. It didn't translate to the ice. The Oilers finished with the third-fewest points in the NHL in 2013-14 with a record of 29-44-9 in the one full season under Eakins. They were 7-19-5 this year, but the nature of the losses was what rankled fans on social media and talk shows.

Suspended Los Angeles Kings’ defenseman Slava Voynov will stand trial on a felony charge of domestic violence after a judge deemed there to be sufficient evidence to move forward with the case. The 24-year-old Voynov, who was charged with a felony count of corporal injury to a spouse with great bodily injury last month, appeared in a Torrance, California, court for a preliminary hearing during which shocking details emerged.

According to reports of police testimony, an officer of the Redondo Beach Police Department told the court that Voynov had punched, kicked and choked his wife, Marta Varlamova, at the couple's home in October. Additionally, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office lead prosecutor, Frank Dunnick, said, "There's evidence to suggest prior domestic violence," according to the Los Angeles Times. Voynov, through his California-based lawyer Craig Renetzky, maintains his innocence, and Voynov's wife has also stated through her personal attorney that the incident was an accident and that she does not want her husband charged.

But from testimony heard, the incident sounded much different. The officer who gave testimony told the court about a bloody scene he discovered at the couple's home and that Varlamova said she was scared. According to reports out of the courtroom, Varlamova had a wound above her left eye, caused after Voynov pushed her into a flat-screen television, that required eight stitches to close. Voynov, who was arrested at the hospital after medical staffers called police, was immediately suspended by the NHL and has not played a game since Oct. 19. Earlier this month, the Kings were fined $100,000 for allowing Voynov to practice with the team, violating the terms of his suspension. Voynov is set to be arraigned Dec. 29.

Winnipeg Jets’ defenseman Jacob Trouba will be out for at least six weeks with an upper-body injury. Trouba has been one of the team's top defensemen this season with 12 points, four goals and eight assists in 31 games. "He's had a kind of pre-existing condition that most players deal with," coach Paul Maurice said Tuesday. "And what you're hopeful for is that it heals, it gets better and progresses and he had the opposite experience. "Things started to get progressively a little bit worse on him and it just got to the point that the only and best way for us to get him back to 100 percent is we have to shut him down." Trouba had 29 points, 10 goals and 19 assists in 65 games last season. He was selected by the Jets with the ninth overall pick in the 2012 draft.

Portland Trail Blazers’ starting center Robin Lopez will sit out a game for the first time in nearly three years after breaking his hand. Lopez, who according to Blazers coach Terry Stotts will "be out a while," injured his right hand early in the third quarter of the 108-95 victory after hitting his hand hard on Boris Diaw’s head and did not return. "It's a little frustrating," said Lopez, who said there might be two breaks in his hand and that it would be re-evaluated. "I've been pretty fortunate with injuries in my career." Lopez was averaging 9.8 points and 7.3 rebounds in 25 games for the Blazers, who stand fourth in the West at 19-6. He also had played in every game for Portland last season and for New Orleans in 2012-13. Lopez, drafted by Phoenix No. 15 overall in 2008 out of Stanford, last missed a game in January 2012 in his fourth season with the Suns.

Milwaukee Bucks’ forward Jabari Parker is expected to miss the rest of his rookie season after suffering a torn ACL in his left knee. Parker, 19, will have surgery after suffering a complete tear, not a sprain, as was initially diagnosed, in the third quarter of the Bucks' dramatic 96-94 win. Parker's knee buckled on a drive to the basket, he had to be carried off the court by teammates and underwent an MRI in Milwaukee that revealed the tear. Since being selected No. 2 overall in June by the Bucks, Parker had emerged as a top rookie of the year contender in Milwaukee's surprising 13-12 start, averaging 12.3 points and 5.5 rebounds in 29.5 minutes in 25 games. He started his career with double-doubles in two of his first three games and was named the Eastern Conference rookie of the month.

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The Texas Rangers announced the signing of right-handed reliever Kyuji Fujikawa to a one-year deal with a club option for 2016. Fujikawa will receive a base salary of $1 million with the opportunity to earn incentives. The deal will become official once the Rangers clear a spot on their 40-man roster. Fujikawa, 34, spent two seasons with the Chicago Cubs, compiling a 5.04 ERA in 27 appearances. He underwent Tommy John surgery in the summer of 2013 and missed 14 months. He returned toward the end of the 2014 season and pitched in 15 games. He was signed by the Cubs as a hard-throwing reliever out of Japan. He spent 12 seasons with the Hanshin Tigers of the Nippon Professional Baseball Central League, where he saved 220 games. Fujikawa was expected to become the Cubs' closer, but that didn't happen mainly due to his injury. The Cubs had a team option for the 2015 season but declined to pick it up. With the Rangers, Fujikawa is expected to become a one-inning set up man.

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The Kansas City Royals finalized a $17 million, two-year deal with the veteran slugger Tuesday. Kansas City made the postseason as a wild card this year and went all the way to the World Series before losing to San Francisco in Game 7. "At first I didn't think maybe they would make the playoffs, but they caught fire at the end and were playing really well," Morales said through a translator. "I think they started playing well, they kind of gained some confidence. They were playing well going into the playoffs and that was the most important part for them."

Two years ago, Morales hit .277 with 23 homers for Seattle. The Royals finished last in the major leagues in home runs but won the pennant with a distinctive style built on speed, defense and a sensational bullpen. It was a thrilling run for a team that hadn't been to the playoffs since 1985, but it remains to be seen if Kansas City's success is sustainable. This is, after all, a team that won only 89 games during the regular season, finishing a game behind AL Central champion Detroit. "We have to be able to drive the ball better, a lot of times we'd come up with bases loaded or first and second, we'd hit a single or what have you," general manager Dayton Moore said. "Kendrys we think is a necessary part of that, to produce more runs, as our lineup continues to gain more experience."

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The Padres have signed pitcher Brandon Marrow to a one-year contract worth $2.5 million. Morrow can earn an additional $5 million in bonuses for starting and $1 million for relieving. The 30-year-old Morrow has spent the last five seasons with the Blue Jays, who recently declined the right-hander's $10 million option for 2015. Morrow has battled various injuries in recent seasons, including a hand injury that limited him to just 13 games, six starts in 2014, when he went 1-3 with a 5.67 ERA. A former first-round draft selection, Morrow is 42-43 with a 4.28 ERA in parts of eight seasons with the Blue Jays and Mariners.

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The Yankees have re-signed left-hander Chris Capuano to a one-year contract. The team didn't disclose financial terms, but the deal is worth $5 million. In signing Capuano, the Yankees feel they are adding depth to a rotation that will enter spring training full of questions and potential. The signing of Capuano, along with the rhetoric coming out of the Bronx, could be further proof that the Yankees are sincere about not be giving free-agent ace Max Scherzer a mega-contract.

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Right-hander Gavin Floyd has agreed to a $4 million, one-year contract with the Cleveland Indians, giving him a chance to make a comeback from his latest elbow surgery. The deal, announced Tuesday, allows him to earn an additional $6 million in performance bonuses. The 31-year-old broke a bone in his elbow while throwing a curveball with Atlanta last June. He had surgery and couldn't resume throwing until after the season. That injury occurred during his ninth start since returning from Tommy John elbow-ligament replacement surgery. Floyd is 72-72 with a 4.40 ERA in 196 starts and 12 relief appearances with Philadelphia, the Chicago White Sox and the Braves. His best season was 2008, when he went 17-8 with a 3.84 ERA in 33 starts for the White Sox.

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The Oakland Raiders put the outside linebacker Sio Moore, on injured reserve Tuesday after he missed Sunday's loss at Kansas City. He had a hip issue come up during practice last week and was ruled out of the game. A third-round pick in 2013, Moore had played well this season. He finished with 90 tackles. He is the fifth Oakland defensive starter to go on injured reserve this season. A sixth safety Usama Young, who replaced Tyvon Branch when he was put on IR, also was put on injured reserve. The Raiders have just four linebackers on the roster. Ray-Ray Armstrong made his starting debut at Kansas City, in place of Moore. Oakland signed cornerback Chance Casey off San Francisco's practice squad to take Moore's place on the roster. Casey was on Oakland's practice squad last season.

The Jaguars have signed defensive tackle Roy Miller to a four-year contract extension through 2018, which locks up the middle of the team's defensive line through at least the 2017 season. Miller signed the contract, which is expected to be worth roughly $16 million. The 27-year-old was emotional when talking about how excited he was to remain in Jacksonville.

"I think it's obvious everybody around the league, everybody on this team feels this culture, feels where this team is going," Miller said. "I definitely do and I want to be a part of it. I'm just excited that they extended that offer to me so I can stay out here. "Everything about this place, I just want to be here, man. I just want to finish my career here. I'm excited. It's kind of surreal but it's what you work for all your life. I'm just kind of lost for words right now." Miller spent the first four years of his career in Tampa Bay and signed a two-year, $4.4 million contract as a free agent before the 2013 season. He played through a shoulder injury in 2013 and finished with 25 tackles before having off season surgery to repair a torn labrum. Miller has 30 tackles, one sack and one pass breakup this season.

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Redskins QB Colt McCoy entered last weekend's game at New York optimistic because of a game plan that suited him well, but it quickly ended in frustration and another neck injury, one that has ended his season. The Redskins placed McCoy on injured reserve Tuesday. The good news for McCoy is that he said doctors told him he needed only two to three weeks of rest for the aggravated nerve in his neck to heal, so it shouldn't be a problem in the future.

"This is not an issue that's going to threaten me," McCoy said. "Once this is healed up, I'm good to go. Unfortunately it comes when there's two weeks left in the season." That didn't make it any less frustrating for McCoy, who was emotional talking about the injury. Though he did not tear up during a four-minute session with the media, he did admit to having a tough time dealing with the latest twist in his career. After signing to be the Redskins' third-string quarterback this offseason, McCoy was given a chance to revive his career because of the Redskins' merry-go-round at quarterback. McCoy started in a 20-17 win at Dallas on Oct. 27. He started the past two games as well. McCoy said he feels a connection with Coach Jay Gruden and offensive coordinator Sean McVay.

"I'm pretty emotional about it because I do feel comfortable here," McCoy said. "Jay and Sean and I see eye to eye on a whole lot of things and see the field the same way. I feel there were a lot of positive things ahead for me. I'm not saying there still isn't; I'm just frustrated I can't finish the season with my teammates. I felt we had them right where we wanted them last week. It's unfortunate. It's almost hard for me to talk about it because I know what good things were coming." For the season, including one relief appearance, McCoy completed 91 of 128 passes for 1,057 yards, four touchdowns and three interceptions.

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Chicago Bear’s chairman George McCaskey was involved in an altercation, the altercation came as the result of McCaskey arriving at some of his seats in the stadium bowl area of Soldier Field to find a couple of Saints fans sitting in them. McCaskey conversed briefly with one of the fans before heading to the concourse area to get stadium security.

As McCaskey walked in that direction, the fan approached the chairman from behind and pushed him in the back. A Bears fan immediately came to McCaskey's aid, according to the team, and tackled the Saints fan. Shortly after, security arrived and ejected the Saints fan from the stadium. The fan, Richard Kohnke, 58, of New Orleans, was processed by police at the stadium and charged with misdemeanor battery, according to authorities. McCaskey did not require medical attention.

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Robert Griffin III had enough of his words being twisted or taken a direction he had no desire to travel. So, during news conferences, the Redskins quarterback changed his tone. And on social media, once a landing spot for his phrases and sayings, he went silent. Griffin said he is staying off Twitter and Facebook until after the season. In fact, he hasn't tweeted or posted anything on Facebook since Thanksgiving. His last action on Twitter was to retweet a picture with a fan to help raise awareness for ALS.

He also went bland in news conferences, his "focus on San Francisco" before facing the 49ers last month serving as a prime example. "It just felt like, for me, anything I was saying, whether it was positive or negative, whether it was a positive retweet or anything, was getting twisted and turned against me and against this team," he said. "I feel I can be free up here and talk to you guys, but sometimes things get twisted and turned and it creates a distraction for the team. I didn't want that to happen." Griffin said he tries not to pay attention to the intense focus on him, whether it's trying to parse the meaning of his quotes or negative reaction from fans via social media.

"I played a game and then I was out for seven weeks and there was still a ton of noise," Griffin said. "Sometimes you don't understand certain things and they don't go the way you want them to go, but if I get criticized for retweeting about going to a charity event for a foundation, I mean what else can you do? So I decided to shut it down and not focus on it. "It's not that I was focused on it before. I felt like I would cut out a little bit of it for me. I'm sure there is still a lot of noise out there, but I don't ever see it." After Griffin tweeted well wishes to Kansas City's Eric Berry, who has been diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, some fans took that as an opportunity to criticize him.

Griffin likes to interact with fans and has never been shy in interviews, but he said it hasn't been hard for him to take a different approach."I will get back into that in the off season," he said. "I'm a social person. I like to be open and talk to the fans, and we'll definitely get back to that, but for now I will just leave it alone." Another impetus for Griffin's silence was a public chastising from his coach after a 27-7 loss to Tampa Bay. After that game, Griffin blamed himself during most of a 10-minute news conference. However, he also said his teammates had to play better too. Redskins coach Jay Gruden pounced on that the following day. "I was just coaching out loud," Gruden said. "The whole thing came up when it came out he was criticizing his teammates or what have you. I just wanted to make sure he was worried about his own game."

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LIGHTNING over FLYERS 3 to 1

MAPLE LEAFS over DUCKS 6 to 2

CANADIENS over HURRICANES 4 to 1

BLUE JACKETS over RED WINGS 1 to 0

PANTHERS over CAPITALS 2 to 1

PREDATORS over BRUINS 3 to 2

JETS over SABRES 5 to 1

BLUES over KINGS 5 to 2

BLACKHAWKS over WILD 5 to 3

RANGERS over FLAMES 5 to 2

COYOTES over OILERS 2 to 1

WIZARDS over TIMBERWOLVES 109 to 95

HEAT over NETS 95 to 91

GRIZZLIES over WARRIORS 105 to 98

PELICANS over JAZZ 119 to 111

MAVERICKS over KNICKS 107 to 87

THUNDER over KINGS 104 to 92

Sy Berger, the father of modern day baseball cards, has died of natural causes at the age of 91. The news was announced Sunday morning by baseball historian Marty Appel on behalf of the family. Berger most famously devised the practice of signing Major League Baseball players year after year to be able to use their name and image on cards in annual sets. For more than three decades, Topps was paying players only $75 a year for that privilege and, most of the time, that amount was applied to buying something from the company catalog. Berger's personal relationships with the stars in the beginning years made it easier to make them sign on the dotted line, though he did not sign Cardinals slugger Stan Musial for the first six years. Berger was often seen at the side of Willie Mays, whom he considered among his closest friends

Topps was founded in 1938 as a chewing gum company. As the competition in the gum market exploded, Topps unveiled Bazooka, with the added value of comics, to help sell the brand. That eventually led to putting gum in packs of baseball cards. And in 1952, Sy Berger arrived at the company to help make and produce the first set, which he designed at his kitchen table using cardboard and scissors. The packs of six cards were wrapped in wax and, of course, had a piece of bubble gum in it for a total cost of five cents. Despite having a Mickey Mantle "rookie" card in the set, sales were not good. Since they overproduced the second part of the set that year, Berger, for years, would try to unload the cards anywhere they could.

"Around 1959 or so, I went around to carnivals and offered them for a penny a piece and it got so bad I offered them at 10 for a penny," Berger told Sports Collectors Digest in 2007. "They would say, 'We don't want them.'" In 1960, still saddled with a huge number of cards from the 1952 set, Berger put the remaining cards into three full garbage trucks and commissioned a barge to dump the remaining inventory into the Atlantic Ocean. With kids putting the cards in the spokes of their bicycle and years later, the parents of those who had saved them throwing out their shoeboxes full of cards, scarcity led to an era where the baseball card became an investment. After the T206 Honus Wagner card, the 1952 Topps Mantle is the most valuable card in the baseball card world. One of the 1952 Mantle cards sold at auction last week for $268,664. For years, baseball cards were the marketing mechanism for the gum companies -- Topps competed with Bowman and Fleer and Donruss. In the mid-80s, the fervor over cards led the cardboard to become the main attraction over the gum. Gum was soon wrapped in plastic so as not to hurt the cards and eventually was gone from packs altogether. Berger, who worked for Topps until 2002, is survived by his wife Gloria, his daughter Maxine, and his two sons Glen and Gary.

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