Collector Don Sherman recently pointed out that Brock Davis appeared as a Rookie Star in 1963 Topps and then disappeared from their sets until 1971.
http://www.beckett.com/player/bryshear-davis-397956
An 8-year gap's pretty big, but I suspect it's not the record. Other than player-to-manager absences like Tom Lasorda or Sparky Anderson and infamous signing issues like Maury Wills, what active players spent several years between cards? Is there one we can consider this "record holder?"