Monday, August 5, 2019

1981 Topps Chris Chambliss

The front: Nice, classic baseball pose of Chambliss waiting for the pitch to be thrown.

The back: Chambliss’s 37 doubles were ten more than the next highest Brave, Dale Murphy.

The player: Chris Chambliss was the AL Rookie of the Year in 1971 with the Indians, but blossomed into a star after being traded to the Yankees in 1974. In 1976 he hit .524 in the ALCS, cementing his name permanently in baseball history with a walk-off, pennant-winning home run in the deciding Game 5, plowing through raucous fans that were blocking his way through the baselines. He was a key member of the Yankees’ 1977 and 1978 championships, but after the 1979 season was traded to Toronto for Rick Cerone, to replace the late Thurman Munson. The Blue Jays flipped Chambliss to the Braves, where he continued to be one of the most consistent hitters in the major leagues, hitting 20 home runs in 1982 and 1983. Overall, in 2,175 major league games, Chambliss hit .279 with 185 HR and 972 RBI.

The man: Chambliss was a long-time hitting coach, including the Yankees during their four World Championships in five years from 1996-2000. Though often considered a managerial candidate, he never got a chance at the job, and was often considered an example of the bias against African-American candidates in hiring managers.

My collection: I have 33 of his cards, from 1973 to 1987. I would be interested in trading for 1972 Topps #142, 1974 Topps #384, and 1976 Hostess #58.

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