no. 9 - george scott

Who is the man: George Scott's career was on the upswing in 1971. He had suffered from some dismal offensive seasons in the late '60s, but was back on track by 1970. He was in his 6th and final season of his first stint with the Red Sox. He was dealt to Milwaukee in a massive trade after the '71 season.

Can ya dig it: That's an interesting batting glove Scott has there. I'm going to say that's why he looks so enthused about his swing.

Right on: Scott won eight Gold Gloves during his career. He also was nicknamed "Boomer" and called home runs "taters." Just out of sight stuff there.

You see this cat Scott is a bad mother: Scott's famous response, when a reporter asked what made up the puka shell necklace around his neck, was that they were "second basemen's teeth." The implication was that he knocked out the fielders' teeth during hard slides into second. But Scott later explained that he was referring to his wicked line drives to the right side of the infield and fielders' inability to protect themselves in time.

Shut your mouth: Well, that would be my advice to second basemen when a liner from Scott came their way.

No one understands him but his woman: During the labor strife early in 1976, Scott lashed out at the Players' Association for not taking the owners' eight-year offer, saying, "I think the players should stop crying about slavery and worry about playing baseball. If they'd play as hard as they complain, they'd all be superstars." His teammates were not amused.

(A word about the back): One different aspect about the '71 backs that didn't get as much attention, given the photo on the back and the return to the single line of yearly stats, is the addition of total bases and stolen bases as listed stats for the first time. Didn't exactly make up for the lack of career stats, but I'm sure some collectors thought it was interesting.