Who is the man: Fred Cambria and Gene Clines -- also known as the C+C Baseball Factory (not really) -- each enjoyed their first taste of major league baseball in 1970. Clines spent most of 1970 with Double A Waterbury, Conn. Cambria won 12 games for Triple A Columbus.
Can ya dig it: This drastically off-center card was an early acquisition in my quest to complete the 1971 set. I got it back in my teenage years. The faded right side of the card almost makes it look like I colored in the rest of the black border with magic marker. But I would never do that.
Right on: Clines would win a World Series ring in his second year in the major leagues, with the 1971 Pittsburgh Pirates.
You see these rookies are bad mothers: Once again, rookies are not bad-ass. Ever.
Shut your mouth: Clines was a batting coach for the Giants between 1995-2002 and wore a microphone for Fox during the 2002 World Series. When Barry Bonds hit a home run in the World Series, Clines exclaimed, "Oh My God!"
No one understands him but his woman: Cambria suffered an arm injury in 1971 and never pitched in the majors beyond 1970. He would appear on another rookie stars card in the 1972 Topps set, but never received his own card.
(A word about the back): I see that Cambria lived in a town called Cambria Heights. I once knew a person in college whose last name was the same name as the town in which he was born. His family was quite wealthy. I suppose that's to be expected when they name the town after you.
There is just 'something' about the '71 set. Maybe it's the 'blackness' and how that makes the photography look different somehow. Maybe it's the action shots. Some of those look like they were taken from the concourse while the Topps guy was waiting in line for a Yankee Dog. It's just so different from everything else that came prior to it in the late 60s. Just makes it a fun set.
ReplyDeleteAnd one of these days I'll have to relate some of my 'hanging out with Isaac Hayes' stories.
Cambria Heights is a section of the New York City borough of Queens. Queens is divided into numerous neighborhoods, which people often speak of as if they were distinct towns, using the individual neighborhood names in mailing addresses, for example. According to Wikipedia, Cambria Heights was named after the Cambria Construction Company of Pennsylvania, which originally developed the area early in the 20th Century.
ReplyDeleteThe bullpen page for Fred's entry on baseball-reference.com says "It is just a coincidence that his last name is the same as the neighborhood he was born in", although it gives no source for this.
Rookie cards might not be bad ass, but Clines looks like he had bad ass potential.
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