Who is the man: Gene Mauch was about to enter his third season of managing the expansion Montreal Expos when this card arrived. His 1970 season, in which the Expos won 73 games after winning only 52 in 1969, was considered something of a success.
Can ya dig it: Anyone know who is sitting in the background? He's slouching.
Right on: Some manager cards are absolutely terrific. This is one of them. Just a wonderful shot. I do wish I knew if Mauch has a bat in his right hand.
You see this cat Mauch is a bad mother: Mauch's hot temper was well-known. In a famous story, he threw spare ribs all over the clubhouse after a Phillies loss in 1963 because he thought players were taking things too lightly.
Shut your mouth: Gene Mauch didn't want to hear it when people praised him. "If you're in (baseball) for 40 years, you ought to learn something," he said.
No one understands him but his woman: Mauch is most famous for coming close to the World Series as a manager but never reaching it. He never won a pennant despite winning more than 1,900 games. He also managed teams that lost, respectively, 23 and 20 straight games. There's a lot there that no one else ever experienced. Fortunately.
(A word about the back): The Expos did not top the .500 mark in 1971. In fact, they didn't top the .500 mark until 1979, when they won 95 games.
I'm pretty sure that's a hungover Jimmy Dugan from A League of Their Own on the bench.
ReplyDeleteGreat card. I really love the uniform.
Mauch's hot temper was well-known. In a famous story, he threw spare ribs all over the clubhouse after a Phillies loss in 1963 because he thought players were taking things too lightly.
ReplyDeleteThat's something the Phillies need now, and (among his many shortcomings) the folksy Manuel is incapable of doing it.
His platooning drove me nuts when he managed the Angels and I still dislike him for his managing in the 1986 playoffs. But I have always liked this card and the '70 card of him.
ReplyDeleteI think the player in the background is Bob Bailey.
ReplyDeleteDid any of the other Expos have their pic taken right there? Maybe that guy in the background was waiting his turn. Or maybe he was pissed about the spare ribs.
ReplyDelete