Classic…
That's the word that jumps in my head when I look at this card.
An airbrushing job that is just CLASSIC!
Remember "Colorforms"? That's exactly what it looks like: a green
die cut cap-shaped sticker was placed over the cap Dick Williams was
wearing in the photo.
I especially love the black outlining going on, and the fact that
the airbrushed cap is sharper than the ever-so-slightly-blurred photo of
Williams in Yankee Stadium.
Funny enough, the photo used by Topps is at least a couple of years
old, as Williams is in his old Boston Red Sox uniform, the team he last
managed in 1969.
I should re-do this card…
As manager of the Oakland A's, he arrived just in time as the team
was just about to become the dynasty they'd turn out to be, winning the
American League West in 1971 (losing to the Baltimore Orioles in the
playoffs), but then winning the following two
championships in 1972 and 1973 before Williams went on to manage the
California Angels in 1974.
Over the course of his 21-year managerial career, Williams managed
five first-place teams, reaching the playoffs with four of his teams:
Red Sox, A's, Expos and Padres.
He guided three of THOSE teams to the World Series, and finished with 1571 wins, four pennants and two World Series wins.
All of that eventually led to Williams being inducted into the Hall of Fame by the Veteran's Committee in 2008.
