I'm liking this card. Dave has that bat barrel bulging into the camera angle, and it looks like he's actually swinging the thing. And this pose is a great reflection of his 1973 season. He went from .303/25/93/Total Base Leader/All-Star/MVP votes...(awesome pose!) to a woeful .226/10/42 in 1974 with not much less playing time.
He led "loops in batting?" 62 and 64? What the heck is that?
Cartoon: Maybe he had Jim Bibby's brother to cheer for. Were the ABA afro do's in style yet?
Ballpark background: I'm guessing Anaheim Stadium, after a delayed gathering of good evidence. First, the Brew Crew wore powder blue on the road. Second, the player behind his left shoulder appears to have a two-tone hat, with the lighter color on the bill. Next, the seats in the upper deck (no press box is there) indicate a three deck ballpark. The stands extend straight down the line, and slightly curve in the corner. The seating section width between the aisles matches the 70's and 80's layout, as do the seat colors. The clincher for me was the concentric arc of dirt behind home plate that I confirmed in a Google Image search for Anaheim Stadium, early 70's.
"Loops" - league - kind of an old school thing to say. The Texas League is a loop, so is the Carolina or the Eastern league.
ReplyDeleteOh, this was the PRIME time for ABA afro's. Darnell Hillman had an afro that was at least 6-8 inches high.