I was a mere 3 months old when this card was issued, but Oscar Gamble has been the inspiration for the name of one of my two annual roto teams for the last 6 years. That team is part of the storied Phat-o-matic league, a roto league of ruthless passive-aggressively polite yet cold-blooded Madison grads that I believe is the most competitive in the country.   And no, that has nothing to do with the fact that I finish in second G-d dam%$d place every year in that league.

According to a well-written bio of Gamble at Baseball Todd’s Dugout, The Alabama-born former outfielder often expresses surprise at how much attention his afro draws and said it’s mentioned now post-career a lot more than it was during his playing days. Gamble recorded the last hit and RBI ever at Veteran’s stadium in Philadelphia, one of the many highlights of his 17-year career.

Gamble’s wife Juanita, who sometimes sang the national anthem at Yankee stadium during Gamble’s tenure with the team, apparently wept upon seeing Gamble without his afro for the first time.   And which villanous GM would possibly make the great Oscar lose the ‘fro?