The Cincinnati Reds dominated the 1976 World Series. Fred Norman was the only Reds' pitcher who had even a remotely high ERA, while Catfish and Sparky were the only Yankees who didn't get roughed up.
Mr. Bench is featured a lot on this card and the preceding card.
Thurman Munson had a good series, but he was overshadowed by Bench. Cincinnati manager Sparky Anderson sparked a firestorm when he asked a reporter not to compare Munson and Bench. Thurman didn't like the quote.
When I looked at the back of this card I thought to myself, "The Reds used only nine non-pitchers?" I figured there would at least be one or two at bats by other guys. After checking baseball-reference.com I realized that this card is correct.
The Reds really did a number on the Yankees in their four game sweep. Pete Rose and Ken Griffey were the only guys who didn't do much. Johnny Bench was named the World Series MVP.
Here is another card that was highly sought after by our little group of collectors. It shows the classic action pose (except for sliding headfirst) of Pete Rose. His helmet had flown off and his hair was flying all over the place.
There was no NLCS MVP award in 1976 -- the first one would be given to Dusty Baker in 1977. A strong case could be made for Mr. Rose to be named the MVP in the 1976 NLCS.
This is a good picture of the Chris Chambliss home run that ended the AL Championship Series and sent the New York Yankees to their first World Series since 1964.
As shown on the back of the card, Chambliss led the Yankees in hits, runs, and home runs in the five game series. If a series MVP award were given out, Chambliss would have been the runaway winner.
I remember being shocked at the behavior of the fans after the ball cleared the right field fence. It was pandemonium at Yankee Stadium. The home run is shown in the video below (Phil Rizzuto announcing).
