1977 Topps Baseball #354 - Pittsburgh Pirates / Chuck Tanner

• This was the start of Chuck Tanner's ten year run as the manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
• Chuck Tanner started his career as an outfielder. He started his major league career in 1955 with the Milwaukee Braves. He played for the Braves in from 1955-1957. Chuck was traded to the Chicago Cubs in the middle of the 1955 season and played with them through the 1958 season. Tanner then played for the Cleveland Indians for two years and finished his major league career with the expansion Los Angeles Angels from 1961-1962. He was in the minors for most of the time from 1959-1962.
• Tanner retired as a player after the 1962 season and started managing in the minors. He managed in the Los Angeles / California Angels organization from 1963-1970. His 1970 Hawaii Islanders (AAA - Pacific Coast League) had a great record of 98-48, a .671 winning percentage)
• In September 1970 Chuck was hired to manage the Chicago White Sox. He finished the 1970 season and then continued to manage the team through the 1975 season.
• Tanner was named the AL Manager of the Year in 1972 as he managed the White Sox to a surprising second place finish in the AL West.
• After the 1975 season new White Sox owner Bill Veeck removed Tanner from the position of manager and hired Paul Richards for the job. Tanner was quickly hired by the Oakland A's as manager for the 1976 season.
• Tanner managed the A's to a second place finish in the AL West in 1976. The Pirates wanted Tanner as their manager and traded catcher Manny Sanguillen to the A's in exchange for Tanner's services.
• The Pirates finished second in the AL East in Tanner's first two seasons with the club. Chuck managed the Pirates to the World Championship in 1979.
• By the mid 1980s the Pirates had major problems. A big drug scandal brought down several players. Tanner was seen as being too lax in managing the club and was let go after the 1985 season.
• Again Chuck wasn't out of work for very long. A few weeks after being fired by the Pirates he was hired by the Atlanta Braves as manager.
• Tanner managed the Braves in 1986 and 1987. By May of 1988 he and General Manager Bobby Cox had deep philosophical disagreements about the direction of the ballclub. Cox fired Tanner in late May and replaced him with Russ Nixon.
• After his managing career Chuck worked in the Milwaukee Brewers organization for 11 years, as a special assistant for the Cleveland Indians for five years, and then for the Pirates for two years.
• Tanner passed away on 10 February 2011 at the age of 82.
• Team Highlights:
• May 7-9 - Swept a three game series with the two-time World Champion Cincinnati Reds
• Aug 5 - Had a brawl with the Reds. The brawl started when Reds pitcher Joe Hoerner hit Frank Taveras with a pitch in the 9th inning of a 13-0 Pirate victory.
• • Record: 96-66, 2nd in NL East, 5 games behind Philadelphia
  • Attendance:  1,237,349 (8th in NL)
  • Team Batting: .274 (2nd in NL)
  • Team HR: 133 (7th in NL) - I'm surprised the "Lumber Company" was this low
  • Team Stolen Bases: 260 (1st in NL)
  • Team ERA: 3.61 (3rd in NL)
  • Team Fielding: .977 (8th in NL)
  • All Stars: Dave Parker (starting RF); John Candelaria (P); Goose Gossage (P)
  • Awards: Dave Parker (Gold Glove - OF); 
  • NL Leaders: Dave Parker (Batting - .338; Hits - 215; Doubles - 44); Frank Taveras (Stolen Bases - 70); John Candelaria (ERA - 2.34; Winning Percentage - .800; Home Runs Allowed - 29)
  • Batting Leader: Dave Parker - .338
  • Home Run Leader: Bill Robinson - 26
  • RBI Leader: Bill Robinson - 104
  • Stolen Base Leader: Frank Taveras - 70
  • Victories Leader: John Candelaria - 20
  • Losses Leader: Jerry Reuss - 13
  • Strikeout Leader: Rich Gossage - 151
  • Saves Leader: Rich Gossage - 26
  • ERA Leader (starters): John Candelaria - 2.34
  • ERA Leader (relievers): Rich Gossage - 1.62 
  • Players who could have had Pirates cards in 1977 (batters with over 100 AB, pitchers with over 40 innings) :
  • Fernando Gonzalez (IF/OF) - .276, 4 HR, 27 RBI in 80 games
  • Rich Gossage - (pictured with Chicago White Sox) - 11-9, 1.62 ERA, 26 saves in 72 games
  • Grant Jackson (pictured with Seattle Mariners) - 5-3, 3.86 ERA, 4 saves in 49 games (2 starts)
  • Odell Jones - 3-7, 5.08 ERA in 33 games (15 starts) 
  • Terry Forster (pictured with Chicago White Sox) 6-4, 4.43 ERA in 33 games (6 starts)