#164 Al Spangler - Houston Astros

Albert Donald Spangler
Houston Astros
Outfield

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Left  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  175
Born:  July 8, 1933, Philadelphia, PA
Signed:  Signed by the Milwaukee Braves as an amateur free agent, June 14, 1954
Major League Teams:  Milwaukee Braves 1959-1961; Houston Colt .45s 1962-1964; Houston Astros 1965; Los Angeles Angels 1965; California Angels 1966; Chicago Cubs 1967-1971

The original left fielder for the expansion Houston Colt .45s, Al Spangler enjoyed a 13-year big league career.  A native of Philadelphia and an All-American baseball player while at Duke University, Spangler was originally drafted by the Braves but selected by Houston in the premium phase of the 1961 expansion draft.  With Houston, Spangler was their top hitter the first two years of the team's existence and he drove in their first ever run with an RBI triple in the bottom of the first on opening day 1962.

Spangler served in a reserve role for the Cubs during the final five seasons of his career, and he coached in the Cubs system between 1971 and 1973, serving on the big league staff in 1971 and 1974.

Building the Set
December 7, 2019 from King of Prussia, PA - Card #19
We were up to 11 cards for our 1965 Topps set, and I honestly had it in mind that I wanted to purchase one fairly major "star" card during our remaining time at the Philadelphia Sportscard & Memorabilia Show inside the Valley Forge Casino.  The showroom floor was packed as we were now into the early afternoon and autograph guests were showing up every 15 minutes or so.  The PA announcer would call out ticket numbers in groups of 10 all while imploring collectors to back away from the entrance that led into the autograph signing area.

That was the backdrop when we came upon the table for MJW Collectibles out of Somerdale, NJ.  This dealer had a bunch of 1960s Topps binders spread out, and the sign on the 1965 Topps binder caught my eye - ALL CARDS $1.  And with Doug's help, I dug in.

I first determined I'd buy 10 cards, and then that went up to 15.  My only criteria was that the cards needed to be a good shape with four sharp corners.  Doug helped me pick the cards in best shape, especially when there were several of the same card to a page.  This Spangler card was one of the 15 commons we added from MJW Collectibles.  Some were fairly random additions, and others had some meaning to me and I'll feature each of the cards acquired in upcoming posts.

The Card
This is the first card in the set to feature the team name "Astros," as the other Astros cards up to this point simply state "Houston" on the front pennant.  With the exception of the photo used for his 1960 Topps rookie card, Spangler's other Topps flagship cards feature the same stoic look from the outfielder with nary a smile.  Spangler was actually tied for the team lead in walks in 1962 with first baseman Norm Larker.  Spangler, at card #53, is one of 72 players featured within the 1965 Topps Embossed insert set and one of three Astros in the set.  He's also in the harder to find 1965 Topps Transfers insert set.

1965 Season
Spangler got off to a slow start for the Astros in 1965, and the team acquired Lee Maye from the Braves on May 23rd to try to provide some more offensive punch from the team's left fielder.  A week later, on June 1st, Spangler was dealt to the Angels for Don Lee (#595).  Spangler was used by the Angels primarily as a pinch-hitter and late inning defensive replacement but he did serve as a veteran mentor to the Angels' young outfield trio of Jose Cardenal, Rick Reichardt and Ed Kirkpatrick.  Spangler would lose his job as the team's fourth outfielder in 1966 due to the arrival of prospect Jay Johnstone.

For the season, Spangler hit .236 over 89 games with the Astros and Angels.

1960 Topps #143

1964 Topps #406

1968 Topps #451

1970 Topps #714

1974 Topps #354

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1960 Topps #143
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (11):  1960-1966, 1968-1970, 1974
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1978 TCMA The 1960s I #171

59 - Spangler non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 12/24/19.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
SABR
The Trading Card Database

In some cases, the first and last cards listed above are subjective and chosen by me if multiple cards were released within the same year.  Most recent mainstream card may also be subjective and does not include extremely low serial numbered cards, buybacks or cut autograph cards.

Prior Card:  #163 John Briggs - Philadelphia Phillies

Next Card:  #165 Dick Ellsworth - Chicago Cubs