LaRussa’s 4-Year “Plan”

BY MARK A. LARSON
Editor & Publisher

As a player, Tony LaRussa had one of the oddest baseball card histories. He appeared on three Topps cards with four years between his first and second, and then another four years between his second and third card – in 1964, 1968 and 1972.

The major factor was his sporadic major league career. LaRussa played for the old Kansas City A’s as an 18-year old in 1963 and didn’t return to the majors for five years. By then, the team had moved to Oakland. It was then up-and-down and up-and-down between the majors and minors.

Over parts of six big league seasons for the A’s, Braves and Cubs, LaRussa had 176 at-bats and hit just .199, with no homers and nine RBIs. … The future Hall-of-Fame manager appeared alone on his first cards as a skipper in 1981.