1966 Topps #173 Al Spangler
About Al Spangler
Number 173 sits in the second series of 1966, an everyday low number. It shows Spangler with the California Angels, who had traded for him in June 1965 and who were busy clearing outfield room for young Jose Cardenal, Rick Reichardt and Ed Kirkpatrick. He got into only 57 games for the Angels across the two seasons, starting 20 of them, and spent most of 1966 at Triple-A Seattle, helping that club to its first pennant in 11 years and hitting .440 in the seven-game championship series against Tulsa. The Angels released him on February 13, 1967.
Al Spangler was a left-handed-hitting, left-handed-throwing outfielder who played 13 major league seasons, 1959-1971, for the Milwaukee Braves, Houston Colt .45s/Astros, Los Angeles/California Angels, and Chicago Cubs. Born in Philadelphia in 1933, he starred at Olney High School and then at Duke University, where he was an All-American after batting .406 as a junior; his speed and pesky, table-setting hitting drew comparisons to Hall of Famer Richie Ashburn. He signed with Milwaukee in June 1954, lost two years to the Army, and reached the majors in September 1959, only to sit behind a crowded Braves outfield that always wanted more power. Houston took him in the premium phase of the October 1961 expansion draft, and he finally played every day, batting .285 and .281 in the Colt .45s' first two seasons. Part-time work followed with the Angels and Cubs, where Leo Durocher made him a bench bat. In 912 games he hit .262 with 594 hits, 87 doubles, 26 triples, 21 home runs and 175 runs batted in. He coached for Chicago in 1971, managed in its farm system in 1972 and 1973, and returned to the Cubs' coaching staff in 1974.
Sources: Wikipedia · SABR BioProject · Baseball-Reference · Baseball Almanac
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 207 | 2 | 30 | 106 | 49 | 11 | 5 | 4 | 0 |
| SGC | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Graded population — a scarcity guide, not a price. Data as of 2026-09-04. Half grades fold down for both graders (8.5→8); PSA qualified slabs (OC, ST, PD, MC and the like) are not counted. Where SGC registers no separate row for a variation state, its slabs of that card are listed under the base state.
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Related cards
Team card: #131 California Angels
More California Angels cards:
- #5 Jim Fregosi
- #23 Jack Sanford
- #42 Aubrey Gatewood
- #62 Merritt Ranew
- #83 Albie Pearson
- #102 Ed Kirkpatrick
- #152 Frank Malzone
- #155 Marcelino Lopez
- #192 Vic Power
- #213 Fred Newman
- #249 Bill Rigney
- #263 Tom Egan
- #280 Bobby Knoop
- #299 Lou Burdette
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1966 Topps #173 card?
It is card #173 of the 598-card 1966 Topps Baseball set, picturing Al Spangler of the California Angels.
How many cards are in the 1966 Topps Baseball set?
598 cards, tracked as 613 collectible states. Numbers run from 1 to 598 with no gaps and no number used twice, and 14 cards carry catalogued print variations - five checklists, the trade and sold statement backs, the three-state #43 Don Landrum, three team-card dot pairs and the #161 Jerry Lumpe white streak - that the master set counts separately.
Sources: Trading Card Database, PSA CardFacts, Cardboard Connection, Baseball Almanac, Baseball-Reference, the SABR BioProject and the National Baseball Hall of Fame, PSA & SGC population reports. Card data compiled and maintained by T206Cards.com. Page last updated 2026-10-11.