The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. They are in the Western Division of the American League. The team is often called simply the "A's".
- Founded: 1893, as the Indianapolis, Indiana franchise in the minor Western League. Moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1900 when that league became the American League. Moved to Kansas City, Missouri in 1955 and to Oakland in 1967.
- Formerly known as: Philadelphia Athletics (1901-1954), Kansas City Athletics (1955-1966)
- Home ballpark: Network Associates Coliseum, Oakland
- Uniform colors: Green, White and Gold
- Logo design: A stylized capital "A's". The team also occasionally uses a white elephant logo.
- Wild Card titles won (1): 2001
- Division titles won (13): 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1981, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 2000, 2002, 2003
- American League pennants won: 1901, 1905, 1910, 1911, 1913, 1914, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1988, 1989, 1990.
- World Series championships won: 1910, 1911, 1913, 1929, 1930, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1989
Franchise history
The Philadelphia years (1901-1954)
- The "White Elephants": Connie Mack, the Lajoie scandal, early success
- The $100,000 Infield: Baker, Barry, Collins, McInnis; dominance, 1910-1913; upset by Miracle Braves in 1914; dismantling of the team and subsequent cellar-dwelling
- 1928-1932: Rebuilding of team in 1920s. Cochrane, Grove, Foxx, Simmons, others
The Kansas City years (1955-1966)
- During the Kansas City years, the team generally did not draw well or do well. Kansas City was involved in so many bad trades with the Yankees (in which they gave up Roger Maris, Bob Cerv, and others, and got little in return) that they were jokingly considered to be a Yankee farm club.
The Oakland years (1967 to present)
Events and Records of Note
- 20-Game Win Streak: The Oakland Athletics won an American League Record 20 games in a row, from August 13 to September 4, 2002. The last three games were won in dramatic fashion, each victory coming in the bottom of the ninth inning.
Players of note
- Frank "Home Run" Baker
- Chief Bender
- Orlando Cepeda
- Ty Cobb
- Mickey Cochrane
- Eddie Collins
- Jimmy Collins
- Stan Coveleski
- Dennis Eckersley
- Rollie Fingers
- Elmer Flick
- Nellie Fox
- Jimmie Foxx
- Lefty Grove
- Waite Hoyt
- Catfish Hunter
- Reggie Jackson
- George Kell
- Nap Lajoie
- Willie McCovey
- Joe Morgan
- Satchel Paige
- Herb Pennock
- Eddie Plank
- Al Simmons
- Enos Slaughter
- Tris Speaker
- Don Sutton
- Rube Waddell
- Zack Wheat
- Billy Williams
Current stars
- Eric Byrnes (OF)
- Eric Chavez (3B) 3-time (Gold Glove 2001-03; Silver Slugger, 2002
- Bobby Crosby (SS)
- Octavio Dotel (P)
- Justin Duchscherer (P)
- Erubiel Durazo (DH)
- Jermaine Dye (OF)
- Rich Harden (P)
- Scott Hatteberg (1B)
- Tim Hudson (P)
- Bobby Kielty (OF)
- Mark Kotsay (OF)
- Mark McLemore (IF)
- Jim Mecir (P)
- Damian Miller (C)
- Mark Mulder (P)
- Mark Redman (P)
- Ricardo Rincon (P)
- Marco Scutaro (2B)
- Barry Zito (P) Cy Young Award,2002
Not to be forgotten
- Tony Armas
- Sal Bando
- Vida Blue
- Bert Campaneris
- Jose Canseco (AL MVP, 1988)
- Ray Fosse
- Jason Giambi (AL MVP, 2000)
- Dave Henderson
- Rickey Henderson (AL MVP, 1990)
- Rick Honeycutt
- David Justice (National League Rookie of the Year, 1990)
- Mark McGwire
- Dave Righetti (American League Rookie of the Year, 1981)
- Joe Rudi
- Dave Stewart
- Miguel Tejada (AL MVP, 2002)
- Bob Welch (AL Cy Young Award, 1990)
Retired numbers
- 9 Reggie Jackson
- 27 Catfish Hunter
- 34 Rollie Fingers
- 42 Jackie Robinson (retired throughout baseball)
Managers, coaches, and executives
- Billy Beane, General Manager 1997-present
- Charlie Finley
- Tony La Russa
- Connie Mack, Owner, General Manager, Manager 1901-1951
- Billy Martin