Entering the season as the
three-time defending World Series champions, the
Oakland Athletics' 1975 season involved the A's winning their fifth consecutive
American League West
The American League West is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. The division has five teams as of the 2013 season, but had four teams from 1994 to 2012, and had as many as seven teams before the 1994 realignment. Although its teams curr ...
title with a record of 98 wins and 64 losses. They went on to play the
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...
in the
1975 American League Championship Series
The 1975 American League Championship Series pitted the Boston Red Sox against the three-time defending World Series champion Oakland Athletics for the right to advance to the World Series. The Red Sox swept the series in three games to win ...
, losing in three straight games.
Offseason
After the Athletics' victory over the
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...
in the
1974 World Series
The 1974 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1974 season. The 71st edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League (AL) champion (and two-time defending World ...
under
Alvin Dark
Alvin Ralph Dark (January 7, 1922 – November 13, 2014), nicknamed "Blackie" and "The Swamp Fox", was an American professional baseball shortstop and manager. He played fourteen years in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston/Milwaukee Bra ...
, pitcher
Catfish Hunter
James Augustus Hunter (April 8, 1946 – September 9, 1999), nicknamed "Catfish", was a professional baseball player in Major League Baseball (MLB). From to , he was a pitcher for the Kansas City/Oakland Athletics and New York Yankees. Hunter wa ...
filed a grievance. He won the American League Cy Young Award in 1974 with a record of 25–12 and a league-leading 2.49 earned run average. Hunter uncovered a violation of his contract with A's owner
Charlie Finley
Charles Oscar Finley (February 22, 1918 – February 19, 1996), nicknamed Charlie O or Charley O, was an American businessman who owned Major League Baseball's Oakland Athletics. Finley purchased the franchise while it was located in Kansas C ...
and the team that allowed him to become a free agent. The A's were to send half of Hunter's $100,000 annual salary to a North Carolina bank as payment on an annuity, but Finley did not comply.
On December 13, 1974, arbitrator Peter Seitz ruled in Hunter's favor. As a result, Hunter became a free agent, and signed a contract with the
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...
for the 1975 season. Despite the loss of Hunter, the A's repeated as A.L. West champions in 1975, but lost the ALCS to
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
in a 3-game sweep.
The Athletics led the league in arbitration filings with 13. Seven players settled before their hearings.
Notable transactions
* October 23, 1974:
Manny Trillo
Jesús Manuel Marcano Trillo (born December 25, 1950), also nicknamed "Indio", is a Venezuelan former professional baseball second baseman, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Oakland Athletics (–), Chicago Cubs (–, –), Phil ...
,
Darold Knowles
Darold Duane Knowles (born December 9, 1941) is an American former professional baseball pitcher and coach, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from through , most notably as a member of the Oakland Athletics dynasty that won three consecu ...
and
Bob Locker were traded by the Athletics to the
Chicago Cubs for
Billy Williams.
* October 23, 1974:
Dan Ford
Darnell Glenn Ford (born May 19, 1952) is a former professional baseball player. Nicknamed "Disco Dan", he played in the Major Leagues primarily as an outfielder from 1975 to 1985 for the Minnesota Twins, California Angels, and Baltimore Orioles. ...
and Dennis Myers (minors) were traded by the Athletics to the
Minnesota Twins for
Pat Bourque.
* November 11, 1974:
Dal Maxvill was released by the Athletics.
[Dal Maxvill page at Baseball Reference]
/ref>
* December 2, 1974: Tim Hosley was drafted from the Athletics by the Chicago Cubs in the 1974 rule 5 draft.
* January 9, 1975: Rob Picciolo was drafted by the Athletics in the 1st round (4th pick) of the 1975 Major League Baseball Draft (Secondary Phase).
* March 28, 1975: Jesús Alou was released by the Athletics.
Regular season
*At the All-Star Break, there were discussions of Bowie Kuhn's reappointment. Finley, New York owner George Steinbrenner and Baltimore owner Jerry Hoffberger were part of a group that wanted him gone. Finley was trying to convince the new owner of the Texas Rangers Brad Corbett that MLB needed a more dynamic commissioner. During the vote, Baltimore and New York decided to vote in favour of the commissioner's reappointment.
*By July 14, the Athletics had won 55 games, compared to 32 losses. Seven Athletics had been named to the All-Star Game.
*August 18, 1975: Charlie Finley was on the cover of ''Time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...
'' magazine.[''Charlie Finley: The Outrageous Story of Baseball's Super Showman'', p.229, G. Michael Green and Roger D. Launius. Walker Publishing Company, New York, 2010, ] It would be his last major profile in a national publication.
Relocation plans
*Finley received numerous offers for the Athletics. Horse owner Marge Everett wanted to purchase the team and relocate them to Seattle. Former San Francisco Giants manager Herman Franks
Herman Louis Franks (January 4, 1914 – March 30, 2009) was a catcher, coach, manager, general manager and scout in Major League Baseball. He was born in Price, Utah, to Italian-American immigrant parents and attended the University of Utah.
Pl ...
led a group of 15 investors who had offered more than $15 million.[''Charlie Finley: The Outrageous Story of Baseball's Super Showman'', p.222, G. Michael Green and Roger D. Launius. Walker Publishing Company, New York, 2010, ]
*Finley openly criticized fans for the lack of attendance. There were rumours of possible relocation to New Orleans, Seattle, and Toronto.Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...
to Seattle. White Sox owner John Allyn was broke and placed under enormous pressure from fellow owners to sell his club to Seattle interests and undercut a lawsuit which Seattle had against them. As Charlie Finley had business interests in Chicago, he was prepared to move the Athletics to Chicago and be closer to his home in LaPorte, Indiana
La Porte (French for "The Door") is a city in LaPorte County, Indiana, United States, of which it is the county seat. Its population was estimated to be 21,341 in 2022. It is one of the two principal cities of the Michigan City-La Porte, India ...
. Due to his 20-year lease with the city of Oakland (to expire in 1987), Finley was blocked. The scheme fell through when Arthur Allyn sold the White Sox to another colorful owner, Bill Veeck, who was not interested in leaving Chicago.
Season standings
Record vs. opponents
Notable transactions
* April 6, 1975: The Athletics sent a player to be named later and cash to the Chicago Cubs for Jim Todd
Jim Todd (born 1952 in Billerica, Massachusetts) is a professional basketball coach who last served as an assistant for the New York Knicks.
NBA coaching career Los Angeles Clippers
He was the coach at Salem State College for nearly ten years, an ...
. The Athletics completed the deal by sending Champ Summers
John Junior "Champ" Summers (June 15, 1946 – October 11, 2012) was a Major League Baseball outfielder and first baseman for six teams during his eleven-year career that spanned from 1974 to 1984. Summers played with the Oakland Athletics, Chic ...
to the Cubs on April 29.
* May 20, 1975: Blue Moon Odom and cash were traded by the Athletics to the Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...
for Dick Bosman and Jim Perry James Perry may refer to:
* James Perry (journalist) (1756–1821), journalist
* James Franklin Perry (1790–1853), early Texas settler (with wife Emily Austin Perry)
* Jimmy Perry (1923–2016), English actor and scriptwriter
* James E. C. Perr ...
.
* June 3, 1975: Denny Walling was drafted in the 1st round (1st pick) of the Secondary Phase of the 1975 Major League Baseball Draft.
* June 18, 1975: Brian Kingman was signed as an amateur free agent by the Athletics.
* August 29, 1975: Dal Maxvill was signed as a free agent by the Athletics.[
* September 15, 1975: Rick Ingalls (minors) was traded by the Athletics to the Kansas City Royals for Mark Williams.Mark Williams page at Baseball Reference]
/ref>
Roster
Player stats
Batting
Starters by position
''Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in''
[1975 Oakland Athletics Statistics and Roster – Baseball-Reference.com]
/ref>
Other batters
''Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in''
Pitching
Starting pitchers
''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''
Other pitchers
''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''
Relief pitchers
''Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''
Farm system
References
External links
1975 Oakland Athletics team page at Baseball Reference1975 Oakland Athletics team page at www.baseball-almanac.com
{{Oakland Athletics
Oakland Athletics seasons
Oakland Athletics season
American League West champion seasons
Oakland