1978 Oakland Athletics season

1978 Oakland Athletics
Major League affiliations
American League (since 1901)
Western Division (since 1969)
Location
Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum (since 1968)
Oakland, California (since 1968)
Results
Record	69–93 (.426)
Other information
Owner(s)	Charles O. Finley
Manager(s)	Bobby Winkles, Jack McKeon
Local television	KPIX-TV (Monte Moore, Bob Waller)
Local radio	KALX/KNEW (AM) (Larry Baer & Bob Kozberg/Bud Foster, Bob Cosgrove, Curt Flood & Jim Peterson)
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The 1978 Oakland Athletics season was the team's eleventh in Oakland, California. The team sought to rebound from its first losing season in a decade (a 63-99 result in 1977). Despite low expectations, the Athletics remained competitive for nearly three-quarters of the season. Despite posting a respectable 61-56 mark through 117 games, the Athletics collapsed in the season's final weeks; their 8-37 finish ensured a second consecutive season of fewer than 70 wins.

Only one player (Billy North) remained from the team's 1974 championship season. He would be traded to the Dodgers in May.

Prior to the season, owner Charlie Finley nearly sold the team to buyers who would have moved them to Denver.

Offseason

February 25, 1978: Doug Bair and cash were traded by the Athletics to the Cincinnati Reds for Dave Revering.^[1]
March 15, 1978: Vida Blue was traded by the Athletics to the San Francisco Giants for Gary Alexander, Gary Thomasson, Dave Heaverlo, Alan Wirth, John Henry Johnson, Phil Huffman, a player to be named later, and $300,000. The Giants completed the deal by sending Mario Guerrero to the Athletics on April 7.^[2]
March 25, 1978: Sheldon Mallory was traded by the Athletics to the Toronto Blue Jays for Steve Staggs.^[3]
March 28, 1978: Dick Allen was released by the Athletics.^[4]
March 28, 1978: Mark Williams was released by the Athletics.^[5]

Vida Blue trade

The trade of Vida Blue was a very complicated deal for A's owner Charles O. Finley. At the end of the 1977 season, Finley attempted to trade Vida Blue to the Cincinnati Reds for a player of lesser stature and cash, but baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn vetoed the deal. The commissioner claimed that it was tantamount to the sale of the star pitcher to the Yankees that the commissioner voided during 1976. The commissioner claimed that adding Blue to the Reds' already formidable pitching staff would make a mockery of the National League West race. Instead, Blue was traded across the bay to the San Francisco Giants in a multi-player trade that received the commissioner's blessing.

Proposed sale

After the 1977 season, Charlie Finley had heart bypass surgery and his health was in decline. He had received offers from groups in New Orleans and Washington, D.C., and from billionaire oilman Marvin Davis from Denver.^[6] In December 1977, Finley agreed to sell the Athletics to Marvin Davis for 12.5 million dollars. The franchise would move to Denver for the 1978 season. The American League owners approved the sale and the transfer of the franchise.^[7] The board of the Oakland Coliseum had prepared a lawsuit against Finley, as there were still 10 years left on their stadium lease. Bowie Kuhn and San Francisco Giants owner Bob Lurie worked with Finley to attempt to find a compromise that would allow the Athletics to leave Oakland.

Regular season

Season standings

AL West	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
Kansas City Royals	92	70	0.568	—	56–25	36–45
Texas Rangers	87	75	0.537	5	52–30	35–45
California Angels	87	75	0.537	5	50–31	37–44
Minnesota Twins	73	89	0.451	19	38–43	35–46
Chicago White Sox	71	90	0.441	20½	38–42	33–48
Oakland Athletics	69	93	0.426	23	38–42	31–51
Seattle Mariners	56	104	0.350	35	32–49	24–55

Record vs. opponents

1978 American League Records Sources:
Team	BAL	BOS	CAL	CWS	CLE	DET	KC	MIL	MIN	NYY	OAK	SEA	TEX	TOR
Baltimore	—	7–8	4–6	8–1	9–6	7–8	2–8	7–8	5–5	6–9	11–0	9–1	7–4	8–7
Boston	8–7	—	9–2	7–3	7–8	12–3	4–6	10–5	9–2	7–9	5–5	7–3	3–7	11–4
California	6–4	2–9	—	8–7	6–4	4–7	9–6	5–5	12–3	5–5	9–6	9–6	5–10	7–3
Chicago	1–8	3–7	7–8	—	8–2	2–9	8–7	4–7	8–7	1–9	7–8	7–8	11–4	4–6
Cleveland	6–9	8–7	4–6	2–8	—	5–10	5–6	5–10	5–5	6–9	4–6	8–1	1–9	10–4
Detroit	8–7	3–12	7–4	9–2	10–5	—	4–6	7–8	4–6	4–11	6–4	8–2	7–3	9–6
Kansas City	8–2	6–4	6–9	7–8	6–5	6–4	—	6–4	7–8	6–5	10–5	12–3	7–8	5–5
Milwaukee	8–7	5–10	5–5	7–4	10–5	8–7	4–6	—	4–7	10–5	9–1	5–5	6–4	12–3
Minnesota	5–5	2–9	3–12	7–8	5–5	6–4	8–7	7–4	—	3–7	9–6	6–9	6–9	6–4
New York	9–6	9–7	5–5	9–1	9–6	11–4	5–6	5–10	7–3	—	8–2	6–5	6–4	11–4
Oakland	0–11	5–5	6–9	8–7	6–4	4–6	5–10	1–9	6–9	2–8	—	13–2	6–9	7–4
Seattle	1–9	3–7	6–9	8–7	1–8	2–8	3–12	5–5	9–6	5–6	2–13	—	3–12	8–2
Texas	4–7	7–3	10–5	4–11	9–1	3–7	8–7	4–6	9–6	4–6	9–6	12–3	—	4–7
Toronto	7–8	4–11	3–7	6–4	4–10	6–9	5–5	3–12	4–6	4–11	4–7	2–8	7–4	—

Notable transactions

April 4, 1978: Manny Sanguillén was traded by the Athletics to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Miguel Diloné, Elías Sosa and a player to be named later. The Pirates completed the deal by sending Mike Edwards to the Athletics on April 7.^[8]
May 22, 1978: Joe Coleman was purchased from the Athletics by the Toronto Blue Jays.^[9]
June 15, 1978: Gary Alexander was traded by the Athletics to the Cleveland Indians for Joe Wallis.^[10]
June 15, 1978: Gary Thomasson was traded by the Athletics to the New York Yankees for Mickey Klutts, Dell Alston and $50,000.^[11]
June 20, 1978: Tito Fuentes was signed as a free agent by the Athletics.^[12]
July 13, 1978: Willie Horton was signed as a free agent by the Athletics.^[13]
July 26, 1978: Tito Fuentes was released by the Athletics.^[12]
August 15, 1978: Willie Horton and Phil Huffman were traded by the Athletics to the Toronto Blue Jays for Rico Carty.^[13]

Draft picks

June 6, 1978: 1978 Major League Baseball Draft
- Keith Atherton was drafted by the Athletics in the 2nd round.^[14]
June 6, 1978: Kelvin Moore was drafted by the Athletics in the 6th round.^[15]

Roster

1978 Oakland Athletics

Roster

Pitchers

40 Pete Broberg

15 Joe Coleman

37 Tim Conroy

60 Dave Heaverlo

38 John Henry Johnson

27 Matt Keough

34 Bob Lacey

22 Rick Langford

54 Steve McCatty

23,49 Craig Minetto

15 Mike Morgan

16,17 Mike Norris

28 Steve Renko

33 Elías Sosa

38 Alan Wirth

Catchers

18 Jim Essian

25 Tim Hosley

26 Scott Meyer

5 Jeff Newman

25,48 Bruce Robinson

Infielders

9,21 Mike Adams

16 Taylor Duncan

7 Mike Edwards

26,44 Tito Fuentes

10 Wayne Gross

3 Mario Guerrero

17 Marty Perez

8 Rob Picciolo

24 Dave Revering

31 Steve Staggs

14 Jerry Tabb

25,44 Darrell Woodard

Outfielders

37 Gary Alexander

13,32 Dell Alston

11 Tony Armas

17 Mark Budaska

4,14 Glenn Burke

19 Miguel Diloné

11 Willie Horton

36 Dwayne Murphy

20 Larry Murray

4 Billy North

6 Mitchell Page

12 Gary Thomasson

9 Joe Wallis

Other batters

20,23 Rico Carty

Manager

1 Jack McKeon

1 Bobby Winkles

Coaches

-- Bobby Hofman

-- Jack McKeon

2 Red Schoendienst

-- Lee Stange

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

Pos	Player	G	AB	H	Avg.	HR	RBI
1B	Revering, DaveDave Revering	152	521	141	.271	16	46
2B	Edwards, MikeMike Edwards	142	414	113	.273	1	23
SS	Guerrero, MarioMario Guerrero	143	505	139	.275	3	38
CF	Wallis, JoeJoe Wallis	85	279	66	.237	6	26
RF	Thomasson, GaryGary Thomasson	47	154	31	.201	5	16
DH	Alexander, GaryGary Alexander	58	174	36	.207	10	22

Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Player	G	AB	H	Avg.	HR	RBI
Newman, JeffJeff Newman	105	268	64	.239	9	32
Diloné, MiguelMiguel Diloné	135	258	59	.229	1	14
Burke, GlennGlenn Burke	78	200	47	.235	1	14
Alston, DellDell Alston	58	173	36	.208	1	10
Carty, RicoRico Carty	41	141	39	.277	11	31
Horton, WillieWillie Horton	32	102	32	.314	3	19
Robinson, BruceBruce Robinson	28	84	21	.250	0	8
Staggs, SteveSteve Staggs	47	78	19	.244	0	0
Fuentes, TitoTito Fuentes	13	43	6	.140	0	2
Hosley, TimTim Hosley	13	23	7	.304	0	3
Adams, MikeMike Adams	15	15	3	.200	0	1
Murray, LarryLarry Murray	11	12	1	.083	0	0
Tabb, JerryJerry Tabb	12	9	1	.111	0	1

Pitching

Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player	G	IP	W	L	ERA	SO
Keough, MattMatt Keough	32	197.1	8	15	3.24	108
Johnson, John HenryJohn Henry Johnson	33	186	11	10	3.39	91
Broberg, PetePete Broberg	35	165.2	10	12	4.62	94
Wirth, AlanAlan Wirth	16	81.2	5	6	3.43	31
Conroy, TimTim Conroy	2	4.2	0	0	7.71	0

Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player	G	IP	W	L	ERA	SO
Norris, MikeMike Norris	14	49	0	5	5.51	36
Minetto, CraigCraig Minetto	4	12	0	0	3.75	3

Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player	G	IP	W	L	SV	ERA	SO
Sosa, ElíasElías Sosa	68	109	8	2	14	2.64	61
Heaverlo, DaveDave Heaverlo	69	130	3	6	10	3.25	71
Coleman, JoeJoe Coleman	10	3	0	0	1.37	4

Farm system

Level	Team	League	Manager
AAA	Vancouver Canadians	Pacific Coast League	Jim Marshall
AA	Jersey City A's	Eastern League	John Kennedy
A	Modesto A's	California League	Gaylen Pitts
A-Short Season	Bend Timber Hawks	Northwest League	Ed Nottle

References

↑ Dave Revering page at Baseball Reference
↑ Vida Blue page at Baseball Reference
↑ Sheldon Mallory page at Baseball Reference
↑ Dick Allen page at Baseball Reference
↑ Mark Williams page at Baseball Reference
↑ Charlie Finley: The Outrageous Story of Baseball's Super Showman, p. 272, G. Michael Green and Roger D. Launius. Walker Publishing Company, New York, 2010, ISBN 978-0-8027-1745-0
↑ Charlie Finley: The Outrageous Story of Baseball's Super Showman, p. 273
↑ Manny Sanguillén page at Baseball Reference
↑ Joe Coleman page at Baseball Reference
↑ Joe Wallis page at Baseball Reference
↑ Mickey Klutts page at Baseball Reference
1 2 Tito Fuentes page at Baseball Reference
1 2 Willie Horton page at Baseball Reference
↑ Keith Atherton page at Baseball-Reference
↑ Kelvin Moore page at Baseball-Reference

External links

1978 MLB season by team

AL East	Baltimore Boston Cleveland Detroit Milwaukee New York Toronto

AL West	California Chicago Kansas City Minnesota Oakland Seattle Texas

NL East	Chicago Montréal New York Philadelphia Pittsburgh St. Louis

NL West	Atlanta Cincinnati Houston Los Angeles San Diego San Francisco

1978 MLB draft 1978 All-Star Game 1978 World Series

Oakland Athletics

Formerly the Philadelphia Athletics and the Kansas City Athletics
Based in Oakland, California (Bay Area)

Franchise

Ballparks

Spring training: Barrs Field; Terry Park Ballfield; Wilmington Park; McCurdy Field; Connie Mack Field; McKechnie Field; Rendezvous Park; Scottsdale Stadium I; Phoenix Municipal Stadium; Hohokam Stadium

Culture

Lore

Rivalries

Key personnel

Owners: John J. Fisher & Lewis Wolff
President: Michael Crowley
Executive vice president: Billy Beane
General manager: David Forst
Manager: Bob Melvin

Important figures

Hall of Fame members	Home Run Baker Chief Bender Mickey Cochrane Eddie Collins Dennis Eckersley Rollie Fingers Jimmie Foxx Lefty Grove Rickey Henderson Catfish Hunter Reggie Jackson Nap Lajoie Connie Mack Eddie Plank Al Simmons Rube Waddell Dick Williams

Wall of Fame members	Sam Chapman Jack Coombs Jimmy Dykes George Earnshaw Ferris Fain Bob Johnson Eddie Joost Bing Miller Wally Moses Rube Oldring Bobby Shantz Eddie Rommel Elmer Valo Rube Walberg Gus Zernial

World Series
Champions (9)

American League
Championships (15)

AL West Division
Championships (16)

AL Wild Card (2)

2001
2014

Minors

AAA: Nashville Sounds
AA: Midland RockHounds
A Adv.: Stockton Ports
A: Beloit Snappers
Short A: Vermont Lake Monsters
Rookie: AZL Athletics; DSL Athletics

Seasons (117)

1900s	1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909

1910s	1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919

1920s	1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929

1930s	1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939

1940s	1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949

1950s	1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959

1960s	1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969

1970s	1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979

1980s	1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989

1990s	1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999

2000s	2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

2010s	2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

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