MLB – History of the Oakland Athletics franchise, highs and lows.

There are a lot of great Major League Baseball teams out there that have rich histories and have basically created their own cultures.  One of these teams is the Oakland Athletics.  The Oakland Athletics are currently in the Western Division of the American League and are based in Oakland, California.  They currently play their home games in the Oakland Coliseum and have done so since 1968.  They are affectionately known as the "A's" because of the large Black A that has become a trademark of the team, and they are usually referred to as the "A's" more than they are referred to as the "Athletics".  Another nickname they have been know by is the "White Elephants" in reference to John McGraw's statement years ago.

The Oakland A's were founded in 1901 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  They were first known as the Philadelphia Athletics and then later as the Kansas City Athletics when they were moved there in the mid fifties.  This Major League Baseball team didn't have a winning season until 1968 when they finished with a record of 82-80.  That is 46 years of a less than desirable record.  This was the start of a new kind of team where winning became expected of them.  In 1970 they finished second place in their division, and in 1971 they won the American League West Title.  They went on that year to the American League Championship Series but ended up losing to the Baltimore Orioles.  The next year they regrouped and captured their first World Cup Championship in 1972 and followed that success with World Championships in 1973, and 1974.  During the period of 1971 to 1975 they actually won five consecutive division titles as well

In the next ten years following this barrage of success, the Oakland Athletics went into somewhat of a slump, only playing in one series in the postseason in 1981.  There were, however, some notable players during this time including Rickey Henderson who stole his 132nd base in the 1982 season to hold the stole base record in a single season.  The next few years the Athletics used the minor league system to produce some incredible new additions to the team including Jose Canseco in 1986, Mark McGwire in 1987, and Walt Weiss in 1988.  All of these players were named A.L. rookies of the year and went on to have impressive careers.

 Another notable addition to the team's management came in 1986 when Tony La Russa joined the ranks as the manager for the Athletics.  He would lead the team to multiple division crowns (4), as well as a World Series Championship in 1989.