Opening Day Roster:
What the Hell just happened?!? At the start of the 1978 season, A's fans could be forgiven for thinking they had just slept off a night of partying, and were waking up with the mother of all hangovers to face the grim reality of The Next Day.
Hadn't they just won three straight World Series championships? Hadn't they recently completed a run of 5 straight AL Western Division titles? Does anyone know where Reggie is? How about Rollie? What about Sal, Joe, Dick, Gene, Blue Moon, Catfish or Bert? Guys? Come on, this isn't funny any more...
1977 saw the A's finish 38.5 games behind the Royals in last place, the first time in the 1970s the team didn't win the division or finish second. Going into 1978 they were a wreck, and it was the fault of owner Charlie Finley. Finley had sold or traded away all his stars, and had been trying to get rid of Vida Blue, his only remaining name player, for more than a year (he was eventually traded to the Giants late in spring training); he desperately wanted to sell the team to Denver oil tycoon Marvin Davis, and going into the season a relocation was still considered a possibility; and he meddled in ways that would have made George Steinbrenner blush (he wanted the manager in the dugout to be in touch with him during games via headphones). As for the team, it competed with the cross-Bay Giants at the gate, and always came up on the short end of the stick. After the disastrous 1977, attendance well below 10,000 was the rule for 1978, and frequently they drew under 3,000 (on 5 occasions they failed to draw 2,000). Going into the year armed with youngsters and cast-offs, the A's actually got off to a hot start, thanks in large part to unexpectedly excellent pitching. The were in first place much of the first half, and as late as July 5, before their lack of hitting and a number of extended losing streaks became their undoing. By the end of the season, they stood at 69-93, good for 6th place, 23 games behind Kansas City.
Not much help was developing down on the farm, with the exception of a speedy kid named Rickey Henderson, who was tearing it up at AA Jersey City.
Presiding over all of this was manager Bobby Winkles. He resigned on May 21 after having had enough of Finley's interference. Jack McKeon, who was serving as the team's 3rd base coach, and who himself was replaced by Winkles as A's manager in 1977, was promoted to manager. McKeon may not have liked Finley's actions, but he tolerated them because he needed 1978 to get his pension secured. Lee Stange was the pitching coach and Red Schoendienst was at first and worked with the hitters. Once McKeon took over, Bobby Hofman, who had been the team's traveling secretary, took over at 3rd. Later in the year, Hofman and Schoendienst swtiched jobs.
Pete Broberg, SP:
The veteran was one of the reasons behing the A's fast start - he was 4-0 in his first 5 starts, with an ERA of just 1.08. He cooled off quickly and, to his great displeasure, spent time in the pen in June to accomodate the auditions of MIke Morgan and Tim Conroy. Later in the year, he was one of the harshest critics of McKeon - accusing him of managing scared because of his pension situation. He finished the season 10-12 with a 4.62 ERA. His final major league game was on October 1 against the Brewers - he pitched 4.2 innings of mop-up work in relief of Alan Wirth in a 9-0 A's loss.
John Henry Johnson, SP:
Acquired March 15 along with half of the Giants for Vida Blue, John made his major league debut on April 10 in a start against the Mariners. He pitched 6 innings of 2-hit, no-run ball, and wound up getting the win in a 1-0 A's victory. John was a bright spot for the '78 A's, authoring 2 complete game shutouts, including a 3-hit performance agains the White Sox on May 21. He led the team in wins with 11 and posted a 3.39 ERA. He could never find his 1978 form again, however, and spent the next ten years largely doing relief work for the Red Sox, Rangers and Brewers.
Matt Keough, SP:
In his first full season in the major leagues, Matt started the year going 6-4 with a 2.16 ERA in the first half. This included a 4-hit complete game win against Yankees on June 1, which probably influenced Billy Martin to select him as the A's representative at the All Star Game. Bursitits in his knee forced him to miss a number of starts in the second half, and contributed to an overall decline in performance - he finished 8-15, with a team-leading 32 starts, 108 strikeouts, 197.1 innings pitched and 3.24 ERA.
Rick Langford, SP:
In his second year with the A's, Rick made 24 starts, going 7-13, while striking out 92 and posting a 3.43 ERA. After going just 0-2 in his first 6 starts, he spent most of May and June in the pen. Though he threw 2 complete game shutout wins in early August, he was victimized by hard luck and poor run support, as exemplified by a 5-hit complete game 1-0 loss against the Twins on July 7, where the only run scored because of an Oakland error. By late August he was out of gas altogether and lost 6 of his final 7 starts.
Alan Wirth, SP:
Alan made his big league debut in California on April 9. He went 3.1 innings, and took the loss. He started another 9 games, going 2-4 with a 3.67 ERA, before being sent to Vancouver on June 11. He returned in September when rosters expanded and went 3-2 in 4 starts and 2 relief appearances, including a 4-hit complete game shutout of the Rangers.
Dave Heaverlo, RP:
Dave was acquired as part of the Vida Blue trade with the Giants. He was a true workhorse for the A's in 1978, making 69 appearances and throwing 130 innings, the most of any Oakland reliever . He saved 10 games and had a record of 3-6.
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Joe Coleman, RP:
The 14-year veteran and 2-time 20 game winner was on the downside of his career when he worked out of the Oakland bullpen in 1978. He started out scorching hot - over his first 8 appearances, totaling 15 innings, he went 3-0, giving up just 7 hits and posting a spotless 0.00 ERA. By May 21 his ERA had balooned all the way to 1.37, and he found himself sold to Toronto on May 22. He departure may have been driven by spite - he was openely critical of Finley, and, by coincidence of course, was the 4th A's player representative to have been traded, sold or released in a little more than a year.
Bob Lacey, RP:
The big left-hander led the team with 74 appearances in 1978, and put together an 8-9 record and 3.01 ERA over 119.2 relief innings pitched. Dubbed a "crazy, immature punk" by Kansas City's Darrell Porter for his antics (including some taunting) on the mound, Lacey joined Broberg in criticizing McKeon's managing later in the year.
Steve Renko, RP:
Steve was acquired late in spring training from the White Sox with Jim Essian for Pablo Torrealba. In his 10th year in the majors, he provided valuable veteran leadership to an A's staff comprised largely of youngsters. He, in turn, credited the youngsters with making him feel young again. He began the year in the bullpen, but was moved into the rotation in mid-May when Rick Langford was sent to the pen. In 25 starts, he went 6-12 with 89 strikeouts. His most impressive start was a complete game, 4-hit shutout of the Angels on August 7. He was also critical of McKeon, but said he knew the problem was truly Finley.
Gary Alexander, C:
Gary came to the A's as part of the Vida Blue trade with the Giants. Nominally a catcher, he was used almost exclusively as the team's DH, which he didn't like. His hurt feelings aside, he hit 7 HRs in his first 22 games. He also, however, was striking out once every three ABs. Over 58 games he hit 10 HR and had 22 RBI, but his average languished at .207. On June 15, he was traded to the Indians for Joe Wallis.
Elias Sosa, CL:
Elias was with Los Angeles in 1977, and he knew he'd become expendable when they signed Terry Forster. He loved going to Oakland, where he knew he'd get plenty of work. He was the closer straight out of spring training, and saved 14 games while compiling an 8-2 relief record and 2.64 ERA.
Jim Essian, C:
Jim was acquired in a trade with the White Sox before the season - Chicago was less than pleased with what they considered a lackadasical, entitled attitude. With the A's, Jim was a large reason for the success of the pitching staff early on. He managed the pitchers extremely well and called good games. Nevertheless, he yielded the starting job to Jeff Newman on a number of occasions because of the latter's better offensive skills. Jim hit only .223 with 3 HR and 26 RBI.
Jeff Newman, C:
The A's second-line catcher behind Essian, Jeff started 37 games behind the plate, and also saw some starts at first base, particularly later in the year. He hit .239 with 9 HR and 32 RBI. He was on the DL from August 17 through September 1 due to a hyper-extended knee.
Mike Adams, IF:
The up-and-down career of Mike Adams continued in 1978. He went north with the big club in April, got into a handful of games as an infield reserve, and was shipped to Vancouver when Mitchell Page came off the DL on April 21. He was brought back on July 7 and got into a few more games before being sent back for good on July 26. His final major league appearance came as a pinch-hitter on July 25 in Detroit.
Wayne Gross, IF:
One of the few bright spots for the A's as a rookie in 1977, Wayne entered 1978 having to work on his fielding (27 errors in 1977) and hitting for average (.233 in 1977). Neither turned out particularly well. The A's were facing a boatload of lefties, and his average hovered in the low .200s. To try to get some production at 3rd, Taylor Duncan was called up on May 29 and the two platooned there the rest of the year. Wayne was sent to Vancouver twice for brief stints to work on his hitting (July 3-10 and August 6-13). It didn't work, as he finished the year batting an even .200. As for his fielding, he reduced his error total to 20, but considering he only played in 80 games at 3rd, his percentage was actually lower than in 1977.
Marty Perez, IF:
The journeyman infielder got into 15 games as a reserve before being released on May 17. The 10-year veteran's final major league appearance came May 16 in Cleveland as a late-inning defensive replacement at short.
Mario Guerrero, IF:
Mario had been buried behind Rance Mulliniks, Bobby Grich and Dave Chalk in California, and it looked like he'd be buried behind Johnnie LeMaster in San Francsico, so he was happy to be included in the deal with the Giants for Vida Blue. As the A's starting shortstop in 1978, he hit .275, which almost made up for his .958 fielding percentage - one of the lowest in baseball for shortstops. A badly bruised thumb in late July threatened him with DL time, but a cortisone shot kept him playing.
Rob Picciolo, IF:
Oakland's starting shortstop in 1977, Rob was mainly used as a middle-infield reserve in 1978 because of the arrival of Mario Guerrero. He was sent to Vancouver on April 11 when Mike Edwards joined the club, and was recalled when Perez was released on May 17. His best performance came September 26 in Chicago - he went 3-for-4 with a 2-run homer, 3 RBI and 2 runs scored.
Dave Revering, IF:
Dave hit .300 with 29 HR at Indianapolis in 1977, his fourth year in the Reds' system, but was never going to get big-league playing time as long as Cincinnati had Tony Perez and, after him, Dan Driessen. He was acquired by the A's for Doug Bair in a February, 1978 trade. He made his major league debut on April 8 in California, going 1-5 with a run and an RBI as the DH. He quickly assumed the starting first base job, and stayed there all year. When Willie Horton arrived, he helped Dave by giving him some hitting advice and by protecting him in the batting order. One of the A's best offensive performers in 1978, Dave finished second in HRs (16) and RBI (46) to Mitchell Page, and hit .271.
Tony Armas, OF:
Tony's playing time in 1978 was limited due to injury - he was on the DL from April 28 through June 2 with knee ligament damage, and he was forced to sit the final two weeks after he hurt both knees against the wall while sliding to make a catch. He started in center in April and in right most of July, but otherwise was limited to a reserve role. In 91 games, he hit just .213 with 2 HR and 13 RBI.
Steve Staggs, IF:
When he was acquired from Toronto in spring training, Steve was slated to be the A's starting second baseman in 1978. He held the job for only a few days, until Mike Edwards was given the job. As an infield reserve and occasional starter at second, Steve hit over .300 into the last week of May, after which his production fell off. When Glenn Burke came off the DL on June 24, Steve was sent to Vancouver. His final major league appearance came on June 20 in Texas as a pinch-runner.
Miguel Dilone, OF:
Miquel started in left for the first couple weeks of 1978 until Mitchell Page was activated from the DL. Thereafter, he was relegated to an outfield reserve role for the rest of the season, starting between 20 and 30 games at each of the 3 positions, with some pinch-hitting and pinch-running duties thrown in. Despite never really being a regular, he still led the team with 50 stolen bases, a total which was good to place him 5th in the majors in that category.
Dwayne Murphy, OF:
Dwayne made his major league debut in Anaheim on April 8 as a late-inning defensive replacement in left. He was sent to Vancouver on June 20, recalled on July 7, and was sent back to stay on August 6. While with the A's, he was used as a general-purpose outfield reserve. On July 8 against the Twins, he went 4-for-6 with 2 runs scored.
Bill North, OF:
Bill sat out the final 3 weeks of 1977 after Finley read negative comments he had made about the owner. He started 1978, his option year, still in Finley's dog house (an off-season cocaine arrest didn't help). The only man left on the roster who had played for any of the championship clubs of the mid-70s started 13 games in center field between stints on the bench dictated, largely, by Finley. On May 16 he was traded to the Dodgers for Glenn Burke.
Gary Thomasson, OF:
Part of the haul Oakland received from San Francisco for Vida Blue, Gary made a majority of the team's starts in right field before being traded to the Yankees for Dell Alston and minor leaguer Mickey Klutts on June 15.
Mr. Finley - the author of the chaos.
In-Season Moves:
Mike Edwards, IF:
Acquired April 7 as the player-to-be-named-later in the deal made April 4 in which Oakland acquired Elias Sosa and Miguel Dilone from Pittsburgh for Manny Sanguillen, he was added to the active roster April 11. He immediately stepped into the starting second base role, and remained there for the rest of the year. A 15-game hitting streak in July helped raised his average from the low .200s to .273 by the end of the year. He stole 27 bases, second on the team, and on August 10 he became the 1st A.L. second baseman to ever record 2 unassisted double plays in a game.
Larry Murray, OF:
Larry was called up from Vancouver on April 28 when Tony Armas went on the DL. He was sent back on May 1 after not seeing any action, in exchange for Jerry Tabb. He was recalled on May 22 when Joe Coleman was sold to Toronto, and was sent back on June 2 when Tony Armas came off the DL. He came back yet again when Mark Budaska was sent down on June 11, and he stayed until June 20 when Tito Fuentes signed. He came back again on July 3 and was sent back down to stay on July 13 when Willie Horton was signed. While with the A's he was used sparingly as an outfield reserve, getting into a total of 11 games.
Glenn Burke, OF:
Glenn was acquired on May 16 in a trade with the Dodgers for Bill North. He was the regular Oakland center fielder until going on the DL on June 1 with a pinched nerve in his neck. He returned on June 24, and was an outfield reserve the rest of the way. Glenn was happy to be in Oakland, and he believed he knew the key to the team's early success. The team had a lot of players who, in his words, were kept down while elsewhere, and they were using their time in Oakland to shut up their doubters.
Mitchell Page, OF:
The man thought by some to have been a better candidate for 1977 AL rookie of the year honors than Eddie Murray started 1978 on the DL with an ankle injury. He was activated April 21, and immediately slipped back into the starting left fielder's position. He was a regular there the rest of the year, but occasionally also played DH. He hit .285, and led the team with 17 HR and 70 RBI.
Jerry Tabb, IF:
Jerry was called up from Vancouver on May 1 when Larry Murray was sent down. He appeared in 12 games at first, DH and as a pinch-hitter before being sent back to Vancouver in exchange for Taylor Duncan on May 29. Jerry's final major league appearance came on May 29 in Milwaukee as a defensive replacement for Dave Revering.
Taylor Duncan, IF:
Taylor came up from Vancouver on May 29 when Jerry Tabb was sent down. For most of the rest of the season, he formed the right-handed half of a third base platoon with Wayne Gross. On June 6 against the Red Sox, he went 2-for-3, including a 2-run HR, with 4 RBI and a run scored. His final major league appearance came on September 30 against the Brewers - he started at second, and went 0-for-3.
Mark Budaska, OF:
Mark was summoned from Vancouver on June 1 when Glenn Burke went on the DL. He saw action in 4 games in the outfield, and was sent back on June 11 in exchange for Larry Murray. His first major league action came June 6 as a defensive replacement in left against the Red Sox.
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Dell Alston, OF:
Dell was acquired from the Yankees on June 15 in a trade that sent Gary Thomasson to New York. He served as an outfield reserve until July 6 when he was sent to Vancouver. He was recalled on August 6 when Dwayne Murphy was sent down, and saw regular action moving back and forth between left and right the rest of the year. In 58 games, hit hit just .208, but did steal 11 bases.
Mike Morgan, SP:
At just 18 years old, Mike was drafted on June 6, and added to the roster on June 11. He made his major league debut that same day against the Orioles in which he threw a 10-hit complete game, taking the loss 3-0. He made two additional unproductive starts, taking the loss each time, before being sent to Vancouver on June 23 in exchange for Tim Conroy. When he was signed, the brash kid announced that he planned to be around for awhile, and that one day he'd like a Cy Young Award. He never got the hardware, but he did hang around - he went on to pitch until 2002, playing for a total of 12 teams, and winning a World Series ring with the Diamondbacks in 2001.
Joe Wallis, OF:
After acquiring Joe from the Cubs earlier the same day, the Indians traded him to the A's June 15 for Gary Alexander. The opinionated outfielder questioned Cubs' manager Herman Franks' frame of mind for letting him go when he was hitting over .300. With the A's, Joe took over center field, while also seeing some action in right. In 85 games with the A's, Joe hit just .237 with 6 HR and 26 RBI.
Steve McCatty, RP:
Steve was brought up from Vancouver in exchange for Dwayne Murphy on June 20. He made 9 relief appearances totaling 20 innings pitched before being sent back to Vancouver on July 27.
Tito Fuentes, IF:
The 13-year veteran was 7th in the A.L. in 1977 with 190 hits for the Tigers. He was traded to the Expos for 1978, but couldn't unseat Dave Cash. He played a bit in Mexico, and had a try-out with the Yankees, before signing with the A's on June 20, taking Steve Staggs' place on the roster. He got into 13 games, including 9 starts at second before being designated for assignment on July 13 and released July 26. His final major league appearance was on July 9 against the Twins.
Tim Conroy, SP:
Taken in the June 6 draft along with Mike Morgan, 18-year old Tim was first assigned to Vancouver, and then called up on June 23 when Morgan was sent down. He made his major league debut that same day, starting and going 3.1 innings in Kansas City, surrending a single run. He made one other start on June 29, and got clobbered by the Rangers in just 1.1 innings. The next day, he was sent back to Vancouver in exchange for Craig Minetto. He wouldn't surface in the majors again until 1982.
Craig Minetto, RP:
Acquired from Vancouver on June 30 in exchange for Tim Conroy, Craig made his major league debut on July 4 - he started and went 3.1 innings in the A's eventual 9-4 win at Seattle. He made a relief appearance on July 8 and was sent back to Vancouver shortly thereafter. He was recalled briefly in early August, made two additional relief appearances, and was sent back to Vancouver to stay.
Willie Horton, OF:
The A's signed Willie on July 13, and he was immediately inserted into the lineup as the every-day DH. In just 32 games, he hit 3 HR with 19 RBI and a .314 average. In early August, he sat for a few games in favor of Dell Alston because of the latter's better speed. Willie's presence and experience helped with some of the younger hitters, particularly Revering and Page. Given his performance and his influence he and the team were surprised when he was traded to the Blue Jays for Rico Carty on August 15. Said Willie, "I don't know what [the A's] expect of me".
Mike Norris, RP:
Mike was brought up from Jersey City when Steve McCatty was sent to Vancouver on July 27. Dogged by elbow problems in 1976 and 1977 after an auspicious debut in 1975, Mike worked out of the pen, with occasional starts after arriving in 1978. He accumulated a dismal 0-5 record and 5.51 ERA, but would eventually win 22 games for the A's in 1980.
Darrell Woodard, IF:
Darrell was called up from Jersey City on August 6 when Wayne Gross went down to Vancouver. He made his major league debut on August 6 against Seattle, and appeared in another 32 games as an infield defensive replacement and DH, and was hitless in 9 at-bats. His made his final major league appearance on October 1 against the Brewers.
Rico Carty, OF:
The ageless Carty was acquired on August 15 from Toronto for Willie Horton and minor leaguer Phil Huffman. He was the A's starting DH for the rest of the year, hitting 11 HR and 31 RBI. He authored a 12-game hitting streak at one point, and when his HR totals were combined with those he hit in Toronto, the resulting sum of 28 was the most he'd ever hit in a single year. When asked how come he was still so effective at his age, he said maybe it had something to do with rubbing baby oil all over before games. He was sold back to Toronto after the season.
Bruce Robinson, C:
Bruce came up from Vancouver on August 17 when Jeff Newman went to the DL. He made his major league debut on August 19 against the Red Sox, and was the starting catcher until Newman returned on September 1. In September, he continued to make the majority of starts behind the plate, sharing duties mainly with Tim Hosley and Jim Essian.
Tim Hosley, C:
A September call-up, the veteran journeyman got into 13 games, including 6 starts behind the plate. He hit .304 in this limited time but wouldn't see major league action again until 1981.
Scott Meyer, C:
Another September call-up, Scott got into 7 games as a catcher, including his major league debut on the 10th against the Rangers, and his final major league appearance on October 1 against the Brewers. His lone big league hit was a second inning double off the White Sox' Ken Kravec in Chicago on September 26, his only start.
Mr. Finley's better half.
Other 1978 A's Stuff:
Owner and General Manager - Charles O. Finley
Minor League Affiliates:
A (Short Season): Bend TImber Hawks (NW League)
35-37, 2nd of 4
Manager: Ed Nottle
Future Star: Keith Atherton
A: Modesto A's (California League)
61-79, 4th of 4
Manager: Gaylen Pitts
Future Star: Mike Davis
AA: Jersey City A's (Eastern League)
54-83, 6th of 6
Manager: John Kennedy
Future Star: Rickey Henderson
AAA: Vancouver Canadians (Pacific Coast League)
74-65, 3rd of 5
Manager: Jim Marshall
Future Star: Rick Lysander
Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum
7000 Coliseum Way
Oakland, CA
A's Coaches:
Red Schoendienst
Bobby Hofman
Jack McKeon
Lee Stange
Summary of Roster Moves:
April 11 -Edwards activated, Picciolo to Vancouver
April 21 - Page from DL, Adams to Vancouver
April 28 - Armas to DL, Murray from Vancouver
May 1 - Murray to Vancouver, Tabb from Vancouver
May 16 - North to Dodgers for Burke
May 17 - Perez released, Picciolo from Vancouver
May 22 - Coleman to Blue Jays, Murray from Vancouver
May 29 - Tabb to Vancouver, Duncan from Vancouver
June 1 - Burke to DL, Budaska from Vancouver
June 2 - Armas from DL, Murray to Vancouver
June 11 - Wirth to Vancouver, Morgan activated
June 11 - Budaska to Vancouver, Murray from Vancouver
June 15 - Thomasson to Yankees for Alston
June 15 - Alexander to Indians for Wallis
June 20 - McCatty from Vancouver, Murphy to Vancouver
June 20 - Fuentes signed, Murray to Vancouver
June 23 - Conroy from Vancouver, Morgan to Vancouver
June 24 - Burke from DL, Staggs to Vancouver
June 30 - Conroy to Vancouver, Minetto from Vancouver
July 3 - Gross to Vancouver, Murray from Vancouver
July 7 - Alston and Murray to Vancouver,
Murphy and Adams from Vancouver
July 10 - Minetto to Vancouver, Gross from Vancouver
July 13 - Horton signed, Fuentes designated for assignment
July 27 - McCatty to Vancouver, Norris from Jersey City
August 1 - Adams to Vancouver, Minetto from Vancouver
August 6 - Murphy to Vancouver, Alston from Vancouver
August 6 - Gross to Vancouver, Woodard from Jersey City
August 13 - Gross from Vancouver, Minetto to Vancouver
August 15 - Carty from Blue Jays for Horton
August 17 - Newman to DL, Robinson from Vancouver
September 1 - Newman from DL
September Call-Up: Wirth, Meyer and Hosley
