The 1966 Kansas City Athletics season was the twelfth and penultimate season in

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...

, and the 66th in overall franchise history. It involved the A's finishing seventh in the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

with a record of 74 wins and 86 losses, 23 games behind the World Champion Baltimore Orioles. Paid attendance for the season was 773,929.''Charlie Finley: The Outrageous Story of Baseball's Super Showman'', p.98, G. Michael Green and Roger D. Launius. Walker Publishing Company, New York, 2010, The pitching staff had an earned run average of 3.56, which ranked sixth in the American League.

Offseason

* October 15, 1965:

Satchel Paige Leroy Robert "Satchel" Paige (July 7, 1906 – June 8, 1982) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played in Negro league baseball and Major League Baseball (MLB). His career spanned five decades and culminated with his induction in ...

was released by the Athletics. *November 28, 1965: Hank Peters resigned from the club and became the minor league director for the Cleveland Indians. * November 29, 1965: Ron Stone was drafted by the Athletics from the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

in the 1965 rule 5 draft.Ron Stone
at ''Baseball Reference'' * December 1, 1965: Jim Landis and

Jim Rittwage James Michael Rittwage (October 23, 1944 in Cleveland, Ohio) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for one season. He pitched eight games for the Cleveland Indians during the 1970 season A season is a division of the year based ...

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 F ...

for

Joe Rudi Joseph Oden Rudi (born September 7, 1946) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a left fielder between and , most prominently as an integral member of the Oakland Athletics dynasty that won thre ...

and

Phil Roof Philip Anthony Roof (born March 5, 1941) is an American former professional baseball player, coach and minor league manager. He played for 15 seasons as a catcher in Major League Baseball in and from to , most notably for the Kansas City/Oakla ...

. *In early 1966, Jim Schaaf left the Athletics front office to work with the Kansas City Chiefs of the AFL.

Regular season

*The club won their home opener (contested on April 19) and proceeded to lose 14 of their next 16 games. From June 19 to the final game of the season, the club won 50 games and lost 49, their best stretch since playing in Kansas City. The Athletics did not finish in last place for the first time in three years.

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Notable transactions

* April 6, 1966: John O'Donoghue and cash were traded by the Athletics to the

for

Ralph Terry Ralph Willard Terry (January 9, 1936 – March 16, 2022) was an American baseball player who played as a right-handed starting pitcher for twelve seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He played for the New York Yankees, Kansas City Athletics, ...

.Ralph Terry
at ''Baseball Reference'' * April 13, 1966: Diego Seguí was purchased from the Athletics by the Washington Senators.Diego Seguí
at ''Baseball Reference'' * May 27, 1966:

Wayne Causey James Wayne Causey (born December 26, 1936) is a retired American professional baseball baseball player. An infielder, he appeared in 1,105 games in Major League Baseball as a shortstop, second baseman and third baseman over 11 seasons for the ...

was traded by the Athletics to the

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 p ...

for

Danny Cater Danny Anderson Cater (born February 25, 1940) is an American former professional baseball first baseman, third baseman, outfielder, and designated hitter. He signed with the Philadelphia Phillies at the age of 18, on June 8, 1958. Cater played in ...

. * June 7, 1966: 1966 Major League Baseball draft (June Draft) notable picks: ::Round 1:

Reggie Jackson Reginald Martinez Jackson (born May 18, 1946) is an American former professional baseball right fielder who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City / Oakland Athletics, Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees, and Cali ...

(2nd pick) ::Round 5: Dave Hamilton ::Round 6:

Warren Bogle Warren Frederick Bogle (born October 19, 1946) is a former American Major League Baseball pitcher. He appeared in 16 games played for the Oakland Athletics during the season. Bogle played college baseball at the University of Miami The ...

::Round 20:

Larry Burchart Larry Wayne Burchart (born February 8, 1946) is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher who appeared in 29 games for the Cleveland Indians. Burchart was a collegiate All American for Oklahoma State University, leading the Cowboys to two C ...

(did not sign) * July 1, 1966: Ron Stone was returned by the Athletics to the Baltimore Orioles. * July 30, 1966: Jim Duckworth was traded by the Athletics to the Washington Senators for Diego Seguí. *August 6, 1966: Ralph Terry was purchased from the Athletics by the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

. *August 24, 1966: 1966 Major League Baseball draft (August Legion) notable picks:Kansas City Athletics Picks in the MLB August Legion Draft
/ref> ::Round 1:

Pete Varney Richard Fred "Pete" Varney Jr. (born April 10, 1949) is a retired American college baseball coach and a former professional baseball catcher. A graduate of Harvard College, he also played a notable role in the 1968 Yale vs. Harvard football game, ...

(did not sign)

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''

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

LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Mobile, Modesto, Leesburg

References

External links

1966 Kansas City Athletics
at ''Baseball Reference''
1966 Kansas City Athletics
at ''Baseball Almanac'' {{Oakland Athletics Oakland Athletics seasons Kansas City Athletics season Kansas City Athletics