The

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

' 1981 season saw the A's finish with an overall record of 64 wins and 45 losses. They finished the season with the best record 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 ...

(and second best in all of baseball). Due to the infamous 1981 players strike, the league resorted to a split-season format; this new format saw the winners of both halves of the season playing in the first divisional playoff in MLB history. The A's qualified by posting the

AL 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 ...

's best record in the first half of the season. While they swept the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

in the AL West playoff, they were themselves swept by the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

in the

1981 American League Championship Series The 1981 American League Championship Series was a best-of-five series between the New York Yankees and the Oakland Athletics. Background Due to a strike-shortened season, each team had to win two playoff series to reach the World Series. Oakla ...

. The Athletics' 1981 season ranks among the organization's most interesting. The A's, only two years removed from a disastrous 54-108 finish, won their first

crown since

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

under second-year manager

Billy Martin Alfred Manuel Martin Jr. (May 16, 1928 – December 25, 1989), commonly called "Billy", was an American Major League Baseball second baseman and manager who, in addition to leading other teams, was five times the manager of the New York Yan ...

. The "Billyball" A's began the season with a then-AL record 11 consecutive wins (this record was later broken by the 1987 Milwaukee Brewers, who raced out to a 13-0 start). The squad followed its first loss of the season, a tough 3-2 loss to the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West division. The team joined the American League ...

, with six more victories. Their 17-1 start (through 18 games) remains unmatched. The A's starting rotation (consisting of

Rick Langford James Rick Langford (born March 20, 1952) is an American retired professional baseball pitcher who played for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Oakland Athletics of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1976 through 1986. He has served as a coach for the Tor ...

Matt Keough Matthew Lon Keough ( ; July 3, 1955 – May 1, 2020) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a right-handed pitcher from through for the Oakland Athletics (1977–1983), New York Yankees (1983� ...

, Steve McCatty, Mike Norris, and

Brian Kingman Brian Paul Kingman (born July 27, 1953) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher from 1979 to 1983 for the Oakland Athletics and San Francisco Giants. He attended the University of California, Santa Barbara before signing with the Athletics in 1 ...

) received national attention during the torrid start; the unit was collectively featured on the cover of

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...

's April 27, 1981, edition. The periodic heroics of

Tony Armas Antonio Rafael Armas Machado (born July 2, 1953) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as an outfielder from 1976 to 1989. He is the father of pitcher Tony Armas Jr. and the older brother of ...

and

Rickey Henderson Rickey Nelson Henley Henderson (born December 25, 1958) is an American retired professional baseball left fielder who played his 24 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for nine teams from 1979 to 2003, including four separate tenures with hi ...

also drew notice. The Athletics, however, slumped badly following the 17-1 start. While they regained some of their swagger during the season's second half, they ultimately played .500 baseball for the rest of the season. Even still, the A's won the AL West's first half with a 37-23 mark; they also led the division in total wins despite losing the second half to the Royals. The A's swept these 50-53 Royals in the ALDS. The A's themselves were humbled in the ALCS, as the Yankees outscored Oakland 20-4 in a humiliating three-game rout. The 1981 ALCS is perhaps best remembered as the purported birthplace of "the wave"; while the phenomenon's origin is disputed, it is most commonly attributed to

Krazy George Henderson Krazy George Henderson (born May 6, 1944) is an American professional cheerleader who created the Wave in 1979. Career Henderson began cheerleading while a student at California State University, San Jose in 1968, where he was also a member o ...

, who introduced it to the Athletics' crowd during the series' final game. Despite high expectations, the A's collapsed in

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...

. A rash of injuries, among other factors, saw the team plummet to an abysmal 68-94 record. The firing of Billy Martin at seasons' end brought a swift and unceremonious end to the "Billyball" era. All told, the A's would have to wait until

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

for their next postseason appearance. Only one member of the 1981 team (

Rich Bordi Richard Albert Bordi (born April 18, 1959) is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher who played from to . He played for the Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners, Chicago Cubs, New York Yankees and Baltimore Orioles. Bordi threw and batted ...

) also played on the 1988 team.

Offseason

* October 23, 1980:

Randy Elliott Randy Lee Elliott (born June 5, 1951) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in 114 games over parts of four seasons in Major League Baseball spread out over nine years for the San Diego Padres ( and ), San Francisco G ...

was released by the Athletics. * December 8, 1980: Brian Doyle was drafted by the Athletics from the

in the 1980 rule 5 draft. * December 9, 1980:

DeWayne Buice DeWayne Allison Buice (born August 20, 1957) is a former professional relief pitcher. Buice played two seasons for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, California Angels and half a season for the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB). He ...

was drafted by the Oakland Athletics from the San Francisco Giants in the 1980 minor league draft. * December 11, 1980: Michael King (minors) was traded by the Athletics to the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

for Cliff Johnson and

Keith Drumright Keith Alan Drumright (October 21, 1954 – August 7, 2010) was an American Major League Baseball second baseman. He played parts of two seasons in the major leagues. He played for the Houston Astros in 1978 and the Oakland Athletics in 1981. D ...

. * January 13, 1981:

Steve Kiefer Steven George Kiefer (born October 18, 1960) is an American former professional baseball third baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1984 to 1989 for the Oakland Athletics, Milwaukee Brewers, and New York Yankees. Most of his c ...

was drafted by the Athletics in the 1st round of the

1981 Major League Baseball draft First round selections The following are the first round picks in the 1981 Major League Baseball draft. Compensation Picks Other notable players *Darrin Jackson, 2nd round, 28th overall by the Chicago Cubs *Mike Gallego, 2nd round, 33r ...

. * February 10, 1981: The Athletics traded a player to be named later to the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...

for

Jimmy Sexton Jimmy Dale Sexton (born December 15, 1951) is an American former professional baseball infielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, Houston Astros, Oakland Athletics, and St. Louis Cardinals. Sexton signed his fi ...

. The Athletics completed the trade by sending

Rick Lysander Richard Eugene Lysander is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He had a four-season career in the majors, spread out over six years. Career Major League career Lysander was drafted by the Oakland Athletics in , and he toiled in the ...

to the Astros on October 20. * March 27, 1981:

Bob Lacey Robert Joseph "Bob" Lacey, Jr. (born August 25, 1953) is former professional baseball pitcher. He played all or part of seven seasons in Major League Baseball for the Oakland Athletics, Cleveland Indians, Texas Rangers, California Angels, and ...

and Roy Moretti (minors) were traded by the Athletics to the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penna ...

for Kevin Bell,

Tony Phillips Keith Anthony Phillips (April 25, 1959 – February 17, 2016) was an American professional baseball utility player who had an 18-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career from 1982 to 1999. He played regularly at second base, but also had signif ...

and Eric Mustad (minors). * March 30, 1981:

Alan Wirth Alan Lee Wirth (born December 8, 1956) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Wirth pitched in parts of three seasons in Major League Baseball, from 1978 until 1980, for the Oakland Athletics. Career Wirth was originally drafted ...

was released by the Athletics.

Ownership

Athletics owner

Charlie O. 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 ...

's wife sought a divorce and would not accept part of a baseball team in a property settlement. With most of his money tied up in the A's or his insurance empire, Finley had to sell the team. Though Finley found a buyer in businessman

Marvin Davis Marvin H. Davis (August 31, 1925 – September 25, 2004) was an American industrialist. He made his fortunes as the chair of Davis Petroleum and at one time owned 20th Century Fox, the Pebble Beach Corporation, the Beverly Hills Hotel, and the ...

, who would have moved the Athletics to Denver, the tentative deal hit a snag when the Raiders announced their move to Los Angeles. Oakland and

Alameda County Alameda County ( ) is a List of counties in California, county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 1,682,353, making it the 7th-most populous county in the state and List ...

officials, not wanting to be held responsible for losing Oakland's status as a big-league city in its own right, refused to let Finley break the lease with the Coliseum. Finley then looked to local buyers, selling the A's to San Francisco clothing manufacturer Walter A. Haas, Jr., president of Levi Strauss & Co. prior to the 1981 season. Haas restored the official name of the club to "Athletics" in 1981, but retained the nickname "A's" for marketing purposes. At first, the word "Athletics" was restored only to the club's logo, underneath the much larger stylized-"A" that had come to represent the team since the early days. Former 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 Cit ...

banned the word "Athletics" from the club's name because he felt that name was too closely associated with former Philadelphia Athletics owner

Connie Mack Cornelius McGillicuddy (December 22, 1862 – February 8, 1956), better known as Connie Mack, was an American professional baseball catcher, manager, and team owner. The longest-serving manager in Major League Baseball history, he holds untoucha ...

. During the Finley era, average home attendance from 1968–1980 was 777,000 per season, with 1,075,518 in 1975 being the highest attendance for a Finley-owned team. In marked contrast, during the first year of Haas' ownership, the Athletics drew 1,304,052—in a season shortened by a player strike. Were it not for the strike, the A's were on a pace to draw over 2.2 million in 1981. The A's finished with the second-best overall record in baseball, and the best record in the American League.

Spring training

The Oakland Athletics held spring training at Rendezvous Park in

Mesa, Arizona Mesa ( ) is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, Maricopa County, in the U.S. state of Arizona. It is the most populous city in the East Valley (Phoenix metropolitan area), East Valley section of the Phoenix Metropolitan Area. It is bordered by ...

Regular season

* April 19, 1981: In the first game of a doubleheader with the

, the A's won 6-1 to win their then-record 11th consecutive game to start a season. * April 25, 1981: Prior to a game against the

, Seattle manager

Maury Wills Maurice Morning Wills (October 2, 1932 – September 19, 2022) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) primarily for the Los Angeles Dodgers from 1959 through 1966 and the latter part of ...

advised the Kingdome groundskeepers to enlarge the batter's box by a foot. A's manager

noticed. Martin showed umpire Bill Kunkel that the batter's box was seven feet long instead of six feet. Martin felt that batters being able to move up a foot in the box could cut at pitches before a curveball broke. Wills was suspended for two games and fined $500.

Game log

First half

, - , 1 , , April 9 , , @

Twins Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of TwinLast Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two em ...

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Angels In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...

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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 ...

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Tigers The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus ''Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on un ...

, - , 27 , , May 6 , ,

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, - , 35 , , May 15 , , @ Brewers , - , 36 , , May 16 , , @ Brewers , - , 37 , , May 17 , , @ Brewers , - , 38 , , May 18 , , @

Orioles Oriole or Orioles may refer to: Animals * Old World oriole, colorful passerine birds in the family Oriolidae * New World oriole, a group of birds in the family Icteridae Music * The Orioles, an R&B and doo-wop group of the late 1940s and earl ...

, - , 39 , , May 19 , , @

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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 eight ...

, - , 41 , , May 21 , , @

, - , 42 , , May 22 , , Blue Jays , - , 43 , , May 23 , , Blue Jays , - , 44 , , May 24 , , Blue Jays , - , 45 , , May 24 , , Blue Jays , - , 46 , , May 25 , ,

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 ...

, - , 47 , , May 26 , ,

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, -

Second half

, - style="text-align:center; background:#bbcaff;" , align="center" colspan="10", All-Star Break: NL def. AL at

Cleveland Stadium Cleveland Stadium, commonly known as Municipal Stadium, Lakefront Stadium or Cleveland Municipal Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium located in Cleveland, Ohio. It was one of the early multi-purpose stadiums, built to accommodate both baseball an ...

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, - , 102 , , September 26 , ,

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Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Notable transactions

* April 6, 1981: The Athletics traded a player to be named later and cash to the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

for

Bob Owchinko Robert Dennis Owchinko (born January 1, 1955) is a former professional baseball pitcher. A left-handed pitcher, he played all or parts of ten seasons in Major League Baseball, between 1976 and 1986, for the San Diego Padres, Cleveland Indians, Oak ...

. The Athletics completed the trade by sending

Ernie Camacho Ernest Carlos Camacho (born February 1, 1955) is a former professional baseball player who pitched in the major leagues from 1980 to 1981 and 1983 to 1990. His best season came with the 1984 Cleveland Indians, when he led the team with 23 saves. ...

to the Pirates on April 10. * April 9, 1981:

Dave Heaverlo David Wallace Heaverlo ( ;

was signed as a free agent by the Athletics. * April 10, 1981:

Gorman Heimueller Gorman John Heimueller (born September 24, 1955) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. Heimueller pitched parts of two seasons for the Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional bas ...

was signed as a free agent by the Athletics. * April 14, 1981:

Chris Codiroli Christopher Allen Codiroli (born March 26, 1958) is a former professional baseball player who pitched in the Major Leagues in 1982–1988 and 1990. In 144 career games, he had 38 wins, 47 losses, 312 strikeouts, and a 4.87 earned run average ...

was signed as a free agent by the Athletics. * April 22, 1981: Chuck Hensley was signed as a free agent with the Oakland Athletics. * May 20, 1981:

Dave Revering David Alvin Revering (born February 12, 1953) is an American former professional baseball player. He appeared in 557 games as a first baseman, designated hitter and pinch hitter in Major League Baseball from 1978 to 1982 for four American League t ...

, Mike Patterson and Chuck Dougherty (minors) were traded by the Athletics to the

for

Jim Spencer James Lloyd Spencer (July 30, 1947 – February 10, 2002) was a Major League Baseball first baseman. Born in Hanover, Pennsylvania, the left-handed Spencer was recognized for his excellent fielding ability, but also served in later years as a d ...

and

Tom Underwood Thomas Gerald Underwood (December 22, 1953 – November 22, 2010) was an American Major League Baseball pitcher. His younger brother, Pat was also a pitcher, and made his major league debut against Tom. It was the first time in major league histo ...

. * June 10, 1981:

Rick Bosetti Richard Alan Bosetti (born August 5, 1953) is an American former professional baseball outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from to for the Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals, Toronto Blue Jays, and Oakland Athletics. B ...

was purchased by the Athletics from the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

. * August 27, 1981: Tim Hosley was released by the Athletics.

Draft picks

* June 8, 1981:

Mike Gallego Michael Anthony Gallego (born October 31, 1960) is an American former professional baseball player and current coach. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as an infielder from 1985 to 1997, most notably as a member of the Oakland Athletics te ...

was drafted by the Athletics in the 2nd round (33rd pick). Player signed June 12, 1981. **

Rick Rodriguez Ricardo "Rick" Rodriguez is an American professional baseball coach and former professional baseball pitcher. He pitched in parts of four seasons in the major leagues between and . He was the bullpen coach for the Oakland Athletics until he was ...

was drafted by the Athletics in the 2nd round (41st pick). **

Mickey Tettleton Mickey Lee Tettleton (born September 16, 1960) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball for the Oakland Athletics, Baltimore Orioles, Detroit Tigers, and Texas Rangers. Although Tettleton played most ...

was drafted by the Athletics in the 5th round.

Billyball, year two

Following the team's surprising success in

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning System time epoch begins at 00:00 UTC. * January 9 – ...

, manager

was given the additional title of general manager in 1981. The team won the division title for the first time since

, winning the first half of the split season, then defeating the Royals in the divisional playoffs before losing to the Yankees in the ALCS. While the team was successful, it came at a high price, both for the team and for the pitching staff. Following a season in which the team led the league in

complete game In baseball, a complete game (CG) is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher. A pitcher who meets this criterion will be credited with a complete game regardless of the number of innings played—pitche ...

s with 94—an astonishing number for the time—the Athletics again led the league with 60 complete games out of 109 total games in the strike-shortened season. For the second time, the pitching staff completed more than half their total number of games and more than double the number of the team with the second-highest total (The Indians and

each had 33). The workload of the pitchers over the two seasons was blamed by the team's ownership for the team's fall to fifth place in

, which led to Martin's firing from both positions. Many of the pitchers suffered injuries, and none of the four main starting pitchers (

, Steve McCatty, Mike Norris,

) ever duplicated their success of 1980–81.

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 played; 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''

Postseason

ALDS

Oakland wins series, 3-0.

ALCS

Yankees win the Series, 3-0

Game log

, - , Game 1 , , October 6 , , @ Royals , - , Game 2 , , October 7 , , @ Royals , - , Game 3 , , October 9 , , Royals , - , - , Game 1 , , October 13 , , @

, - , Game 2 , , October 14 , , @

, - , Game 3 , , October 15 , ,

, -

Awards and honors

* Rickey Henderson, American League leader, Hits''Baseball's Top 100: The Game's Greatest Records'', p. 52, Kerry Banks, 2010, Greystone Books, Vancouver, BC, *

, Associated Press AL Manager of the Year

Farm system

References

External links

1981 Oakland Athletics
at ''Baseball Reference''
1981 Oakland Athletics
at ''Baseball Almanac'' {{Oakland Athletics Oakland Athletics seasons Oakland Athletics season American League West champion seasons

Oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...