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 ...

' 1982 season involved the A's finishing fifth in the

American League 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 ...

with a record of 68 wins and 94 losses. The 1982 Athletics are remembered mainly for the exploits of star left fielder

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 ...

. Henderson, in his fourth major league season, stole an MLB-record 130 bases over the course of the year. Henderson broke the record, previously held by

Lou Brock Louis Clark Brock (June 18, 1939September 6, 2020) was an American professional baseball outfielder. He began his 19-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the 1961 Chicago Cubs but spent most of it as a left fielder for the St. Louis Car ...

, by swiping his 119th base of the season on August 27 against the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

. Henderson's record has not been approached since. The season also marked the end of 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 ...

's tenure with the Athletics. Martin was unceremoniously fired at season's end, despite having led the A's to the ALCS only one season prior. He was replaced by

Steve Boros Stephen Boros Jr. (September 3, 1936 – December 29, 2010) was an American baseball infielder, coach, manager, scout, and administrator. Best known for his scientific approach to the sport and his use of computers, Boros' baseball career spanned ...

Offseason

* December 4, 1981:

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 ...

was signed as a free agent by the Athletics. * December 9, 1981:

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 ...

was traded by the Athletics 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 ...

for Dan Meyer. * February 7, 1982:

Dennis Kinney Dennis Paul Kinney (born February 26, 1952) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He played all or parts of five seasons in the majors, from until . Kinney was selected by the Cleveland Indians in the 10th round of the 1970 Major League B ...

was signed as a free agent by the Athletics. * February 24, 1982: Craig Minetto was traded by the Athletics to 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 ...

for Allen Edwards (minors).

Regular season

*In the first fifty games of the season, Rickey Henderson had stolen 49 bases. By the All-Star break, Henderson had 84 steals. * October 3, 1982: Joe Rudi hit a home run in the last at-bat of his career.

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Notable transactions

* May 14, 1982:

Rob Picciolo Robert Michael Picciolo (February 4, 1953 – January 3, 2018) was a Major League Baseball player and coach. Playing career Picciolo played nine seasons in the major leagues, from 1977–85, for the Oakland Athletics, Milwaukee Brewers, and C ...

was traded by the Athletics to the

for Mike Warren and John Evans (minors). * June 7, 1982:

1982 Major League Baseball Draft First round selections The following are the first round picks in the 1982 Major League Baseball Draft. Compensation Picks Other notable players *David Wells†, 2nd round, 30th overall by the Toronto Blue Jays * Allan Anderson, 2nd rou ...

Phil Stephenson Phillip Raymond Stephenson (born September 19, 1960) is a former Major League Baseball first baseman. He played all or parts of four seasons in the majors, from until . Amateur career While playing for the Shockers of Wichita State Universit ...

was drafted by the Athletics in the 3rd round. **

Charlie O'Brien Charles Hugh O'Brien (born May 1, 1960) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for the Oakland Athletics (1985), Milwaukee Brewers (1987–90), New York Mets (1990–93), Atlanta Bra ...

was drafted by the Athletics in the 5th round. ** Jeff Kaiser was drafted by the Athletics in the 10th round. **

Jim Eppard James Gerhard Eppard (born April 27, 1960) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four ...

was drafted by the Athletics in the 13th round. **

José Canseco José Canseco Capas Jr. (born July 2, 1964), nicknamed Parkway Jose, Mr. 40-40 and El Cañonero Cubano (The Cuban Cannon), is a Cuban-American former Major League Baseball (MLB) outfielder and designated hitter. During his time with the Oaklan ...

was drafted by the Athletics in the 15th round. Canseco signed on June 17, 1982. * June 28, 1982: Jim Spencer was released by the Oakland Athletics. * July 15, 1982:

Preston Hanna Preston Lee Hanna (born September 10, 1954) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He played all or parts of eight seasons in the major leagues from 1975 until 1982. He was drafted by the Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American ...

was signed as a free agent by the Athletics. * September 6, 1982:

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 released by the Athletics.Rick Bosetti page at Baseball Reference
/ref>

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: West Haven, Modesto

References

External links

1982 Oakland Athletics team page at Baseball Reference1982 Oakland Athletics team page at www.baseball-almanac.com
{{Oakland Athletics Oakland Athletics seasons Oakland Athletics season

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 ...