2006 Oakland Athletics season
| 2006 Oakland Athletics | |
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| 2006 AL West Champions | |
| Major League affiliations | |
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| Results | |
| Record | 93–69 (.574) |
| Other information | |
| Owner(s) | Lewis Wolff |
| General manager(s) | Billy Beane |
| Manager(s) | Ken Macha |
| Local television |
KICU-TV FSN Bay Area (Ray Fosse, Glen Kuiper) |
| Local radio |
KYCY KNTS (Ray Fosse, Ken Korach, Vince Cotroneo) |
| < Previous season Next season > | |
The Oakland Athletics' 2006 season was their 39th in Oakland, California. It was also the 106th season in franchise history. The team finished first in the American League West with a record of 93-69.
The Athletics won their division (and reached the postseason) for the first time since 2003. The team was led, in large part, by eventual Hall-of-Famer Frank Thomas. Thomas, who was signed to a one-year contract in the offseason, hit a team-high 39 home runs over the course of the season. He ultimately finished fourth in American League MVP voting.
The Athletics managed to sweep the Minnesota Twins in the first round of the playoffs. In doing so, they advanced to the American League Championship Series for the first time since 1992. The sweep was Oakland's first playoff series victory since 1990; as of 2014, it remains the only playoff series victory of the Billy Beane era. The Athletics would themselves be swept, four games to none, by the Detroit Tigers in the ALCS.
The team saw a number of key departures at the end of the season. Free agent pitcher Barry Zito, the team's lone All-Star in 2006, signed with the rival San Francisco Giants following the team's ALCS loss. Additionally, Frank Thomas signed a two-year deal with the Toronto Blue Jays. The coaching staff experienced similar turnover, as manager Ken Macha and longtime third base coach Ron Washington departed. Macha was fired at seasons' end; Washington, by contrast, was hired to manage the division rival Texas Rangers. They would be replaced by Bob Geren and Rene Lachemann, respectively.
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