Oakland Athletics | |||||
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2017 Oakland Athletics season | |||||
Established in 1901 | |||||
Based in Oakland since 1968 | |||||
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Major league titles | |||||
World Series titles (9) | |||||
AL Pennants (15) | |||||
West Division titles (16) | |||||
Wild card berths (2) | |||||
Front office | |||||
Owner(s) | John J. Fisher | ||||
Manager | Bob Melvin | ||||
General Manager | David Forst | ||||
President of Baseball Operations | Billy Beane |
The Oakland Athletics (often abbreviated to 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 club plays its home games at the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum. The club has won nine World Series championships, the third most of all current Major League Baseball teams. The 2017 season is the club's 50th in Oakland.
One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Philadelphia, in 1901 as the Philadelphia Athletics. They won three World Series championships from 1910 to 1913 and two in a row in 1929 and 1930. The team's owner and manager for its first 50 years was Connie Mack and Hall of Fame players included Chief Bender, Frank "Home Run" Baker, Jimmie Foxx, and Lefty Grove. The team left Philadelphia for Kansas City in 1955 and became the Kansas City Athletics before moving to Oakland in 1968. They won three World Championships in a row from 1972 to 1974, led by players including Catfish Hunter, Reggie Jackson, ace reliever Rollie Fingers, and colorful owner Charlie O. Finley. After being sold by Finley to Walter A. Haas Jr., the team won three consecutive pennants and the 1989 World Series behind the "Bash Brothers", Jose Canseco and Mark McGwire, as well as Hall of Famers Dennis Eckersley, Rickey Henderson and manager Tony La Russa.