The Great A's Of the Past?

[DoubleX]

Do the A's do a good job at all of honoring or acknowledging the team's history? The team has a very rich history, 9 World Series (second most), and 15 Pennants. Plus the A's have had some great players over the years - Eddie Plank, Chief Bender, Eddie Collins, Frank Baker, Al Simmons, Mickey Cochrane, Jimmie Foxx, Lefty Grove, Bob Johnson, Reggie Jackson, Sal Bando, Rollie Fingers, Rickey Henderson, Dennis Eckersley, Mark McGwire, and many others. Connie Mack also. Does the team do anything to honor these greats? I ask because I get the feeling that the team doesn't really acknowledge it's Philadelphia roots and the great teams and players of the franchise's past. I would think a franchise that has such a rich history, like the A's, would really want to stress it.

[mojorisin71]

Do the A's do a good job at all of honoring or acknowledging the team's history? The team has a very rich history, 9 World Series (second most), and 15 Pennants. Plus the A's have had some great players over the years - Eddie Plank, Chief Bender, Eddie Collins, Frank Baker, Al Simmons, Mickey Cochrane, Jimmie Foxx, Lefty Grove, Bob Johnson, Reggie Jackson, Sal Bando, Rollie Fingers, Rickey Henderson, Dennis Eckersley, Mark McGwire, and many others. Connie Mack also. Does the team do anything to honor these greats? I ask because I get the feeling that the team doesn't really acknowledge it's Philadelphia roots and the great teams and players of the franchise's past. I would think a franchise that has such a rich history, like the A's, would really want to stress it.
I think the front office chooses to keep the Philadelphia and Oakland histories separate. The only retired numbers honor those that played in the Bay Area (Catfish, Fingers, Eck, and Reggie), and nothing at the Coliseum even acknowledges the Philadelphia and Kansas City (can't blame them for that) days.

[mlazar]

this is an interesting issue with the A's.......a couple years back they had an All Century team selected and had some outfield banners with names from members of past history that played in Philly also that made the team and Rickey Henderson was named the greatest A 's player, but all those banners have vanished...

[Catfish27]

Yes, the A's acknowledge their glory days in Philadelphia. However, the focus is naturally on their history in Oakland. The A's also acknowlege the history of the Oakland Oaks, the PCL team that pre-dated the arrival of Major League Baseball in the San Francisco Bay Area.

I think it highly unlikely that the A's will go back and retire the uniform numbers of the Hall of Fame greats from Philadelphia. There really isn't much point to it. The Oakland fans never got to see them play, the players are all deceased, and the players' children, if they had any, are probably mostly deceased, too.

The A's are a progressive, forward-thinking franchise concerned with winning in the present and the near future. Their #1 concern at this point is building a new ballpark, and rightfully so. Trumping up the exploits of players from 75 years ago or more who played in a city on the other side of the country is a pretty low on the "To Do" list.

[Zito75]

Cool thread- I have to agree with you guys. I get the impression that Philly and Oakland have been separated as well.

I'm curious to see who you'd all have on your A's All-Time team. Would you mix it up with the great players from the Philly days? When I think of the A's, I automatically associate them with Oakland. Then again, I am just a young pup. ;)

[RedSoxVT92]

I think that oakland should reconize Connie Mack more. He was the A's for along time. He owned them and also managed them 1901-1950 (50 seasons!) His last year managing he was 87 years old. Mack won 9 pennats and 5 WS with the A's. He established the franchise so even though they are no longer in Phillidelphia he should still get a large amount of reconition.

[Zito75]

I think that oakland should reconize Connie Mack more. He was the A's for along time. He owned them and also managed them 1901-1950 (50 seasons!) His last year managing he was 87 years old. Mack won 9 pennats and 5 WS with the A's. He established the franchise so even though they are no longer in Phillidelphia he should still get a large amount of reconition.

Agree 100%. They certainly don't make 'em like that any more. Connie was one of a kind.

[DoubleX]

Even with their Oakland tradition, the A's have struck me as kind of lax in honoring it. Like the team just retired Reggie Jackson's number a couple of seasons ago, shouldn't that have been done like 15 years ago? I assume Rickey Henderson will be honored when he finally calls it quits.

As for the Philadelphia greats, I'm not saying that the team should go and retire their numbers, but I think it would be nice to have some kind of acknowledgement of some of these great players, even if it's just names or pictures posted someplace in the stadium. Many teams do this to honor their past greats. Even if these players never played in Oakland, they did play for the organization and helped to create the organizations rich tradition. Players like Foxx, Grove, Simmons, Cochrane, Plank, Baker shouldn't have their team affiliation lost in history, particularly because their team chose to foresake their memories and contributions. I could understand bypassing the acknowledgement if it was just marginal players, but guys like Foxx and Grove especially rank way up there in the annals of baseball history, and I would have thought it would be nice to acknowledge that the A's, just like the Yankees, Cardinals, Tigers, Pirates, Red Sox, and so forth, also have their share of legends.

Don't the Twins still have some kind of acknowledgement to Walter Johnson, even though the team has both moved and changed it's name?

The Atlanta Braves pay homage to Warren Spahn and Eddie Mathews even though Spahn never played in Atlanta and Mathews only had one season near the end of his career there.

But perhaps the best example is the San Francisco Giants. Despite their cross-country move, they still honor some of the greats from the New York teams, namely Mel Ott, Bill Terry and Carl Hubbell have their numbers retired. There is a restaurant at the stadium named after John McGraw, and I'm pretty sure there is some kind of acknowledgement of Christy Mathewson there as well, and perhaps some others from the numberless era.

To me, it's not just about the city, it's about the franchise, and the A's are really neglecting some players, IMO, that they should be proud of. Even though I'm a Yankee fan, I've liked the A's for a long time, and I don't think many people realize that the A's are a team that is ladened in tradition about as much as any other team in the game not named the Yankees. But the A's don't project themselves at all in that way and I think it kind of cheapens the perception that most casual fans have of the A's. Acknowledging their history and tradition could really add some glamour and luster to the franchise. The A's deserve to be up there with the Yankees and Cardinals and Giants and Dodgers and Red Sox and Cubs, it's just management that seems to want to keep that luster dull instead of embracing the tradition, at least that's how it comes across from my distant perspective

[RedSoxVT92]

Even with their Oakland tradition, the A's have struck me as kind of lax in honoring it. Like the team just retired Reggie Jackson's number a couple of seasons ago, shouldn't that have been done like 15 years ago? I assume Rickey Henderson will be honored when he finally calls it quits.

As for the Philadelphia greats, I'm not saying that the team should go and retire their numbers, but I think it would be nice to have some kind of acknowledgement of some of these great players, even if it's just names or pictures posted someplace in the stadium. Many teams do this to honor their past greats. Even if these players never played in Oakland, they did play for the organization and helped to create the organizations rich tradition. Players like Foxx, Grove, Simmons, Cochrane, Plank, Baker shouldn't have their team affiliation lost in history, particularly because their team chose to foresake their memories and contributions. I could understand bypassing the acknowledgement if it was just marginal players, but guys like Foxx and Grove especially rank way up there in the annals of baseball history, and I would have thought it would be nice to acknowledge that the A's, just like the Yankees, Cardinals, Tigers, Pirates, Red Sox, and so forth, also have their share of legends.

Don't the Twins still have some kind of acknowledgement to Walter Johnson, even though the team has both moved and changed it's name?

The Atlanta Braves pay homage to Warren Spahn and Eddie Mathews even though Spahn never played in Atlanta and Mathews only had one season near the end of his career there.

But perhaps the best example is the San Francisco Giants. Despite their cross-country move, they still honor some of the greats from the New York teams, namely Mel Ott, Bill Terry and Carl Hubbell have their numbers retired. There is a restaurant at the stadium named after John McGraw, and I'm pretty sure there is some kind of acknowledgement of Christy Mathewson there as well, and perhaps some others from the numberless era.

To me, it's not just about the city, it's about the franchise, and the A's are really neglecting some players, IMO, that they should be proud of. Even though I'm a Yankee fan, I've liked the A's for a long time, and I don't think many people realize that the A's are a team that is ladened in tradition about as much as any other team in the game not named the Yankees. But the A's don't project themselves at all in that way and I think it kind of cheapens the perception that most casual fans have of the A's. Acknowledging their history and tradition could really add some glamour and luster to the franchise. The A's deserve to be up there with the Yankees and Cardinals and Giants and Dodgers and Red Sox and Cubs, it's just management that seems to want to keep that luster dull instead of embracing the tradition, at least that's how it comes across from my distant perspective

I agree. I think its dissapointing when a team forgets its roots. They should look at the whole franchise not just after a move to a diffrent city. I actually think that the Minnesota Twins are even worse. I dont think they have any reconition of Walter Johnson at all. They have no Senator in their Twins hall of fame. On the Twins site they have their timeline from 1961- completley whiping out the Senators history. The A's are pretty bad too because they dont reconize their former greats eithier (and philidelphia had alot more greats then the senators) And although many people disagree, I think that franchises should retire numbers from their whole franchise not just the city their currentley in. Because then people like Walter Johnson, Jimmie Foxx, Goose Goslin, Connie Mack, etc are forgotten and have a history with a team that has abanded them. They have no team to be honored with. It's very sad because all of what they have done for that franchise is dismissed.

[DoubleX]

I agree. I think its dissapointing when a team forgets its roots. They should look at the whole franchise not just after a move to a diffrent city. I actually think that the Minnesota Twins are even worse. I dont think they have any reconition of Walter Johnson at all. They have no Senator in their Twins hall of fame. On the Twins site they have their timeline from 1961- completley whiping out the Senators history. The A's are pretty bad too because they dont reconize their former greats eithier (and philidelphia had alot more greats then the senators) And although many people disagree, I think that franchises should retire numbers from their whole franchise not just the city their currentley in. Because then people like Walter Johnson, Jimmie Foxx, Goose Goslin, Connie Mack, etc are forgotten and have a history with a team that has abanded them. They have no team to be honored with. It's very sad because all of what they have done for that franchise is dismissed.

Didn't realize that about the Twins, but the Senators were nothing like the A's in Philadelphia. The A's history going back to 1901 is just about as rich as any team in the game outside the Yankees.

[Catfish27]

..the A's are pretty bad too because they dont reconize their former greats eithier (and philidelphia had alot more greats then the senators) And although many people disagree, I think that franchises should retire numbers from their whole franchise not just the city their currentley in.
You're mistaken if you don't think the A's honor their Philadelphia past and the greats that wore the "A" on their uniform. I know that they used to fly white and blue flags honoring each of the Worls Series they won in Philly. (I'm not certain if they still do or not. I'll check in April when I go to a game.)

If you check the list of all-time A's on their website (http://oakland.athletics.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/oak/history/players.jsp) you'll find the names of Philadelphia players listed. The names of Philadelphia Hall of Famers (http://oakland.athletics.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/oak/history/hall_of_famers.jsp), All-Stars (http://oakland.athletics.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/oak/history/all_stars.jsp), MVPs (http://oakland.athletics.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/oak/history/awards.jsp), and the team history dating back to 1901 (http://oakland.athletics.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/oak/history/timeline1.jsp) is also given on their website. There's a lot more if you'd only look.

Unlike the Yankees, the A's do not have a history of retiring numbers. It's only been since 1991 that they began retiring numbers, and they're only retiring the numbers of Hall of Famers. I don't expect them to retroactively retire numbers for deceased players for the reasons stated above.

There are a lot more ways to honor players and a team's past then a retired uniform number.

[west coast orange and black]

xx: the San Francisco Giants ... honor some of the greats from the New York teams, namely Mel Ott, Bill Terry and Carl Hubbell have their numbers retired. There is a restaurant at the stadium named after John McGraw, and I'm pretty sure there is some kind of acknowledgement of Christy Mathewson there as well, and perhaps some others from the numberless era.

mathewson and mcgraw each has his name included with the retired numbers, which are:
3 - bill terry
4 - mel ott
11 - carl hubbell
24 - willie mays
27 - juan marichal
30 - orlando cepeda
42 - jackie robinson
44 - willie mccovey

the home dugout roof features portraits of the modern era giants players, while the visitor dugout roof features the oldtimers.

the bridge that traverses mccovey cove is the lefty o'doul bridge.

one of my favorite parts of the ballyard is actually across the water, on the opposite side of mccovey cove.

bronze plaques, shaped like home plate, serve as memorials to each of the giants teams that played in san francisco prior to pac bell park. the plaques feature that season's entire roster, as well as the opening day starting lineup. hitting and pitching leaders for that particular season, as are all-star selections, batting, rbi and home run leadres, and win, innings pitched and strikeout leaders.

a walk around the entire mall is a trip down memory lane, and the beautiful statue of willie mccovey is featured at one end of the san francisco giants history mall.

large bronze circular plaques tout barry bonds and the division and league championships along the promenade, at the water's edge. and the graceful statue of juan marichal is passed on the way from the o'doul bridge to willie mays plaza, where 24 palm trees give homage to mays' number.
the bronze statue catching mays on his follow-through is truly the magnificent eye-catcher of the entire park. hordes clamor around to snap photos with the bronze on granite base piece.

[mlazar]

xx: the San Francisco Giants ... honor some of the greats from the New York teams, namely Mel Ott, Bill Terry and Carl Hubbell have their numbers retired. There is a restaurant at the stadium named after John McGraw, and I'm pretty sure there is some kind of acknowledgement of Christy Mathewson there as well, and perhaps some others from the numberless era.

mathewson and mcgraw each has his name included with the retired numbers, which are:
3 - bill terry
4 - mel ott
11 - carl hubbell
24 - willie mays
27 - juan marichal
30 - orlando cepeda
42 - jackie robinson
44 - willie mccovey

the home dugout roof features portraits of the modern era giants players, while the visitor dugout roof features the oldtimers.

the bridge that traverses mccovey cove is the lefty o'doul bridge.

one of my favorite parts of the ballyard is actually across the water, on the opposite side of mccovey cove.

bronze plaques, shaped like home plate, serve as memorials to each of the giants teams that played in san francisco prior to pac bell park. the plaques feature that season's entire roster, as well as the opening day starting lineup. hitting and pitching leaders for that particular season, as are all-star selections, batting, rbi and home run leadres, and win, innings pitched and strikeout leaders.

a walk around the entire mall is a trip down memory lane, and the beautiful statue of willie mccovey is featured at one end of the san francisco giants history mall.

large bronze circular plaques tout barry bonds and the division and league championships along the promenade, at the water's edge. and the graceful statue of juan marichal is passed on the way from the o'doul bridge to willie mays plaza, where 24 palm trees give homage to mays' number.
the bronze statue catching mays on his follow-through is truly the magnificent eye-catcher of the entire park. hordes clamor around to snap photos with the bronze on granite base piece.


all that glitters is not gold.... wouldn't you trade all that "stuff" for a World Series banner ?

[Catfish27]

all that glitters is not gold.... wouldn't you trade all that "stuff" for a World Series banner ?
I don't think the Giants even know what a World Series banner looks like. How long has it been? 1954? I guess when you can't win a Series you have to compensate.

[west coast orange and black]

#13 + 14: expected sniping from the east bay.
many (incorrectly) believe that "there is no there, there" quote. why give 'em reasons to believe?

[DoubleX]

xx: the San Francisco Giants ... honor some of the greats from the New York teams, namely Mel Ott, Bill Terry and Carl Hubbell have their numbers retired. There is a restaurant at the stadium named after John McGraw, and I'm pretty sure there is some kind of acknowledgement of Christy Mathewson there as well, and perhaps some others from the numberless era.

mathewson and mcgraw each has his name included with the retired numbers, which are:
3 - bill terry
4 - mel ott
11 - carl hubbell
24 - willie mays
27 - juan marichal
30 - orlando cepeda
42 - jackie robinson
44 - willie mccovey

the home dugout roof features portraits of the modern era giants players, while the visitor dugout roof features the oldtimers.

the bridge that traverses mccovey cove is the lefty o'doul bridge.

one of my favorite parts of the ballyard is actually across the water, on the opposite side of mccovey cove.

bronze plaques, shaped like home plate, serve as memorials to each of the giants teams that played in san francisco prior to pac bell park. the plaques feature that season's entire roster, as well as the opening day starting lineup. hitting and pitching leaders for that particular season, as are all-star selections, batting, rbi and home run leadres, and win, innings pitched and strikeout leaders.

a walk around the entire mall is a trip down memory lane, and the beautiful statue of willie mccovey is featured at one end of the san francisco giants history mall.

large bronze circular plaques tout barry bonds and the division and league championships along the promenade, at the water's edge. and the graceful statue of juan marichal is passed on the way from the o'doul bridge to willie mays plaza, where 24 palm trees give homage to mays' number.
the bronze statue catching mays on his follow-through is truly the magnificent eye-catcher of the entire park. hordes clamor around to snap photos with the bronze on granite base piece.

Lefty O'Doul bridge, eh? Interesting. I don't think he even played 2 complete seasons with the Giants.

[Catfish27]

Lefty O'Doul bridge, eh? Interesting. I don't think he even played 2 complete seasons with the Giants.
You'd think a fan of baseball history would know that Lefty O'Doul's fame in San Francisco came as a manager of the San Francisco Seals of the Pacific Coast League. Many considered the PCL the "third major league" before the Giants and Dodgers moved West from New York and Brooklyn, respectively.

As Connie Mack is the all-time winningest manager in the American League, Lefty O'Doul is the PCL's all-time winningest manager. One of his charges was Joe DiMaggio, who later went on to star with the New York Yankees.

You don't really think that San Francisco would name a bridge after a ballplayer who played less than two complete seasons for the New York Giants, do you? :confused:

[DoubleX]

You'd think a fan of baseball history would know that Lefty O'Doul's fame in San Francisco came as a manager of the San Francisco Seals of the Pacific Coast League. Many considered the PCL the "third major league" before the Giants and Dodgers moved West from New York and Brooklyn, respectively.

As Connie Mack is the all-time winningest manager in the American League, Lefty O'Doul is the PCL's all-time winningest manager. One of his charges was Joe DiMaggio, who later went on to star with the New York Yankees.

You don't really think that San Francisco would name a bridge after a ballplayer who played less than two complete seasons for the New York Giants, do you? :confused:

I was actually kidding in my first post, I should have used a smiley. I'm well aware of O'Doul's prominence with the San Francisco Seals as a manager, but also as a player who was successful first as a pitcher in the PCL and then as a hitter.

[ElHalo]

I think it highly unlikely that the A's will go back and retire the uniform numbers of the Hall of Fame greats from Philadelphia. There really isn't much point to it. The Oakland fans never got to see them play, the players are all deceased, and the players' children, if they had any, are probably mostly deceased, too.

All this can be said of Babe Ruth as well... and yet, every time I go to the Stadium, I see his bat out front, and his statue in Left-Center.

[Catfish27]

All this can be said of Babe Ruth as well... and yet, every time I go to the Stadium, I see his bat out front, and his statue in Left-Center.
What?! Yankee fans never got to see Babe Ruth play? Didn't Babe Ruth play in New York for the Yankees? Didn't he even play in Yankee Stadium? Babe Ruth's number was retired in 1948; he passed in August of that year. The Yankees didn't wait 70 years to retire his number.

There are still lots of Yankee Hall of Famers whose numbers haven't been retired. Why haven't the Yankees retired the numbers of Earle Combs, Lefty Gomez, Waite Hoyt, Tony Lazzeri, Herb Pennock, Red Ruffing, or Dave Winfield?

I agree that Cochrane, Foxx, Grove, et al deserved to be honored, but that honor should have come in Philadelphia many years before.

[wamby]

Lefty O'Doul bridge, eh? Interesting. I don't think he even played 2 complete seasons with the Giants.

I think Lefty O'Doul is more associated with the San Francisco Seals than the Giants. He was one of the most famous figures associated wi the minor Leagues in the 20th century.

[DoubleX]

What?! Yankee fans never got to see Babe Ruth play? Didn't Babe Ruth play in New York for the Yankees? Didn't he even play in Yankee Stadium? Babe Ruth's number was retired in 1948; he passed in August of that year. The Yankees didn't wait 70 years to retire his number.

There are still lots of Yankee Hall of Famers whose numbers haven't been retired. Why haven't the Yankees retired the numbers of Earle Combs, Lefty Gomez, Waite Hoyt, Tony Lazzeri, Herb Pennock, Red Ruffing, or Dave Winfield?

I agree that Cochrane, Foxx, Grove, et al deserved to be honored, but that honor should have come in Philadelphia many years before.

The A's left Philadephia only 10 years after Foxx retired, 14 years after Grove, and 18 after Cocharne. Plus all three players were still alive when the A's left Philadelphia. It took the Yankees 15 years to retire Ruth's number and the fact that he died. It's not like the Yankees instantaneously honored Ruth or did so without the impetus of his death. The fact is that the practice of retiring numbers was very new in the 40's and 50's, so the Philadelphia A's never really had a chance to honor Foxx, Grove, and Cochrane. Meaning it was incumbent on the franchise to honor them as the trend of honoring players took off in the following decades.

Another example that is very applicable here is that the Giants didn't retire Bill Terry's number until 1983, despite the fact that he never played in San Francisco and had been retired for 46 years. Teams should honor their past, even if it was in a different city. It's still the same franchise. The Giants do a pretty good job, the A's don't, and that's party of why the Giants appear to have much more luster and prominence steeped in tradition around baseball while the A's appear to be a much cheaper franchise.

[wamby]

The A's left Philadephia only 10 years after Foxx retired, 14 years after Grove, and 18 after Cocharne. Plus all three players were still alive when the A's left Philadelphia. It took the Yankees 15 years to retire Ruth's number and the fact that he died. It's not like the Yankees instantaneously honored Ruth or did so without the impetus of his death. The fact is that the practice of retiring numbers was very new in the 40's and 50's, so the Philadelphia A's never really had a chance to honor Foxx, Grove, and Cochrane. Meaning it was incumbent on the franchise to honor them as the trend of honoring players took off in the following decades.

Another example that is very applicable here is that the Giants didn't retire Bill Terry's number until 1983, despite the fact that he never played in San Francisco and had been retired for 46 years. Teams should honor their past, even if it was in a different city. It's still the same franchise. The Giants do a pretty good job, the A's don't, and that's party of why the Giants appear to have much more luster and prominence steeped in tradition around baseball while the A's appear to be a much cheaper franchise.

Ruth's number was retired when he was still alive in 1948. He died shortly afterward but I don't know if it was widely known that he was terminally ill.

[DoubleX]

Ruth's number was retired when he was still alive in 1948. He died shortly afterward but I don't know if it was widely known that he was terminally ill.

You ever hear his speech at Yankee Stadium he made shortly before he died? I believe it was that day that his number was retired. The guy sounds terrible and he looks terrible in pictures. He was really just a shell of himself. People had to know that something was very wrong. But the point remains, the Yankees did not honor Ruth until he was on death's door. Honoring recent great players was just not a thing that was commonly done back then, and it really took something like death for that moment to come (like Gehrig). So I can't blame the Philadelphia A's for not honoring Foxx, Grove, and others before the lefty Philadelphia in 1955; it just wasn't a common practice. However, in the decades that followed, most teams went back and honored their greats, the A's don't seem to have ever made that effort, and that's a shame because the A's have as much tradition as anyone outside the Yankees. But it seems to have been foresaken by the team and I feel it cheapens the prestige of the franchise. This is a franchise that should be looked at as presitigious and historically significant, but it's not.

[Catfish27]

Meaning it was incumbent on the franchise to honor them as the trend of honoring players took off in the following decades.
You make some good points, DoubleX, but the Oakland A's are not obliged to retire the numbers of Hall of Famers from their Philadelphia days. When the A's retired Catfish Hunter's number in 1991 they established a policy that they would retire numbers of HOF players on an ongoing basis. If you don't like that policy I suggest you write them.

As far as comparisons with the Giants, the A's have had the much better franchise since they arrived in 1968. The Giants play in San Francisco, which is a world class city. Oakland is the comparatively ugly sister across the Bay. The A's could go back to wearing blue and white, erect a statue to Connie Mack, and retire all of the great Philadelphia HOFers numbers and that would not change.

Building a nifty new stadium with a cupola like old Shibe Park would sure boost their image, though. ;)

[DoubleX]

You make some good points, DoubleX, but the Oakland A's are not obliged to retire the numbers of Hall of Famers from their Philadelphia days. When the A's retired Catfish Hunter's number in 1991 they established a policy that they would retire numbers of HOF players on an ongoing basis. If you don't like that policy I suggest you write them.

As far as comparisons with the Giants, the A's have had the much better franchise since they arrived in 1968. The Giants play in San Francisco, which is a world class city. Oakland is the comparatively ugly sister across the Bay. The A's could go back to wearing blue and white, erect a statue to Connie Mack, and retire all of the great Philadelphia HOFers numbers and that would not change.

Building a nifty new stadium with a cupola like old Shibe Park would sure boost their image, though. ;)

I'm not saying their obliged to honor those players, I just don't get why they foresake their history. The A's have this great tradition, a tradition that most teams woud love to have, and the team does nothing with it. I just don't get it.

[west coast orange and black]

DoubleX: Teams should honor their past, even if it was in a different city. It's still the same franchise.

with ya all the way on this one, xx.

[west coast orange and black]

Catfish27: As far as comparisons with the Giants, the A's have had the much better franchise since they arrived in 1968.

hmmm...
the a's have enjoyed 22 winning seasons since moving to oakland... same number as the giants.

oakland has tallied 3,155 wins since their move... while the giants have posted 3,256 wins.

by "the much better franchise", catfish, are you referring to those one dollar hot dog tuesday nights? :D

[DoubleX]

Catfish27: As far as comparisons with the Giants, the A's have had the much better franchise since they arrived in 1968.

hmmm...
the a's have enjoyed 22 winning seasons since moving to oakland... same number as the giants.

oakland has tallied 3,155 wins since their move... while the giants have posted 3,256 wins.

by "the much better franchise", catfish, are you referring to those one dollar hot dog tuesday nights? :D

He might be referring be referring to the 4 World Series titles and 6 Pennants the A's have won in that stretch, compared to the Giants 0 World Series titles and 2 Pennants?

[mlazar]

Catfish27: As far as comparisons with the Giants, the A's have had the much better franchise since they arrived in 1968.

hmmm...
the a's have enjoyed 22 winning seasons since moving to oakland... same number as the giants.

oakland has tallied 3,155 wins since their move... while the giants have posted 3,256 wins.

by "the much better franchise", catfish, are you referring to those one dollar hot dog tuesday nights? :D


please get your facts straight, because Wednesday is dollar hot dog night at the Coliseum...:laugh

I'm sure you are aware of the new promotion at Pac Bell on Tuesdays though, : turn in an old cell phone and receive a dollar off on a grande, half-decaf, iced Americano mocha latte, down goes Frazier, down goes Frazier half sweet-n-low,dash of skim milk in a Marvin Benard souvenir cup....

[mojorisin71]

Actually, the Giants have three pennants in San Francisco (1962, 1989, 2002)

[Zito75]

I'm sure you are aware of the new promotion at Pac Bell on Tuesdays though, : turn in an old cell phone and receive a dollar off on a grande, half-decaf, iced Americano mocha latte, down goes Frazier, down goes Frazier half sweet-n-low,dash of skim milk in a Marvin Benard souvenir cup....

Dude that is hilarious, do you get a side of Chili Davis with that? :laugh :laugh :laugh

[DoubleX]

Actually, the Giants have three pennants in San Francisco (1962, 1989, 2002)

I was only talking about the stretch since the A's move to Oakland in 1968.

[Catfish27]

The A's have won 4 more World Series, 3 more League Championships, and 6 more
Division Titles in 10 fewer years the the Giants.

Giants since 1958
World Series - 0
NL pennants - 3
Division titles - 7

Oakland since 1968
World Series - 4
AL pennants - 6
Division titles - 13

The Giants have finished second to the Dodgers many more times than the A's have, though. ;)

[runningshoes]

people like Walter Johnson, Jimmie Foxx, Goose Goslin, Connie Mack, etc are forgotten and have a history with a team that has abanded them. They have no team to be honored with. It's very sad because all of what they have done for that franchise is dismissed.

That pretty much sums it up.

[Catfish27]

Yeah, the Philly A's dropped the ball (if you pardon the pun). Fortunately, the Oakland A's do a terrific job of honoring their greats.

[DoubleX]

Yeah, the Philly A's dropped the ball (if you pardon the pun). Fortunately, the Oakland A's do a terrific job of honoring their greats.

Why did it take the team like 15 years to retire Jackson's number? Any talk of retiring Rickey's number? Is management just waiting for him to finally give up? What about Sal Bando. Some members on these boards make him out to be one of the greatest leader and intangible players ever (I don't know how true or not true that is). Bert Campaneris? I'm probably reaching too much now.

[Catfish27]

Why did it take the team like 15 years to retire Jackson's number? Any talk of retiring Rickey's number? Is management just waiting for him to finally give up? What about Sal Bando. Some members on these boards make him out to be one of the greatest leader and intangible players ever (I don't know how true or not true that is). Bert Campaneris? I'm probably reaching too much now.
Many Oakland fans have called for the retirement of Carney Lansford's #4, too. Rickey Henderson, Sal Bando, Bert Campaneris, and Carney Lansford will have their numbers retired when and if they are elected to the Hall of Fame. That's the A's policy. (Rickey has to be retired for five years before that can happen.) You have to draw the line somewhere afterall. If the A's retired every popular player's number the team on the field would be wearing 3-digit numbers.

Anyone who follows the Oakland A's knows that the A's have honored these men in other ways in the past. People from other parts of the country who follow other teams who make claims that the A's haven't honored these men obviously don't know what they're talking about.

After his playing career Reggie worked with the A's, primarily as a mentor for Jose Canseco. Obviously, it wasn't successful and Reggie was dismissed. Reggie had some acrimonious feelings towards the A's for his dismissal. Reggie made a deal with the New York Yankees when he was elected to the Hall of Fame. The Yankees threw a lot of money at him, something they're very good at, and retired his number in exchange for Reggie wearing a cap with NY on his HOF plaque (http://www.baseballhalloffame.org/hofers%5Fand%5Fhonorees/plaques/jackson%5Freggie.htm). My wife and I attended Reggie's number retirement ceremony. During his speech he acknowledged that the long delay in retiring his number was his fault.

You can probably find this information on the web with very little effort. Yahoo! (http://www.yahoo.com/) and Google (http://www.google.com/) are two very popular search engines.

[runningshoes]

Yeah, the Philly A's dropped the ball (if you pardon the pun). Fortunately, the Oakland A's do a terrific job of honoring their greats.

Those guys are their greats.

[Catfish27]

Those guys are their greats.
But they didn't play in Oakland.

Tell me, who's watching your bridge while you're out trolling?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v702/OldTomBombadil/troll.jpg

[RedSoxVT92]

But they didn't play in Oakland.

They still deserve to be honored even if they never played in oakland. These guys created the franchise and if not for the philidelphia A's there would be no Oakland A's. The A's is all one franchise. Some say that the city that they were previousley in should honor them and rember them. No one does that. People in Philidelphia care about the Phillies not a team that most people dont even know was there. The A's have a rich past and need to relize this. So even if they never played in Oakland does not mean they never played for the franchise.

[runningshoes]

Tell me, who's watching your bridge while you're out trolling?

.........You?

[DoubleX]

They still deserve to be honored even if they never played in oakland. These guys created the franchise and if not for the philidelphia A's there would be no Oakland A's. The A's is all one franchise. Some say that the city that they were previousley in should honor them and rember them. No one does that. People in Philidelphia care about the Phillies not a team that most people dont even know was there. The A's have a rich past and need to relize this. So even if they never played in Oakland does not mean they never played for the franchise.

Well said.

[west coast orange and black]

xx: He might be referring be referring to the 4 World Series titles and 6 Pennants the A's have won in that stretch, compared to the Giants 0 World Series titles and 2 Pennants?

um, maybe. :ughh

[west coast orange and black]

mlazar: ...turn in an old cell phone and receive a dollar off on a grande, half-decaf, iced Americano mocha latte, down goes Frazier half sweet-n-low,dash of skim milk in a Marvin Benard souvenir cup....


dude. you made me choke by mentioning benard. :laugh
ok, but why order grande when one can have venti?
and, wouldn't that order be just *that* much better with only half-foam? :D

[west coast orange and black]

re #40: please show respect for fellow members.
or, at the very least, no disrespect.

thanx.