The A’s will induct its sixth and final class into the Athletics Hall of Fame ahead of the Bay Bridge Series against the Giants on Saturday afternoon — the last series between the cross-Bay rivals before Oakland moves to Sacramento.
The class of 2024 features six franchise icons: former MVPs Jose Canseco and Miguel Tejada; legendary broadcaster Bill King; All-Star catcher Terry Steinbach; World Series-winning manager Dick Williams; and Philadelphia A’s Hall of Famer Eddie Joost.
Here is a rundown of their contributions to the franchise.
Jose Canseco (1985-1992, 1997)
Resumé with Oakland: 3x Silver Slugger, 5x All-Star, 1986 AL Rookie of the Year, 1988 AL MVP, 1,058 games, 254 home runs, 793 RBIs, 135 stolen bases, .264 batting average, .851 OPS
Can you truly separate the art from the artist?
Canseco’s art as a baseball player was bashful. Canseco slugged 204 home runs from 1986 t0 1991, the most in all of baseball during that span. He was the first member of the 40-40 club. He and Mark McGwire, the Bash Brothers, formed one of the most feared one-two punches in all of baseball.
As for the artist? The man who, among many other things, referred to himself as the “godfather of steroids” and outed alleged users over the course of two books. That’s an entirely different, messy subject matter.
Miguel Tejada (1997-2003)
Resumé with Oakland: 1x All-Star, 2002 AL MVP, 936 games, 156 home runs, 604 RBIs, 49 stolen bases, .270 batting average, .791 OPS
Miguel Tejada overcame borderline impossible odds to become one of the greatest shortstops in A’s history. He was born into extreme poverty in the Dominican Republic. He shined shoes as a child to help his family earn money. Hurricane David destroyed his family’s house when he was a child. His mother, Mora, died in her sleep when Tejada was 13-years-old.
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Tejada wasn’t considered special as a prospect, but Giants legend Juan Marichal, working as a scout for Oakland, signed Tejada for $2,000. What Tejada didn’t have in clout, he made up for in heart. In a golden age of shortstops during the late-90s and early-00s, he was right there in the mix.
His 156 home runs, 604 RBIs and .460 slugging percentage all rank first among shortstops in A’s history. He was an Iron Man, too, missing just five games 1999 to 2003 during the aforementioned span.
Tejada was not without his flaws. But for Oakland, “La Gua Gua” was enough.
Terry Steinbach (1986-1996)
Resumé: 3x All-Star, 1989 World Series champion, 1,199 games, 132 home runs, .275 batting average, .754 OPS
The A’s of the late-80s and early-90s featured a litany of stars and personalities, but Steinbach was the low-key, steady presence that helped lead one of baseball’s best pitching staffs.
Steinbach spent his entire major-league career as a catcher, but he didn’t begin catching until his second year as a professional. He played third base in college, but with McGwire debuting at the hot corner (he’d soon move to first), Steinbach changed positions. The decision ended up being mutually beneficial.
In 1996, Steinbach had the best offensive season by a catcher in Oakland franchise history, totaling career-highs in home runs (35) and RBIs (100).
Bill King
Resumé: A’s broadcaster from 1981 to 2005, 2017 Ford C. Frick Award
Known by his trademark phrase, “Holy, Toledo!”, King served as the voice for not just the A’s, but Bay Area sports scene. In addition to his 25 years broadcasting for the green and gold, King called games for the San Francisco Giants (1958-1962), Oakland Raiders (1962-83) and Golden State Warriors (1966-92).
In 2016, more than a decade after his passing, the National Baseball Hall of Fame honored King with the Ford C. Frick Award after being a finalist seven times.
King, whose first season with the A’s was 1981,told the story of three distinct eras of baseball in Oakland: Billy Ball, the Bash Brothers and Moneyball. His call of Scott Hatteberg’s walk-off home run to push the A’s winning streak to 20 games was used in Moneyball, providing millions of fans outside of the Bay Area with an opportunity to hear one of his iconic calls.
Crazy…just plain crazy!
Dick Williams (1971-1973)
Resumé: 2x World Series champion; 288-190 record; highest winning percentage in A’s history (.603)
Dick Williams’ credentials as a manager during his time with the A’s are obvious. He won 288 games in three seasons. His .603 winning percentage is the highest all-time for an A’s manager. He won back-to-back World Series titles in 1972 and ‘73.
But arguably his most impressive feat? He was the only one of Charlie O’Finley’s 18 managers who lasted three full seasons.
With an absolutely loaded roster featuring the likes of Reggie Jackson, Catfish Hunter, Vida Blue, Rollie Fingers, Sal Bando and Bert Campaneris, among others, the A’s were swept by the Orioles in the 1971 ALCS before winning back-to-back titles in ‘72 and ‘73.
Eddie Joost (1947-1954)
Resumé: 2x All-Star, 917 games, 116 home runs, 33 steals, .250 batting average, .799 OPS
If there’s one thing to know about Eddie Joost, it’s that the man knew how to draw a walk. From 1947 to 1952 with the Philadelphia A’s, Joost drew 713 walks (an average of 119 per year), the most in all of baseball. Joost’s 149 walks in 1949 are the most by an A’s player in a single season and tied with Jeff Bagwell for the 12th-most in one year.
His 768 walks are the eighth-most in franchise history, a feat that’s more impressive given that he’s the only player in the top-10 who didn’t play at least 1,000 games.
