The Oakland Athletics' 1998 season saw the A's finish with a record of 74 wins and 88 losses. The campaign was the first of the Billy Beane era. While the Athletics finished a distant fourth in the American League West, they improved upon the prior year's dismal output of 65–97.
| 1998 Oakland Athletics | ||
|---|---|---|
| League | American League | |
| Division | West | |
| Ballpark | Network Associates Coliseum | |
| City | Oakland, California | |
| Record | 74–88 (.457) | |
| Divisional place | 4th | |
| Owners | Stephen Schott Ken Hofmann | |
| General managers | Billy Beane | |
| Managers | Art Howe | |
| Television | KRON-TV Fox Sports Bay Area (Ray Fosse, Greg Papa, Ken Wilson) | |
| Radio | KNEW (Bill King, Ken Korach, Ray Fosse) | |
| ||
The strong play of Jason Giambi, Matt Stairs and Kenny Rogers highlighted an otherwise forgettable campaign. Rogers' performance was particularly impressive; in arguably the finest season of his career, he won 16 games and posted a 3.17 earned run average (both were the best full-season marks by an Athletics starter since 1992). Additionally, the 1998 season marked Rickey Henderson's fourth (and final) stint with the Athletics. Henderson, at the age of 39, stole a total 66 bases; this total lead the league in that category. Lastly, rookie Ben Grieve collected a Rookie of the Year (ROY) award for his solid debut season. The award was the Athletics' first since Walt Weiss received one in 1988.
The Athletics posted a winning record in 1999. The organization, under Beane, would not post another losing season until 2007.
Offseason
edit- October 29, 1997: Dane Johnson was selected off waivers from the Athletics by the Toronto Blue Jays.[1]
- November 7, 1997: The Athletics traded a player to be named later to the New York Yankees for Kenny Rogers and cash. The Athletics completed the deal by sending Scott Brosius to the Yankees on November 18.[2]
- November 18, 1997: Tony Batista was drafted from the Athletics by the Arizona Diamondbacks as the 27th pick in the 1997 MLB Expansion Draft.[3]
- November 26, 1997: David Newhan and Don Wengert were traded by the Athletics to the San Diego Padres for Jorge Velandia and Doug Bochtler.[4]
- November 22, 1997: Damon Berryhill was signed as a free agent by the Athletics.[5]
- December 4, 1997: Mark Acre was purchased from the Athletics by the Yakult Swallows.[6]
- December 5, 1997: Jack Voigt was signed as a free agent by the Athletics.[7]
- December 16, 1997: Mike Blowers was signed as a free agent by the Athletics.[8]
- December 22, 1997: Izzy Molina was signed as a free agent by the Athletics.[9]
- January 22, 1998: Rickey Henderson was signed as a free agent by the Athletics.[10]
- March 9, 1998: Kevin Mitchell was signed as a free agent by the Athletics.[11]
- March 17, 1998: Ernie Young was purchased from the Athletics by the Kansas City Royals.[12]
- March 25, 1998: Doug Bochtler was purchased from the Athletics by the Detroit Tigers.[13]
Regular season
editOpening Day starters
edit- Rafael Bournigal
- Tom Candiotti
- Jason Giambi
- Ben Grieve
- Rickey Henderson
- A. J. Hinch
- Dave Magadan
- Jason McDonald
- Scott Spiezio
- Matt Stairs[14]
Season standings
edit| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texas Rangers | 88 | 74 | .543 | — | 48–33 | 40–41 |
| Anaheim Angels | 85 | 77 | .525 | 3 | 42–39 | 43–38 |
| Seattle Mariners | 76 | 85 | .472 | 11½ | 42–39 | 34–46 |
| Oakland Athletics | 74 | 88 | .457 | 14 | 39–42 | 35–46 |
Record vs. opponents
editSources: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | ANA | BAL | BOS | CWS | CLE | DET | KC | MIN | NYY | OAK | SEA | TB | TEX | TOR | NL |
| Anaheim | — | 5–6 | 6–5 | 5–6 | 4–7 | 8–3 | 6–5 | 6–5 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 9–3 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 4–7 | 10–6 |
| Baltimore | 6–5 | — | 6–6 | 2–9 | 5–6 | 10–1 | 5–6 | 7–3 | 3–9 | 8–3 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 5–11 |
| Boston | 5–6 | 6–6 | — | 5–6 | 8–3 | 5–5 | 8–3 | 5–6 | 5–7 | 9–2 | 7–4 | 9–3 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 9–7 |
| Chicago | 6–5 | 9–2 | 6–5 | — | 6–6 | 6–6 | 8–4 | 6–6 | 4–7 | 4–7 | 4–7 | 5–6 | 5–6 | 4–6–1 | 7–9 |
| Cleveland | 7–4 | 6–5 | 3–8 | 6–6 | — | 9–3 | 8–4 | 6–6 | 4–7 | 3–8 | 9–2 | 7–3 | 4–7 | 7–4 | 10–6 |
| Detroit | 3–8 | 1–10 | 5–5 | 6–6 | 3–9 | — | 6–6 | 8–4 | 3–8 | 7–4 | 3–8 | 5–6 | 3–8 | 5–6 | 7–9 |
| Kansas City | 5–6 | 6–5 | 3–8 | 4–8 | 4–8 | 6–6 | — | 7–5 | 0–10 | 7–4 | 4–6 | 8–3 | 3–8 | 6–5 | 9–7 |
| Minnesota | 5–6 | 3–7 | 6–5 | 6–6 | 6–6 | 4–8 | 5–7 | — | 4–7 | 4–7 | 2–9 | 7–4 | 7–4 | 4–7 | 7–9 |
| New York | 5–6 | 9–3 | 7–5 | 7–4 | 7–4 | 8–3 | 10–0 | 7–4 | — | 8–3 | 8–3 | 11–1 | 8–3 | 6–6 | 13–3 |
| Oakland | 7–5 | 3–8 | 2–9 | 7–4 | 8–3 | 4–7 | 4–7 | 7–4 | 3–8 | — | 5–7 | 5–6 | 6–6 | 5–6 | 8–8 |
| Seattle | 3–9 | 5–6 | 4–7 | 7–4 | 2–9 | 8–3 | 6–4 | 9–2 | 3–8 | 7–5 | — | 6–5 | 5–7 | 4–7 | 7–9 |
| Tampa Bay | 5–6 | 7–5 | 3–9 | 6–5 | 3–7 | 6–5 | 3–8 | 4–7 | 1–11 | 6–5 | 5–6 | — | 4–7 | 5–7 | 5–11 |
| Texas | 7–5 | 5–6 | 5–6 | 6–5 | 7–4 | 8–3 | 8–3 | 4–7 | 3–8 | 6–6 | 7–5 | 7–4 | — | 7–4 | 8–8 |
| Toronto | 7–4 | 7–5 | 7–5 | 6–4–1 | 4–7 | 6–5 | 5–6 | 7–4 | 6–6 | 6–5 | 7–4 | 7–5 | 4–7 | — | 9–7 |
Notable transactions
edit- June 2, 1998: 1998 Major League Baseball draft
- Mark Mulder was drafted by the Athletics in the 1st round (2nd pick). Player signed October 9, 1998.[15]
- Eric Byrnes was drafted by the Athletics in the 8th round. Player signed June 12, 1998.[16]
- June 26, 1998: Aaron Small was selected off waivers from the Athletics by the Arizona Diamondbacks.[17]
- August 7, 1998: Kevin Mitchell was released by the Athletics.[11]
- August 9, 1998: Jack Voigt was acquired from the Athletics by the Texas Rangers in a conditional deal.[7]
Roster
edit| 1998 Oakland Athletics | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roster | |||||||||
Pitchers
|
Catchers
Infielders
|
Outfielders
Other batters |
Manager
Coaches
| ||||||
Player stats
editBatting
editStarters by position
editNote: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; Avg. = Batting average; Slg. = Slugging average; SB = Stolen bases
| Pos | Player | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | Avg. | Slg. | SB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | A. J. Hinch | 120 | 337 | 34 | 78 | 9 | 35 | .231 | .341 | 3 |
| 1B | Jason Giambi | 153 | 562 | 92 | 166 | 27 | 110 | .295 | .489 | 2 |
| 2B | Scott Spiezio | 114 | 406 | 54 | 105 | 9 | 50 | .259 | .377 | 1 |
| 3B | Mike Blowers | 129 | 409 | 56 | 97 | 11 | 71 | .237 | .386 | 1 |
| SS | Miguel Tejada | 105 | 365 | 53 | 85 | 11 | 45 | .233 | .384 | 5 |
| LF | Rickey Henderson | 152 | 542 | 101 | 128 | 14 | 57 | .236 | .347 | 66 |
| CF | Ryan Christenson | 117 | 370 | 56 | 95 | 5 | 50 | .257 | .368 | 5 |
| RF | Ben Grieve | 155 | 583 | 94 | 168 | 18 | 89 | .288 | .458 | 2 |
| DH | Matt Stairs | 149 | 523 | 88 | 154 | 26 | 106 | .294 | .511 | 8 |
Other batters
editNote: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rafael Bournigal | 85 | 209 | 47 | .225 | 1 | 19 |
| Mike Macfarlane | 78 | 207 | 52 | .251 | 7 | 34 |
| Bip Roberts | 61 | 182 | 51 | .280 | 1 | 15 |
| Jason McDonald | 70 | 175 | 44 | .251 | 1 | 16 |
| Kevin Mitchell | 51 | 127 | 29 | .228 | 2 | 21 |
| Kurt Abbott | 35 | 123 | 33 | .268 | 2 | 9 |
| Dave Magadan | 35 | 109 | 35 | .321 | 1 | 13 |
| Ed Sprague Jr. | 27 | 87 | 13 | .149 | 3 | 7 |
| Jack Voigt | 57 | 72 | 10 | .139 | 1 | 10 |
| Eric Chavez | 16 | 45 | 14 | .311 | 0 | 6 |
| Mike Neill | 6 | 15 | 4 | .267 | 0 | 0 |
| Mark Bellhorn | 11 | 12 | 1 | .083 | 0 | 1 |
| Brian Lesher | 7 | 7 | 1 | .143 | 0 | 1 |
| Jorge Velandia | 8 | 4 | 1 | .250 | 0 | 0 |
| Izzy Molina | 6 | 2 | 1 | .500 | 0 | 0 |
| Shane Mack | 3 | 2 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 |
| Jason Wood | 3 | 1 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 |
Pitching
editStarting pitchers
editNote: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kenny Rogers | 34 | 238.2 | 16 | 8 | 3.17 | 138 |
| Tom Candiotti | 33 | 201.0 | 11 | 16 | 4.84 | 98 |
| Jimmy Haynes | 33 | 194.1 | 11 | 9 | 5.09 | 134 |
| Mike Oquist | 31 | 175.0 | 7 | 11 | 6.22 | 112 |
| Blake Stein | 24 | 117.1 | 5 | 9 | 6.37 | 89 |
| Gil Heredia | 8 | 42.2 | 3 | 3 | 2.74 | 27 |
| Ariel Prieto | 2 | 8.1 | 0 | 1 | 11.88 | 8 |
Other pitchers
editNote: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jay Witasick | 7 | 27.0 | 1 | 3 | 6.33 | 29 |
| Dave Telgheder | 8 | 20.0 | 0 | 1 | 3.60 | 5 |
Relief pitchers
editNote: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Billy Taylor | 70 | 4 | 9 | 33 | 3.58 | 58 |
| Buddy Groom | 75 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4.24 | 36 |
| T.J. Mathews | 66 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 4.58 | 53 |
| Mike Mohler | 57 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 5.16 | 42 |
| Mike Fetters | 48 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 3.99 | 34 |
| Tim Worrell | 25 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4.00 | 33 |
| Aaron Small | 24 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7.25 | 19 |
| Mark Holzemer | 13 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5.59 | 3 |
| Jim Doughtery | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 8.25 | 3 |
| Steve Connelly | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.93 | 1 |
Farm system
editReferences
edit- ^ Dane Johnson at Baseball-Reference
- ^ Scott Brosius at Baseball-Reference
- ^ Tony Batista at Baseball-Reference
- ^ Jorge Velandia at Baseball-Reference
- ^ Damon Berryhill at Baseball-Reference
- ^ Mark Acre at Baseball-Reference
- ^ a b Jack Voigt at Baseball-Reference
- ^ Mike Blowers at Baseball-Reference
- ^ Izzy Molina at Baseball-Reference
- ^ Ricky Henderson at Baseball-Reference
- ^ a b Kevin Mitchell at Baseball-Reference
- ^ Ernie Young at Baseball-Reference
- ^ Doug Bochtler at Baseball-Reference
- ^ "1998 Oakland Athletics Roster by Baseball Almanac".
- ^ Mark Mulder at Baseball-Reference
- ^ Eric Byrnes at Baseball-Reference
- ^ Aaron Small at Baseball-Reference
- ^ "1998 Seattle Mariners Statistics".
- 1998 Oakland Athletics team at Baseball-Reference
- 1998 Oakland Athletics team page at www.baseball-almanac.com
- Johnson, Lloyd; Wolff, Miles, eds. (2007). The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (3rd ed.). Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America. ISBN 978-1-932391-17-6.