Reverse A's FAQ

by tankerraid on Jul 29, 2005 3:27 PM PDT Comment 35 comments

Okay, as I have mentioned before, I am a person who has only recently (within the past four years or so) really gotten into baseball. As a result, I have alot of backlog of learning when it comes to this game.

While I had some smattered tutelage over the years from my brother about game basics and his two favorite teams (the Padres and the Giants), I have absolutely no share in the archetypal memory of the A's.

So, I'm wondering if the good folks of AN would deign to help me put together a reverse FAQ for the A's. Not answers, but questions. Questions that point to things any good A's fan should know.

(The most obvious example is "In what year(s) did the A's win the World Series?" You get the drift.)

I'm curious, mainly, about what fundamentals of the history of the organization, both recent and distant, I really should have a grasp on in order to understand the team and the game today.

Now, I know that nothing can really replace the experience of being a fan of a team day in and day out year after year (I'm amazed at what I've learned in the past few years), but this is baseball, after all, so cold hard data must play a part, too.

I'm ready to cram for some sort of non-existant exam! Thanks!

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I'll lead off....

Who holds the A's record for most leadoff homeruns? Stuff anyone should know, right?

I hope Kendall leads off with a homer tonight!

"The first thing I realized in this game, there are no weekends."

by ohtobe21likehuston on Jul 29, 2005 3:44 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Which Team

Which MLB Franchise is 2nd to the New York Yankees in all-time World Championships in Major League Baseball?

* Bonus Question: *

How many championships?

* Bonus, Bonus Question: *

Which cities did they win those championships in?

Let's Go Oak-Land!

by Colorado Fan on Jul 29, 2005 3:48 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Make it tied for second...

...Cardinals have nine, too.

AN Member Location Surveys: Results | Take part

by FormerHuntsvilleStar on Jul 29, 2005 4:47 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

another one

To which field does a hitter have to hit the ball in order for Ray Fosse say "he had a great approach?"

Jason Kendall reminds me of those ballplayers Bugs Bunny used to play against, except not as big --- mrs. gojohn10

by gojohn10 on Jul 29, 2005 4:00 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Question

Who holds the A's record for Stolen Bases and how many?

by Fongpay on Jul 29, 2005 4:01 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

My Question

Which A's player, nickamed "Captain," anchored the team in the 80's with stellar defense at third base and a solid bat, and, come to think of it, should have won at least 2 gold gloves but Gary Gaetti of the Twins got more publicity?

What jersey number did he wear?

Another one:

Name the last four A's managers, in chronological order.

by Dog Days on Jul 29, 2005 4:05 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

some more

Who wrote Moneyball?

Name at least five major players/teammates we've traded or lost to free agency in the last five years.

Who has the best winning percentage in the majors post-All-Star break?

What happens every season that Bill King absolutely hates?

by popcornjames on Jul 29, 2005 4:06 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Is the answer to the last one

interleague play? He also hates going to Arlington, right? The windy hell hole, or some such moniker attached to it...

-jj

Ron Washington: Thinking outside of the three-sided box since 1977

by tankerraid on Jul 30, 2005 8:52 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

2005 only

Who is the most famous batboy for Oakland in 2005?

Who will be announcing the game along with Ray Fosse... tonight, tomorrow, Sunday?

Who takes care of the field at McAfee Coliseum?

"The first thing I realized in this game, there are no weekends."

by ohtobe21likehuston on Jul 29, 2005 4:19 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

question

name the starting position players of 1993?

by ucla kid on Jul 29, 2005 4:22 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

aka

the start of the regressive years

by ucla kid on Jul 29, 2005 4:23 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Here you go....

Who were the "Bash Brothers?"

What cities besides Oakland have the Athletics played in?

Who was the A's first manager (hint: he was a Hall of Famer, himself)?

Which famous A's pitcher pitched a perfect game against the Minnesota Twins in 1968 (the first year that the A's played in Oakland)?

What aspect of the game was Rickey Henderson most famous for? And, what was his "quirky" habit with the press?

What happened during the 1989 World Series?

What year did the A's win 20 games in a row?

by LD on Jul 29, 2005 4:27 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Bonus Question

Related to the 20-game winning streak...

How many teams have had longer winning streaks than the A's in a single season?

AND - which teams were they, and which years did they accomplish the feat?

by LD on Jul 29, 2005 4:42 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Organizational questions for newly minted A's fans

Who is the General Manager of the Oakland Athletics? (Hey, the casual fan may not know)
Who is the assistant general manager for the Oakland Athletics? (The first one gets you in, this is the tough one unless you read AN.)
Which teams have general managers that worked for the A's under the answer to 1?
How did the A's make the playoffs in 2001?
2005 question: Who is the oldest player on the team? (Porbably good for any year.)

by Donner on Jul 29, 2005 4:40 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I got 2 ROY questions...

What 3 A's won back-to-back-to-back ROY awards?

The A's have had 6 ROY. Can you name them?

President of the Brent Gates Fan Club

by SoCal As Fan on Jul 29, 2005 4:57 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Got another

What players did the A's recieve in the Mark McGwire trade in 1997 from the St. Louis Cardinals?

President of the Brent Gates Fan Club

by SoCal As Fan on Jul 29, 2005 4:59 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Not what I expected

When I saw the diary title, I read "reverse" as if it meant "Bizarro" -- as in, a FAQ about the "Bizarro A's, the reverse of the real-world A's."

To wit:

Which ESPN broadcaster continually heaps praise on the Bizarro A's and their utterly conventional GM?
Is there any tool the Bizarro A's value more highly than the bunt or the stolen base?
How much money, in hundreds of millions, have the Bizarro A's wasted on AVG- and W-L-dependent free-agent superstars over the last 7 years?
Why is the Bizarro A's clubhouse consistently reputed to be the worst in baseball, and the team to be a real downer to play for?

It's tough out there, Pootie. You got drugs ... crime ... gorillas ...

by monkeyball on Jul 29, 2005 5:07 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Key subject you should be familiar with:

Due to the small-market business plan the A's organization currently follows (and has followed for just over a decade), the team often can't hold onto big-name talent towards the ends of the players' Oakland contracts because the players are generally demanding too much money. You should be able to name the big names the A's have lost in the last 8 or so years, beginning, essentially, with Big Mac Mark McGwire.

(Do you want the answers, too?)

by Elvez on Jul 29, 2005 5:19 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

No thanks,

But thanks for the offer! Looking up answers to these questions is going to be pretty fun!

Ron Washington: Thinking outside of the three-sided box since 1977

by tankerraid on Jul 30, 2005 8:41 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Nick Name Question

What is the nickname usually used when referring to Cornelius Magillicudy?

2nd favorite team: WHOEVER IS PLAYING THE GIANTS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

by ConcordFanSince1968 on Jul 30, 2005 12:32 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Color Question

Why are the A's colors Green and Gold?

2nd favorite team: WHOEVER IS PLAYING THE GIANTS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

by ConcordFanSince1968 on Jul 30, 2005 12:32 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Mascot Question

Before Stomper, what was the A's mascot?

2nd favorite team: WHOEVER IS PLAYING THE GIANTS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

by ConcordFanSince1968 on Jul 30, 2005 12:33 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

which all-star game moment

does A's announcer Ray Fosse never ever need to see another highlight of, and why?

who is Roy Steele?

which other major league teams wear white shoes?

Baseball is a soap opera that lends itself to probabilistic thinking. -D. Cramer

by captainamerica on Jul 30, 2005 6:56 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

and

which team and years did fosse play for, and what was his uni number when he was on a world series team?

by brothersky on Jul 31, 2005 8:22 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

welcome...

What was the name of the ball park the A's played in for forty years (and their original city)?

To what city did the A's move in 1954?

What were the names of the three HOFers on the pitching staff of the Athletics of the early 1900s?

Who were the two famous (HOF) sluggers of the 30s A's?

What was the name of the HOF pitcher who dominated the league in the early 1030s?

What was the tricky strategy employed by the A's manager that began the 1929 WS?

Who was the "100,000 dollar infield"?

What was rapper MC Hammer's relationship to the team?

What was the name of the team owner who pledged to keep the A's in Oakland in the late 70s, 80s?

What is the meaning of "iceplant in the outfield"?

Sorry for all the oldtime A's questions, but I'd love it if I could mention Howard Ehmke at a game and have at least ONE fan at the coliseum know what I'm talking about!

by Brian in 317 on Jul 30, 2005 8:03 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

oops... A's history isn't THAT old

should be: What was the name of the HOF pitcher who dominated the league in the early 1930s?

by Brian in 317 on Jul 30, 2005 8:05 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Wow.

This is so great. Thank you guys so much. I can't tell if I am more amazed at the one or two answers I DO know, or the many questions I have never even thought to dream up....

Any rate, you guys are awesome. Thanks for coming through, as always. This will serve as an excellant primer for myself, and for my husband.

Keep 'em coming! Cheers!

Ron Washington: Thinking outside of the three-sided box since 1977

by tankerraid on Jul 30, 2005 8:50 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Recent heartbreak...

Tougher ones, but if we don't learn our history, we are doomed to repeat it...

Who started ALDS game 5 against the Yankees and gave up six runs in the first inning?
How did the only run score in Game 3 of the ALDS (the Slide Jeremy Slide game)? And who had a strange injury during Game 4 - what was it?
Which pitcher gave up three runs in the ninth inning of Game 5 against the Twins, and who hit what should have been a series-winning 3-run homer in the bottom of the 9th to trim the Twins' lead to 1?
Who were the last two A's hitters to strike out in the 9th inning of Game 5, against Derek Lowe?

by sridaran on Jul 30, 2005 10:49 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

And more

2001--Who were the starting pitchers in that Game 3?
2003--With the A's leading the ALDS 2-0 going into Game 3, what two baserunning gaffes caused the A's to lose another heart-wrenching Game 3, despite a brilliant pitching performance by Ted Lilly? Later, in Game 5 of that series, regarding the question above--which of the 9th-inning strikeout victims was a pinch-hitter, and for whom did he pinch-hit?

"Every time he opens his mouth he makes a fool of himself," La Russa said. "He's a village idiot."

by rubin sierra on Jul 30, 2005 11:25 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Gah

Making me shudder just thinking about it. Time to go hide in a corner and mutter to myself..

"A baseball game is simply a nervous breakdown divided into nine innings." -Earl Wilson

by whiteshoes40 on Jul 30, 2005 12:15 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

whoa hardcore questions

Many of these are fun trivia questions, but I thought these were supposed to be questions ANY "good A's fan" should know. I don't know the answers to a bunch of these, mainly those relating to pre-Oakland A's, organizations I don't care much about, to be honest, except that they gave us the white elephant.

The 1993 lineup?! Man, I didn't get more than the obvious bunch of Rickey, McGwire, Steinny. I remembered Sierra, Lance B and Dave Henderson were around, but wasn't sure when... I guess those middle 90s years are strangely fuzzy in my head.

by Apricot on Jul 30, 2005 11:14 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I've posted this one before

In the 1989 World Series, which starting hitter in the A's line-up did not hit a least one HR?

by ArakSOT on Jul 30, 2005 1:23 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

here's one I need to look up

What was the best regular-season record the A's have ever had, and what year was it?

Rock over London, Rock on Oakland. Wheaties: It's the Breakfast of Champions.

by Cutthemullet on Jul 30, 2005 6:37 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

more 1970s glory years:

who was the A's captain in the glory years of 72-74?
what position did he play?
who was the notorious right fielder for the a's in those years?
his number?
who pitched in all 7 games of the 1973 world series?

by brothersky on Jul 31, 2005 8:30 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs