Coming: PBS documentary on the A's

by coffee roaster on May 14, 2006 6:06 AM PDT

I was watching the local news this morning (I'm in Kansas City) and there was a lengthy piece on a new PBS documentary that's currently filming here. Yes, it's on the A's - the Kansas City A's.

They showed some of the archive footage of the A's playing at the old Municipal Stadium, and a long informational piece on Charlie Finley ("He's still hated in Kansas City", said the reporter "for moving the team to Oakland". Given the current state of the Royals, this might be more true now than ever).

They're interviewing many of the former KC A's players and they spoke of the greats who played here for the A's - Roger Maris, Catfish, etc.

It looks like we'll get to see some excellent history of our favorite team soon on your local PBS station.

Here's a link to the story: Kansas City A's Documentary

As a side note, my brother-in-law was a huge A's fan when they played here. He still has a collection of stadium giveaways from those days, including a really funky KC A's baseball bat from bat day. Sadly, he's become a Royals fan but I'm still trying to bring him back from the brink of hopelessness.

Tweet Comment 11 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

traitors!

F kansas city, keep the a's in oakland!
i suspect the big bad wolff is behind this...

A's v Giants "is kind of like the difference between going to see the Ramones and going to see the Bee Gees. A's fans will go see the Ramones." -BB 07/27/05

by xbhaskarx on May 14, 2006 6:09 AM PDT reply actions

LOL.......

Lil would be proud....

by BleacherDave on May 15, 2006 8:06 AM PDT up reply actions

Oakland (KC) A's

remember the daze when A's came to Oakland in '68...the marketing logo was "jump on the A's train...my brother indoctrinated us all, he left the Cin Reds & became an A's fan...so we all became A's fans...loyal to this day...

by SunnyDay on May 14, 2006 7:35 AM PDT reply actions

I would love to hear more

about the A's KC days and then what it was like when they first came to oakland.

I have always had the A's and I feel like I was born an A's fan. I wonder what it would have been like if I were around in 68 when they first came.

"Mommy and Daddy are going to take a nap before the baseball game starts..."

by Athletics fan and runner on May 14, 2006 8:05 AM PDT reply actions

If you want to read some really fun stuff...

..read about when the A's were in Philly.

The Baker Bowl!

"That quote sucked." - McFood

by Ozzz on May 14, 2006 7:36 PM PDT up reply actions

There's a good Bill James essay...

...I think in the original Historical Baseball Abstract, about the KC A's.

James is a native of the KC area, so he has a particular interest in those years.

IIRC, James argues that the A's years in Kansas City, 1955-1967, are among the worst thirteen years of any big league franchise in baseball history. The A's essentially became a kind of informal farm team for the Yankees, completing a series of boneheaded trades with the Bronx bombers in which young talent was sent to NY in exchange for Yankee has-beens like Don Larsen.

James also has a piece somewhere (perhaps also in the Historical Baseball Abstract) about the extraordinary boom-bust history of the Athletics from their creation in 1901. The A's have almost never been mediocre. They tend to either be at the top of their league (or division) or at the bottom.

LEMURCONKERS!

by GreenNGoldSooner on May 14, 2006 8:43 AM PDT reply actions

It makes you wonder...

What it is about Kansas City that sucks the very life out of a baseball team.

Granted, the Royals had a brief streak of being decent, but if you look at the outfield they had (for a short time) - Dye, Damon, and Beltran - the return they got for these players might challenge the KC A's for poor return for value.

However, there was one consistently great team which played in KC - the Monarchs of the old Negro League. They fielded possibly some of the greatest baseball teams in history.

by coffee roaster on May 14, 2006 8:50 AM PDT up reply actions

It's not the town.

It's the ownership. It's always the ownership.

You could have said the same thing about Cleveland, the Tribe doing nothing for 40 years, the Browns being hopeless before that, Ray Chapman being killed on the field in 1920, and the Spiders being the worst team in MLB history before that.

As an ex-Philadelphian, I could go chapter and vers with that city as well. And so on, and so on.

All it took to make the town a good place for baseball was good ownership. Same as anywhere.

DMt

by DMtShooter on May 15, 2006 2:18 PM PDT up reply actions

Lew to City: Drop Dead

6/6/06 - National Day of Slayer

by AlamedaAphid on May 14, 2006 5:01 PM PDT reply actions

There is another PBS Documentary...

that trackes 4 or 5 minor leaguers and their attempts to make it to the bigs called "A Player to be Named Later" and it stars Marco Scutaro and his wife (I think she is the cochita banana lady!). Very interesting watch with sad ending (Marco gets screwed).

by jjham15 on May 15, 2006 10:29 AM PDT reply actions

kansas city a's game

i grew up in illinois but my uncle lived in a small town on outskirts of kansas city called raytown. when i was visiting him he brought me and my sister to a kansas city a's game. i remember the stadium wasnt in the best part of town but had fun there since it was my first major league baseball game. before my uncle passed away he was a loyal royals and chiefs fan. i guess he went to royals after a's left! i was a cubs fan until my son started bringing my husband and i to a's games. he got his tickets from girlfriend and now wife. he even got them as a wedding present and once a luxury suite for birthday. we have gotten anniversary suite gift too. im going to call my aunt and tell her about this pbs special.

by smasfan on May 15, 2006 4:56 PM PDT reply actions