Oakland A's: Greatest Leaders in Franchise History

For the purposes of this list ,I will give you some players in Oakland A's history that have excelled on the field, allowing the rest of the team to learn from them and create a winning atmosphere.

Veteran players who were not exactly star players will show up on this list as well, due to their knowledge of the game and ability to tutor the youngsters. You may also see a manager or two on the list as well.

How do you determine a leader of a major league team? 

In the NFL the question is not as unclear. Just by watching a few games here and there, you can usually see a leader emerge.

The same goes for the NBA.

Baseball is different in my opinion.

Unless it's the manager, a leader usually leads by example, he performs at a high level on the field and doesn't necessarily have to be a great clubhouse guy.

Although, if the player is considered a bad clubhouse guy and creates distractions all over the place, then he is probably not going to be considered a leader (see Barry Bonds).

As usual I will miss a few, as I only listed 12, feel free to tell me who I missed.

Rickey Henderson

Rickey Henderson could have been considered a distraction with all his "Rickey" stuff.

But, he cannot be left off this list.

Henderson is arguably the best leadoff man of all time. During his 14 years with the A's, he hit .288 with a .409 OBP and 1,768 hits.

Rickey was the American League MVP in 1990 hitting 28 home runs and batting .325.

As Henderson might say, "How can you leave Rickey off this list?"

Tim Hudson

The movie Moneyball is about how GM Billy Beane was able to take a bunch of undervalued players and turn them into winners.

The movie forgot to mention how much of a part Oakland's pitching staff played during those seasons.

To be more specific, let's talk about Tim Hudson.

Hudson played six seasons with the A's and had a robust record of 92-39.

If you want to talk about leading by performance, Hudson is your man.

Jason Giambi

Jason Giambi is another example of the let-his-play-do-the-talking type of leader.

Giambi was with the A's for eight years, hitting .300 with 198 home runs.

In 2000, Giambi was the American League MVP while leading the A's to the American League West championship. He hit .333 with 43 home runs in his MVP season.

Art Howe

Art Howe came off as a grump and somewhat defiant in the movie Moneyball.

Howe is on the list because I believe he played a big part in the so called-Moneyball success.

From 2000-02, Art Howe led the A's to the playoffs. In 2001 and 2002, the A's won 100-plus games.

Dave Stewart

Dave Stewart was hard-nosed and took no crap.

As an Athletic, he was 119-78 and played a major part in three straight American League championships.  In his eight seasons in Oakland, he gobbled up 1,717.1 innings.

If you don't think he belongs on this list, then you tell him.

Tony La Russa

Tony La Russa managed the A's during the "Bash Brothers" era.

From 1988-1990, some would argue that those three teams rank up there with some of the all-time greats.

Yes I know they only managed to win one World Series in that span, but you can't blame La Russa for that can you?

Where the heck were the "Bash Brothers" during those series? They deserve a lot of the blame.

Dick Williams

Dick Williams did it his way and he won doing it his way.

If you do it your way and win, that's a leader in my book. Williams won two straight World Series titles with the A's from 1972-73.

Rollie Fingers

I have had the nerve to leave Rollie Fingers off A's lists in the past and have taken a beating for it.

Not this time.

Like Reggie Jackson, Jim "Catfish" Hunter and Sal Bando, Fingers was a big reason the A's won three straight titles.

As a reliever, he gobbled up innings and was able to save the arms of the starters. From 1972-74, he pitched 111.1, 126.2 and 119 innings with ERAs of 2.52, 1.92 and 2.65, respectively.

Fingers was definitely the man and he made other pitchers better.

Jim "Catfish" Hunter

Jim "Catfish" Hunter was a beast during the Athletics' run of three straight titles.

From 1972-74, he won 20 or more games and in 1974, he won the Cy Young Award, going 25-12 with a 2.49 ERA.

The guy had nerves of steel and was never afraid to grab the ball.

Reggie Jackson

I know Reggie Jackson had his moments and wasn't exactly a fan favorite, but he was an unbelievable specimen and talent, and should be considered one of the leaders of the Oakland A's of the 70s.

More specifically from 1972-74 when the A's won three straight World Series championships.

In 1972 he hit 25 home runs and had a .265 batting average.

In 1973 he was the American League MVP with 28 home runs as he batted .293.

There wasn't really a drop-off in 1974 either, with 29 home runs and a .289 batting average.

Sal Bando

Counting players and managers, Sal Bando is the fifth man from the 1972-74 World Series runs that is included in this list.

Sal Bando was a four-time All-Star.

Bando hit 15, 29 and 22 home runs from 1972-74, respectively, and finished third in MVP voting in 1974.

Jason Kendall

Jason Kendall was acquired by the Oakland A's from the Pittsburgh Pirates to be veteran leader.

Kendall was just that. He was a seasoned veteran that called a good game and gave the A's leadership at the catcher position.

In his three years with Oakland, he hit .271 with 392 hits and was a leadoff man. It was odd for a catcher, but it worked with Kendall.