1987 Oakland Athletics season

March 2026 November 2013 Oakland Athletics 1987 American League West Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Oakland, California 81–81 (.500) Walter A. Haas, Jr. Sandy Alderson Tony La Russa KPIX(Bill King, Lon Simmons, Ray Fosse) KSFO(Bill King, Lon Simmons, Ted Robinson, Joe Fonzi) 3rd The 1987 Oakland Athletics season was the 87th season for the Oakland Athletics franchise, all as members of the American League, and their 20th season in Oakland. The Athletics finished third in the American League West with a record of 81 wins and 81 losses. Mark McGwire set a rookie record by hitting 49 home runs.Great Baseball Feats, Facts and Figures, 2008 Edition, p.344, David Nemec and Scott Flatow, A Signet Book, Penguin Group, New York, 978-0-451-22363-0 At the beginning of the season, the word "Athletics" returned, in script lettering, to the front of the team's jerseys. Former A's owner, Charles O. Finley banned the word "Athletics" from the club's name in the past because he felt that name was too closely associated with former Philadelphia Athletics owner Connie Mack. In his first full Major League season, Mark McGwire hit 49 home runs, a single-season record for a rookie; he was named the American League Rookie of the Year. McGwire would be the first American League rookie since Al Rosen of the Cleveland Indians in 1950 to lead the American League in home runs.Great Baseball Feats, Facts and Figures, 2008 Edition, p.346, David Nemec and Scott Flatow, A Signet Book, Penguin Group, New York, 978-0-451-22363-0 The 1987 season also saw the return of Reggie Jackson to Oakland. Offseason December 11, 1986: Donnie Hill was traded by the Athletics to the Chicago White Sox for Gene Nelson and Bruce Tanner.Donnie Hill page at Baseball Reference January 20, 1987: Vida Blue was signed as a free agent by the Athletics.Vida Blue page at Baseball Reference January 22, 1987: Jim Eppard was purchased from the Athletics by the California Angels.Jim Eppard page at Baseball Reference February 6, 1987: Johnnie LeMaster was signed as a free agent with the Oakland Athletics.https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/l/lemasjo01.shtml Johnnie LeMaster Stats February 23, 1987: Jeff Kaiser was traded by the Athletics to the Cleveland Indians for Curt Wardle.Jeff Kaiser page at Baseball Reference Regular season Season standings Oakland Athletics Record vs. opponents OAK Opening Day starters Jose Canseco Mike Davis Alfredo Griffin Reggie Jackson Carney Lansford Rob Nelson Dwayne Murphy Tony Phillips Curt Young Mickey Tettletonhttp://baseball-almanac.com/teamstats/roster.php?y=1987&t=OAK 1987 Oakland Athletics Roster by Baseball Almanac Notable transactions April 3, 1987: Brian Guinn (minors), Dave Wilder (minors), and Mark Leonette (minors) were traded by the Athletics to the Chicago Cubs for Dennis Eckersley and Dan Rohn.Dennis Eckersley page at Baseball Reference April 27, 1987: Dennis Lamp was signed as a free agent by the Athletics.Dennis Lamp page at Baseball Reference April 30, 1987: Bill Caudill was signed as a free agent by the Athletics.Bill Caudill page at Baseball Reference May 12, 1987: Brian Harper was signed as a free agent by the Athletics.Brian Harper page at Baseball Reference June 29, 1987: Bill Mooneyham was traded by the Athletics to the Milwaukee Brewers for Russ McGinnis.Bill Mooneyham page at Baseball Reference July 29, 1987: Johnnie LeMaster was released by the Oakland Athletics. August 29, 1987: Tim Belcher was traded by the Athletics to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Rick Honeycutt.Tim Belcher page at Baseball Reference August 30, 1987: The Athletics traded players to be named later to the San Diego Padres for Storm Davis. The Athletics completed the deal by sending Dave Leiper to the Padres on August 31 and Rob Nelson to the Padres on September 8.Rob Nelson page at Baseball Reference August 31, 1987: Gary Lavelle was signed as a free agent by the Athletics.Gary Lavelle page at Baseball Reference Draft picks June 2, 1987: Ron Coomer was drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the 14th round of the 1987 amateur draft. Player signed June 6, 1987.https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/c/coomero01.shtml?redir Ron Coomer Stats June 2, 1987: Scott Brosius was drafted by the Athletics in the 20th round of the 1987 Major League Baseball draft. Player signed June 9, 1987.Scott Brosius page at Baseball Reference All-Star Game The 1987 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 58th playing of the midsummer classic between the all-stars of the American League (AL) and National League (NL), the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was held on July 14, 1987, at the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, California, the home of the Oakland Athletics of the American League. The game resulted in the National League defeating the American League 2–0 in 13 innings. Montreal Expos outfielder Tim Raines was named the Most Valuable Player. Roster 1987 Oakland Athletics Roster Pitchers 47 Joaquín Andújar 32 Greg Cadaret 37 Bill Caudill 23 Chris Codiroli 41 Storm Davis 43 Dennis Eckersley 30 Moose Haas 40 Rick Honeycutt 30 Jay Howell 32 Bill Krueger 49 Dennis Lamp 46 Gary Lavelle 52 Dave Leiper 19,40 Gene Nelson 53 Steve Ontiveros 38 Dave Otto 51 Eric Plunk 27,38 José Rijo 12,27 Rick Rodriguez 34 Dave Stewart 57 Dave Von Ohlen 29 Curt Young Catchers 11 Matt Sinatro 36 Terry Steinbach  6 Mickey Tettleton Infielders 14 Tony Bernazard 11 Ron Cey  9 Mike Gallego  3 Alfredo Griffin  4 Carney Lansford 13 Johnnie LeMaster 25 Mark McGwire 14,49 Rob Nelson  2 Tony Phillips 17 Walt Weiss  7 Jerry Willard Outfielders 33 José Canseco 16 Mike Davis 31 Brian Harper 24 Steve Henderson 44 Reggie Jackson 28 Stan Javier 21 Dwayne Murphy 22 Luis Polonia 24 Alejandro Sánchez Manager 10 Tony La Russa Coaches 18 Dave Duncan (Pitching) 15 Rene Lachemann (First base)  5 Jim Lefebvre (Third base) 46 Joe Rudi (Hitting) 39 Dave McKay (Bullpen) 45 Mike Paul (Bullpen) 55 Bob Watson (Bench) Player stats = Indicates team leader Batting Starters by position Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases Pos Player G AB R H Avg. HR RBI SB C Terry Steinbach 122 391 66 111 .284 16 56 1 1B Mark McGwire 151 557 97 161 .289 49 118 1 2B Tony Phillips 111 379 48 91 .240 10 46 7 3B Carney Lansford 151 554 89 160 .289 19 76 27 SS Alfredo Griffin 144 494 69 130 .263 3 60 26 LF José Canseco 159 630 81 162 .257 31 113 15 CF Dwayne Murphy 82 219 39 51 .233 8 35 4 RF Mike Davis 139 494 69 131 .265 22 72 19 DH Reggie Jackson 115 336 42 74 .220 15 43 2https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/OAK/1987.shtml 1987 Oakland Athletics Statistics Other batters Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases Player G AB R H Avg. HR RBI SB Luis Polonia 125 435 78 125 .287 4 49 29 Tony Bernazard 61 214 34 57 .266 3 19 4 Mickey Tettleton 82 211 19 41 .194 8 26 1 Stan Javier 81 151 22 28 .185 2 9 3 Mike Gallego 72 124 18 31 .250 2 14 0 Steve Henderson 46 114 14 33 .289 3 9 0 Ron Cey 45 104 12 23 .221 4 11 0 Walt Weiss 16 26 3 12 .462 0 1 1 Johnnie LeMaster 20 24 3 2 .083 0 1 0 Rob Nelson 7 24 1 4 .167 0 0 0 Brian Harper 11 17 1 4 .235 0 3 0 Jerry Willard 7 6 1 1 .167 0 0 0 Alejandro Sánchez 2 3 0 0 .000 0 0 0 Matt Sinatro 6 3 0 0 .000 0 0 0 Pitching Starting pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L= Losses; ERA = Earned run average; CG = Complete games; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA CG SO Dave Stewart 37 261.1 20 13 3.68 8 205 Curt Young 31 203.0 13 7 4.08 6 124 José Rijo 21 82.1 2 7 5.90 1 67 Joaquín Andújar 13 60.2 3 5 6.08 1 32 Moose Haas 9 40.2 2 2 5.75 0 13 Storm Davis 5 30.1 1 1 3.26 0 28 Chris Codiroli 3 11.1 0 2 8.74 0 4 Other pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO Steve Ontiveros 35 150.2 10 8 4.00 97 Eric Plunk 32 95.0 4 6 4.74 90 Rick Honeycutt 7 23.2 1 4 5.32 10 Relief pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L SV ERA SO Dennis Eckersley 54 115.2 6 8 16 3.03 113 Gene Nelson Gene Nelson (baseball) 54 123.2 6 5 3 3.93 94 Dave Leiper 45 52.1 2 1 1 3.78 33 Jay Howell 36 44.1 3 4 16 5.89 35 Dennis Lamp 36 56.2 1 3 0 5.08 36 Greg Cadaret 29 39.2 6 2 0 4.54 30 Rick Rodriguez 15 24.1 1 0 0 2.96 9 Bill Caudill 6 8.0 0 0 1 9.00 8 Dave Otto 3 6.0 0 0 0 9.00 3 Dave Von Ohlen 4 6.0 0 0 0 7.50 3 Bill Krueger 9 5.2 0 3 0 9.53 2 Gary Lavelle 6 4.1 0 0 0 8.31 6 Awards and records Mark McGwire, American League Rookie of the Year Mark McGwire, Rookie Record, Most Home Runs in One Season (49) All-Star Game Jay Howell, P, Reserve Mark McGwire, 1B, Reserve McGwire's rookie record 49 home runs Home Run Game Date Inning Location Opposing Pitcher Team 1 4 04-10-1987 7th Oakland Donnie Moorehttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198704100OAK Box Score of Game played on Friday, April 10, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Angels 2 15 04-21-1987 4th Oakland Urbano Lugohttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198704210CAL Box Score of Game played on Tuesday, April 21, 1987 at Anaheim Stadium Angels 3 18 04-25-1987 3rd Oakland Scott Bankheadhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198704250OAK Box Score of Game played on Saturday, April 25, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Mariners 4 22 04-29-1987 2nd Oakland Ted Higuerahttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198704290OAK Box Score of Game played on Wednesday, April 29, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Brewers 5 24 05-01-1987 3rd Oakland Walt Terrellhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198705010OAK Box Score of Game played on Friday, May 1, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Tigers 6 29 05-08-1987 4th Detroit Frank Tananahttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198705080DET Box Score of Game played on Friday, May 8, 1987 at Tiger Stadium Tigers 7 29 05-08-1987 8th Detroit Frank Tanana Tigers 8 30 05-09-1987 6th Detroit Eric Kinghttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198705090DET Box Score of Game played on Saturday, May 9, 1987 at Tiger Stadium Tigers 9 31 05-10-1987 2nd Detroit Jack Morrishttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198705100DET Box Score of Game played on Sunday, May 10, 1987 at Tiger Stadium Tigers 10 31 05-10-1987 4th Detroit Jack Morris Tigers 11 35 05-16-1987 1st Oakland Jimmy Keyhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198705160OAK Box Score of Game played on Saturday, May 16, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Blue Jays 12 37 05-18-1987 7th Oakland Tim Stoddardhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198705180OAK Box Score of Game played on Monday, May 18, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Yankees 13 38 05-19-1987 3rd Oakland Dennis Rasmussenhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198705190OAK Box Score of Game played on Tuesday, May 19, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Yankees 14 39 05-20-1987 2nd Oakland Charles Hudsonhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198705200OAK Box Score of Game played on Wednesday, May 20, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Yankees 15 41 05-23-1987 2nd Oakland Mike Boddickerhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198705230OAK Box Score of Game played on Saturday, May 23, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Orioles 16 42 05-24-1987 2nd Oakland Jeff Ballardhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198705240OAK Box Score of Game played on Sunday, May 24, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Orioles 17 44 05-27-1987 4th Toronto Joe Johnsonhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198705270TOR Box Score of Game played on Wednesday, May 27, 1987 at Exhibition Stadium Blue Jays 18 48 05-31-1987 2nd New York Tommy Johnhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198705310NYA Box Score of Game played on Sunday, May 31, 1987 at Yankee Stadium Yankees 19 48 05-31-1987 7th New York Tommy John Yankees 20 59 06-13-1987 4th Arlington Stadium Ed Correahttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198706130TEX Box Score of Game played on Saturday, June 13, 1987 at Arlington Stadium Rangers 21 61 06-15-1987 4th Kansas City Charlie Leibrandt http://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198706150KCA Box Score of Game played on Monday, June 15, 1987 at Royals Stadium Royals 22 66 06-21-1987 8th Oakland Jose Guzmanhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198706211OAK Box Score of Game played on Sunday, June 21, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Rangers 23 72 06-27-1987 1st Cleveland Ken Schromhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198706270CLE Box Score of Game played on Saturday, June 27, 1987 at Cleveland Stadium Indians 24 72 06-27-1987 5th Cleveland Ed Vande Berg Indians 25 72 06-27-1987 9th Cleveland Scott Bailes Indians 26 73 06-28-1987 4th Cleveland Tom Candiottihttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198706280CLE Box Score of Game played on Sunday, June 28, 1987 at Cleveland Stadium Indians 27 73 06-28-1987 7th Cleveland Tom Candiotti Indians 28 75 06-30-1987 1st Chicago Scott Nielsenhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198706300CHA Box Score of Game played on Tuesday, June 30, 1987 at Comiskey Park I White Sox 29 79 07-04-1987 5th Boston Bruce Hursthttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198707040OAK Box Score of Game played on Saturday, July 4, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Red Sox 30 80 07-05-1987 4th Boston Oil Can Boydhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198707050OAK Box Score of Game played on Sunday, July 5, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Red Sox 31 83 07-08-1987 6th Oakland Jeff Robinsonhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198707080OAK Box Score of Game played on Wednesday, July 8, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Tigers 32 86 07-11-1987 2nd Oakland Bill Wegmanhttp://baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198707110OAK Box Score of Game played on Saturday, July 11, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Brewers 33 86 07-11-1987 8th Oakland Dan Plesac Brewers 34 89 07-17-1987 10th Boston Calvin Schiraldihttp://baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198707170BOS Box Score of Game played on Friday, July 17, 1987 at Fenway Park Red Sox 35 93 07-21-1987 10th Detroit Eric Kinghttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198707210DET Box Score of Game played on Tuesday, July 21, 1987 at Tiger Stadium Tigers 36 94 07-22-1987 8th Detroit Mark Thurmondhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198707220DET Box Score of Game played on Wednesday, July 22, 1987 at Tiger Stadium Tigers 37 101 07-29-1987 4th Oakland Don Suttonhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198707290OAK Box Score of Game played on Wednesday, July 29, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Angels 38 113 08-11-1987 7th Seattle Mike Moorehttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198708110SEA Box Score of Game played on Tuesday, August 11, 1987 at Kingdome Mariners 39 115 08-14-1987 6th Anaheim Don Suttonhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198708140CAL Box Score of Game played on Friday, August 14, 1987 at Anaheim Stadium Angels 40 129 08-29-1987 10th Toronto Mark Eichhornhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198708290TOR Box Score of Game played on Saturday, August 29, 1987 at Exhibition Stadium Blue Jays 41 134 09-04-1987 5th Baltimore Mike Boddicker http://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198709040BAL Box Score of Game played on Friday, September 4, 1987 at Memorial StadiumOrioles 42 136 09-05-1987 2nd Baltimore Jon Habyanhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198709060BAL Box Score of Game played on Sunday, September 6, 1987 at Memorial Stadium Orioles 43 142 09-12-1987 2nd Oakland Charlie Leibrandthttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198709120OAK Box Score of Game played on Saturday, September 12, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Royals 44 145 09-15-1987 4th Arlington Stadium Greg Harrishttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198709150TEX Box Score of Game played on Tuesday, September 15, 1987 at Arlington Stadium Rangers 45 145 09-15-1987 6th Arlington Stadium Greg Harris Rangers 46 148 09-19-1987 1st Kansas City Mélido Pérezhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198709190KCA Box Score of Game played on Saturday, September 19, 1987 at Royals Stadium Royals 47 153 09-24-1987 9th Oakland Scott Bannisterhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198709240OAK Box Score of Game played on Thursday, September 24, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum White Sox 48 154 09-25-1987 9th Oakland Bobby Thigpenhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198709250OAK Box Score of Game played on Friday, September 25, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum White Sox 49 157 09-29-1987 1st Oakland John Farrellhttp://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=198709290OAK Box Score of Game played on Tuesday, September 29, 1987 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Indians Farm system Minor League Baseball AAA Tacoma Tigers Pacific Coast League Keith Lieppman AA Huntsville Stars Southern League Brad Fischer A Modesto A's California League Tommie Reynolds A Madison Muskies Midwest League Jim Nettles A-Short Season Medford A's Northwest League Dave Hudgens References 1987 Oakland Athletics team page at Baseball Reference 1987 Oakland Athletics team page at www.baseball-almanac.com Johnson Lloyd Wolff Miles The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball 2nd Durham, North Carolina Baseball America 1997 978-0-9637189-8-3 Category:Oakland Athletics seasons Oakland Athletics season Oak Category:1980s in Oakland, California