1992 Oakland Athletics season

MLB yearly infobox
name = Oakland Athletics
season = 1992
misc = 1992 AL West Champions

current league = American League
y1 = 1901
division = Western Division
y2 = 1969
Uniform
ballpark = Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum
y4 = 1968
city = Oakland, California
y5 = 1968
owners = Walter A. Haas, Jr.
genmanagers = Sandy Alderson
managers = Tony LaRussa
television = KPIX/KICU-TV
(Monte Moore, Ray Fosse)
Sports Channel Pacific
(Bill Rigney, Greg Papa, Reggie Jackson)
radio = KSFO
(Bill King, Lon Simmons, Ray Fosse) |The Oakland Athletics' 1992 season involved the A's finishing first in the American League West with a record of 96 wins and 66 losses. They lost the ALCS in six games to the eventual world champion Toronto Blue Jays.

Offseason

* October 11, 1991: Vance Law was released by the Athletics. [ [http://www.baseball-reference.com/l/lawva01.shtml Vance Law page at Baseball Reference] ]
* January 17, 1992: Ron Darling was signed as a free agent by the Athletics. [ [http://www.baseball-reference.com/d/darliro01.shtml Ron Darling page at Baseball Reference] ]
*January 27, 1992: Goose Gossage was signed as a free agent by the Athletics. [ [http://www.baseball-reference.com/g/gossari01.shtml Rich Gossage page at Baseball Reference] ]

Regular season

* José Canseco tied an MLB record with seven consecutive plate appearances with a walk in games against the Texas Rangers on August 4 and 5, 1992.

eason standings

Notable transactions

* June 1, 1992: Jason Giambi was drafted by the Athletics in the 2nd round of the 1992 amateur draft. Player signed July 3, 1992. [ [http://www.baseball-reference.com/g/giambja01.shtml Jason Giambi page at Baseball Reference] ]
* August 31, 1992: José Canseco was traded by the Athletics to the Texas Rangers (during the middle of a game while Canseco was in the on-deck circle no less)Fact|date=October 2008 for Rubén Sierra, Jeff Russell, and Bobby Witt. [ [http://www.baseball-reference.com/c/cansejo01.shtml José Canseco page at Baseball Reference] ]
* August 31, 1992: Shawn Hillegas was signed as a free agent by the Athletics. [ [http://www.baseball-reference.com/h/hillesh01.shtml Shawn Hillegas page at Baseball Reference] ]

Roster

Pitching

Starting pitchers

American League Championship Series

Game 1

October 7, Skydome

The series shifted to Oakland for Game 3, as Juan Guzmán took the hill for the Jays while Ron Darling toed the rubber for the A's. Toronto struck in the second, when Winfield reached on an error by Athletics' third baseman Carney Lansford, moved to third on a wild pitch by Darling, and scored on a single by Candy Maldonado. Roberto Alomar hit a solo home run in the fourth to give the Jays a 2-0 lead, but in the bottom half of the inning the A's tied the game with RBI base hits by Baines and Steinbach.

However, the very next inning, Maldonado hit a solo homer of his own, and after Oakland manager Tony La Russa gave Darling the hook in the seventh, the Jays added two unearned runs due to an error by Lance Blankenship and a triple by Lee, making it a 5-2 game. Although the A's cut TO's lead down to a run, the Jays tacked on single runs in the eighth and ninth. Henke retired the Athletics in order in the ninth, giving Toronto a 7-5 victory and a 2-1 edge in the series.

Game 4

October 11, Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum

The series came back to Toronto for Game 6, with Guzmán going against Moore. In the bottom of the first, the Jays took a lead they would never relinquish, as White reached on an error by Henderson and scored on a homer by Carter, making it 2-0. In the third, Olerud lashed an RBI double and Maldonado followed with a three-run shot, extending the advantage to 6-0. McGwire put Oakland on the board in the sixth with a single that scored Sierra, but the A's could only manage another run against the Jays. In the ninth, Henke took the mound and induced a flyout from Sierra to end a 9-2 win, making Toronto the first non-U.S.-based team to win a pennant in Major League history.

Awards and Honors

* Dennis Eckersley, American League Cy Young Award
* Dennis Eckersley, American League MVP
* Tony La Russa, Associated Press Manager of the Year
* Mark McGwire, Silver Slugger award

References

* [http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/OAK/1992.shtml 1992 Oakland Athletics team page at Baseball Reference]
* [http://baseball-almanac.com/teamstats/roster.php?y=1992&t=OAK 1992 Oakland Athletics team page at www.baseball-almanac.com]

succession box
title = AL West Championship Season
years = 1992
before = Minnesota Twins
1991
after = Chicago White Sox
1993