Vida Blue

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Blue was a power pitcher who worked fast and attacked the strike zone. His signature pitch was a fastball which he threw consistently at 94 miles per hour, but could reach 100 miles per hour. All-time hits leader Pete Rose stated that Blue 'threw as hard as anyone' he ever faced, and baseball historian Bill James cited Blue as the hardest-throwing lefty and the second-hardest thrower of his era, behind only Nolan Ryan. In 1971, Blue had a 24–8 record, an AL-leading 1.82 ERA and eight shutouts, and struck out 301 batters, winning both the AL Cy Young Award and Most Valuable Player Award. He also led the AL in complete games (24), shutouts (8), and ERA. That season, the Athletics won the AL West title for the franchise's first postseason berth since the Philadelphia Athletics in the 1931 World Series. Blue was the youngest AL pitcher to win the MVP Award in the 20th century at that time. He was the starting pitcher for the AL in the 1971 All-Star Game and also started the league opener and the playoff opener that same season, a feat accomplished by other pitchers like Bob Gibson.

In Their Own Story

On September 21, 1970, ten days after shutting out the Kansas City Royals 3–0 on one hit, Blue no-hit the defending and eventual repeat AL West champion Minnesota Twins, 6–0, at Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum. The lone baserunner came on Harmon Killebrew's fourth-inning walk. He was the fourth-youngest pitcher to throw a no-hitter. In 1971, Blue got off to a terrific start, going 10–1 when he linked up with Boston's Sonny Siebert, who was 8–0, in a dramatic May matchup in Boston. The game was won by Siebert and the Red Sox 4–3, and remains what is considered one of the most dramatic games in Fenway Park history. In the 1972 World Series against the Cincinnati Reds, Blue made four appearances, including a save in Game 1, a blown save in Game 4, and a loss in a spot-start in Game 6. Perhaps his finest postseason performances were four innings of shutout relief work against the Detroit Tigers to save Game 5 of the 1972 ALCS and a complete-game 1–0 shutout against the Orioles in Game 3 of the 1974 ALCS. On September 28, 1975, Blue, Glenn Abbott, Paul Lindblad, and Rollie Fingers combined to no-hit the California Angels 5–0.

Reader's Guide

Blue pitched for the Athletics from 1969 to 1977. He went 20–9 in 1973, 17–15 in 1974, and 22–11 in 1975, as an integral member of the Athletics' five straight AL West division titles from 1971 to 1975, and three consecutive World Championships in 1972, 1973, and 1974. After an 18–13 season with a 2.35 ERA in 1976, Blue told reporters, 'I hope the next breath Charlie Finley takes is his last. I hope he falls flat on his face and dies of polio.' In June 1976, baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn vetoed an attempt by Finley to sell Blue's contract to the New York Yankees and did the same on January 30, 1978 to a trade that would have sent Blue to Cincinnati. At the end of the 1976 season, nearly the entire A's roster of star players left with free agency or were traded, leaving Blue to mentor a team of primarily rookies. In the 1977 season, Blue went 14–19 with a 3.83 ERA and led the AL both in hits and earned runs surrendered. In March 1978, the Athletics traded Blue to the San Francisco Giants for seven players and $300,000.

Did You Know?

• Blue was the youngest AL pitcher to win the MVP Award in the 20th century at that time.
• He was one of several pitchers, including Bob Gibson, to start the league opener, the All-Star Game, and the playoff opener in the same season (1971).
• Blue threw a no-hitter against the Minnesota Twins on September 21, 1970, at age 21, making him the youngest in the American League at the time, though pitchers like Bob Feller and Wilson Álvarez were younger overall.
• On September 28, 1975, Blue combined with Glenn Abbott, Paul Lindblad, and Rollie Fingers to no-hit the California Angels 5–0.
• Blue was on the covers of both Sports Illustrated and Time magazine in 1971.