Oakland Athletics: The Athletics’ All-Time 25-Man Roster

Relief Pitcher #2: Rick Honeycutt

Rick Honeycutt was one of the A’s all-time greats that did not start off in the Athletics’ farm system. Honeycutt was traded to the Oakland Athletics from the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1987 after already having spent ten years in the majors. However, the Athletics were the ones that converted Honeycutt from a starting pitcher to a reliever.

While with the Athletics, Honeycutt was the setup man for A’s all-time great closer Dennis Eckersley. Throughout his time with Oakland, Honeycutt maintained a 3.10 ERA and only allowed 28 home runs in 406.1 innings pitched. Honeycutt was a reliable setup man for the Athletics, but he also recorded 32 saves while with the Green and Gold.

Honeycutt played on six different teams throughout his Major League career but ultimately spent the most time – eight seasons – with the Oakland Athletics. Additionally, his only World Series Championship was won when he was a part of the 1989 Oakland team. He did end up leaving the Athletics in 1993, only to come back for a short time in 1995, and finally leave again for the 1996 season. When he was finishing out the last two season of his MLB career, Honeycutt was the oldest player in Major League Baseball. Honeycutt is now the pitching coach for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Runner Up: Lefty Grove

Lefty Grove played with the Philadelphia Athletics during their prime years in the late 1920s and early 1930s. He is recognized as one of the best left handed pitchers in Major League history. From 1929 to 1931 with the A’s, Grove won the pitcher’s Triple Crown twice. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1947.

Next: The Bullpen: Middle Reliever #3