Oakland Athletics: The Top 50 Oakland A’s of All-Time

#17: Bill King

Athletics broadcaster Bill King is often left out of baseball history by the national media, because he worked in so many different sports. As the play-by-play announcer for not just the A’s but the Oakland Raiders and Golden State Warriors, as well as college sports, King has a very diverse resume. He even spent time with the San Francisco Giants’ broadcast crew.

But King is beloved by Athletics fans for his time as the play-by-play man for the Green and Gold. In 1981, he became the lead announcer for the A’s radio broadcast. He was well known for his signature “Holy Toledo!” call, and he’s widely acknowledged as one of the best radio broadcasters to ever grace the airwaves.

King was on the mic for the calls of plenty of extraordinary events in A’s history, such as the walk-off home run hit by Scott Hatteberg in 2002 as the Athletics extended their win streak to a major-league high 20 games.

Although King never set foot on the field as a player, his contributions to the Athletics as a play-by-play man and Bay Area legend are enough to warrant him a high place on the list of the best A’s in Oakland history.

Next: Top 50 Oakland Athletics: #16