In Major League Baseball, the American League Division Series (ALDS) determines which two teams from the American League will advance to the American League Championship Series. The Division Series consists of two best-of-five series, featuring each of the two division winners with the best records and the winners of the wild-card play-off.
The Athletics are an American professional baseball team based in West Sacramento, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West Division. The team will play its home games at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento for the 2025–2027 seasons before its permanent move to Las Vegas. While in West Sacramento, the team is being referred to as simply the "Athletics" and "A's", with no city name attached. The franchise's nine World Series championships, fifteen pennants, and seventeen division titles are the second-most in the AL after the New York Yankees.
Jesús Manuel Marcano Trillo, nicknamed "Indio", is a Venezuelan former professional baseball second baseman, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Oakland Athletics (1973–1974), Chicago Cubs, Philadelphia Phillies (1979–1982), Cleveland Indians (1983), Montreal Expos (1983), San Francisco Giants (1984–1985), and Cincinnati Reds (1989). A four-time All-Star, he was the Phillies' starting second baseman when the franchise won its first World Series Championship in 1980. He was known as one of the best fielding second basemen of his era, with a strong throwing arm.
The 1973 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1973 season. The 70th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League (AL) champion Oakland Athletics and the National League (NL) champion New York Mets. The Athletics won the series in seven games for their second of three consecutive World Series titles and their seventh championship overall.
Andrew Jay Hinch is an American professional baseball coach and former player who is the manager of the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Hinch played catcher for the Oakland Athletics (1998–2000), Kansas City Royals (2001–2002), Detroit Tigers (2003), and Philadelphia Phillies (2004).
Robert Paul Melvin is an American professional baseball manager and former catcher who is the manager of the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB). Melvin has been named Manager of the Year three times.
Richard Wallace Hall was an American professional baseball player who appeared in 669 games over 19 seasons in Major League Baseball, first as an outfielder, then as a pitcher, from 1952 through 1957 and from 1959 through 1971. Hall is best known as a member of the Baltimore Orioles dynasty that won four American League pennants and two World Series championships between 1966 and 1971. He also played for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Kansas City Athletics and Philadelphia Phillies. The 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m), 200 lb (91 kg) Hall batted and threw right-handed. He earned the nickname "Turkey" due to his unusual pitching motion.
The 2002 Oakland Athletics season was the 102nd season in franchise history and the 35th season in Oakland, California. The Athletics finished first in the American League West with a record of 103–59.
The 2004 Houston Astros season was the 43rd season for the Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise in Houston, Texas. Five years removed from opening Minute Maid Park, the Astros hosted the All-Star Game, which was the first held in Houston since 1986. Having limped into the All-Star break with a 44–44 record, Phil Garner was named to replace Jimy Williams as manager. The Astros finished second in the National League Central and captured the NL Wild Card. The Astros won a postseason series for the first time in franchise history by defeating the Atlanta Braves in the National League Division Series (NLDS), scoring an NLDS-record 36 runs. Roger Clemens won the NL Cy Young Award, becoming the fourth pitcher to win the award in both leagues, and the only one with seven overall.
The 2009 Major League Baseball season began on April 5, 2009; the regular season was extended two days for a one-game playoff between the Detroit Tigers and the Minnesota Twins for the American League Central title. The postseason began the next day with the Division Series. The World Series began on October 28, and ended on November 4, with the New York Yankees defeating the Philadelphia Phillies in six games. This was the second time the season was completed in November. The only other occasion was the 2001 World Series, because of the delaying of the end of that season due to the September 11 attacks as November baseball would be guaranteed when Game 4 was played on Sunday, November 1. Had the 2009 World Series gone the full seven games, Game 7 would've been played on November 5, the latest date ever scheduled for a World Series game. It became the latest date for a World Series game in 2022. The American League champion had home field advantage for the World Series by virtue of winning the All-Star Game on July 14 at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Missouri, 4–3. In addition, the annual Civil Rights Game became a regular season game, and was played June 20 at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati, Ohio, when the host Cincinnati Reds lost to the Chicago White Sox in an interleague game, 10–8. Both teams wore replicas of their 1965 uniforms in the contest.
The Wild Card Series are games that serve as the opening round of the Major League Baseball (MLB) postseason. A single wild card game was instituted in 2012. This became a best-of-three playoff wild card series in 2020 as a one-off, and became permanent starting in the 2022 season.
The 2014 American League Wild Card Game was a play-in game during Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2014 postseason played between the American League's (AL) two wild card teams, the Oakland Athletics and the Kansas City Royals. It was held at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, on September 30, 2014. The Royals won by a score of 9–8 in 12 innings, and advanced to play the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in the 2014 American League Division Series. The game was televised by TBS and broadcast on ESPN Radio.
The 1976 Major League Baseball postseason was the playoff tournament of Major League Baseball for the 1976 season. The winners of each division advance to the postseason and face each other in a League Championship Series to determine the pennant winners that face each other in the World Series.
The 1980 Major League Baseball postseason was the playoff tournament of Major League Baseball for the 1980 season. The winners of each division advance to the postseason and face each other in a League Championship Series to determine the pennant winners that face each other in the World Series.
The 2014 Major League Baseball postseason was the playoff tournament of Major League Baseball for the 2014 season. The winners of the Division Series would move on to the League Championship Series to determine the pennant winners that face each other in the World Series.
The 2020 Major League Baseball postseason was the playoff tournament of Major League Baseball for the 2020 season. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the league played only a 60-game season, and an expanded 16-team postseason tournament began on September 29, with games of all but the first round being played at neutral sites. A new best-of-three Wild Card series was added as the opening round of this postseason due to the shortened season caused by the pandemic; it would become a permanent addition to the postseason format starting in 2022.
