The Oakland Athletics of the 1970s are one of the more underappreciated teams in that era of baseball, receiving much less attention than the Big Red Machine, the mid-to-late 1970s Yankees, the “We Are Family” Pirates, and the 1969 Miracle Mets. However, they’re one of just two teams (along with the late-90s Yankees) in the last 60 years to win three straight World Championships, and featured their share of colorful characters and legendary players.

Narrated by Oakland native and former A’s clubhouse assistant MC Hammer, the one-hour documentary explores the tense relationship between controversial owner Charlie Finley and the team’s roster of superstars as the A’s won back-to-back-to-back World Series titles from 1972-1974. A preview clip recalling the combination of tension and fierce loyalty in the A’s clubhouse can be seen here.

Featured throughout the show are interviews with several members of the 1970’s A’s roster, including Hall of Famers Rollie Fingers and Reggie Jackson, plus Sal Bando, Vida Blue, Ray Fosse, Ken Holtzman, Joe Rudi and Gene Tenace, who describe their tumultuous relationship with Finley and memorable moments from their dominance on the field. Said Jackson of the A’s:

“We were one of the great dynasties. We won five divisions, three World Series in a row, we were a special breed. When you look back at it, you have a great appreciation for it and you’re thankful that you were a part of it. I wish more people saw it.”

Through archival material and interviews with former A’s broadcaster Monte Moore, 17-time All-Star Pete Rose, Hall of Famer Tony La Russa, Charlie Finley’s niece, author Nancy Finley, veteran baseball journalist Ray Ratto and author Dan Epstein, The Swingin’ A’s provides an in-depth look at the building of the A’s roster, the dismantling of its championship teams, and the legacy of those often-overlooked A’s lineups.

Most of the key members of those A’s teams are interviewed, including Vida Blue, Rollie Fingers, Reggie Jackson, Joe Rudi, and Gene Tenace. Unfortunately, several prominent members of the team have passed away and obviously couldn’t be interviewed, including owner Charlie Finley, ace pitcher Catfish Hunter, and manager Dick Williams.

In fact, I don’t even think Hunter was really mentioned until the final third of the field when he was granted free agency after the 1974 season and signed with the Yankees, which is a damn shame considering how important he was to the success of this dynasty.

One of my favorite silly anecdotes from this film relates to Jackson’s beard, and how it eventually led to Fingers growing his famous mustache thanks to a $300 incentive from Finley. There’s another great story about an angry Reds fan threatening to shoot Gene Tenace during the 1972 World Series, somehow managing to bring a loaded fun into the stadium.

A couple of interview subjects seemed like odd inclusions – Tony La Russa and Pete Rose. La Russa was traded by the A’s in 1971 after playing just a minor role with the team. Rose’s Reds lost to the A’s in the 1972 World Series, but didn’t play them in either 1973 or 1974. Also, the infamous collision between Rose and future A’s catcher Ray Fosse happened in 1970, when Fosse was still a member of the Indians.

The interviews with Jackson also left a lot to be desired, as there were only a couple of brief clips (from what appeared to be separate interviews) that didn’t add a whole lot of context to the story. Given his importance to the teams and how all over the film he was, he really should’ve been featured in more interview clips.

The last segment of the film is appropriate, as it deals with Finley’s reluctance to pay his players upon the advent of free agency. This, of course, is a common talking point related to the A’s of the last 15-20 years – they can’t pay their players what they’re worth and have to either trade them or let them walk as free agents.

All in all, this is another strong entry into the MLB Network Presents series and it’s one of those stories that is just made for an hour-long documentary – a juggernaut on the field with significant issues off the field. No one wants to hear about a great team that got along well, and only a few people want to hear about a bad team that was at each other’s throats. A dominant team that was full of friction? Now that’s something to get my eyebrows raised.

About Joe Lucia

I hate your favorite team. I also sort of hate most of my favorite teams.