Vida Blue, baseball player, 1969-1986

Vida Blue

Born: 7/28/1949 in Mansfield, LA, USA

Died: 5/6/2023 in Tracy, CA, USA

MLB Debut: 1969-07-20 | Final Game: 1986-10-02

Bats: B | Throws: L | Height: 6'0" | Weight: 189 lbs

Full name: Vida Rochelle Blue

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Biography

Vida Blue was a prominent American professional baseball pitcher whose career spanned from 1969 to 1986. Born in 1949, he made an immediate impact in Major League Baseball, showcasing a powerful left arm and a competitive spirit that earned him six All-Star selections throughout his career. Blue's remarkable tenure included notable seasons where he achieved a career record of 209 wins against 161 losses, coupled with an impressive earned run average (ERA) of 3.27. He accumulated a total of 2,175 strikeouts, highlighting his ability to dominate hitters and solidify his status as one of the premier pitchers of his era. Playing primarily for the Oakland Athletics during the 1970s, Blue was a key figure during a transformative period in baseball, as the game was evolving with new strategies and an increased emphasis on pitching. His contributions were instrumental in the Athletics' success, helping them secure three consecutive World Series championships from 1972 to 1974. Blue's legacy is further marked by his pioneering role as one of the first African American pitchers to achieve significant success in the major leagues, making him a vital figure in the history of the sport. After his retirement, Blue remained a beloved figure in baseball, celebrated for both his on-field achievements and his contributions to the game's rich narrative.

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
209 161 502 473 143 37 2 3343.3 2939 1213 263 1185 2175 3.27 0

Career ERA 3.27 vs. league average 3.75 across their career seasons — 12.9% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
1969 OAK AL 1 1 12 4 0 0 1 42.0 49 31 18 24 6.64 3.61 (-84%) -3243.3
1970 OAK AL 2 0 6 6 2 2 0 38.7 20 9 12 35 2.09 3.89 (+46%) 1996.6
1971 OAK AL 24 8 39 39 24 8 0 312.0 209 63 88 301 1.82 3.47 (+48%) 10548.4
1972 OAK AL 6 10 25 23 5 4 0 151.0 117 47 48 111 2.80 3.26 (+14%) 1614.0
1973 OAK AL 20 9 37 37 13 4 0 263.7 214 96 105 158 3.28 3.75 (+13%) -995.8
1974 OAK AL 17 15 40 40 12 1 0 282.3 246 102 98 174 3.25 3.63 (+10%) 3338.2
1975 OAK AL 22 11 39 38 13 2 1 278.0 243 93 99 189 3.01 3.71 (+19%) 2784.7
1976 OAK AL 18 13 37 37 20 6 0 298.3 268 78 63 166 2.35 3.51 (+33%) 7589.1
1977 OAK AL 14 19 38 38 16 1 0 279.7 284 119 86 157 3.83 4.00 (+4%) 2816.0
1978 SFG NL 18 10 35 35 9 4 0 258.0 233 80 70 171 2.79 3.69 (+24%) -
1979 SFG NL 14 14 34 34 10 0 0 237.0 246 132 111 138 5.01 4.00 (-25%) -
1980 SFG NL 14 10 31 31 10 3 0 224.0 202 74 61 129 2.97 3.84 (+23%) -
1981 SFG NL 8 6 18 18 1 0 0 124.7 97 34 54 63 2.45 3.58 (+32%) -
1982 KCR AL 13 12 31 31 6 2 0 181.0 163 76 80 103 3.78 3.86 (+2%) -
1983 KCR AL 0 5 19 14 1 0 0 85.3 96 57 35 53 6.01 3.87 (-55%) -
1985 SFG NL 8 8 33 20 1 0 0 131.0 115 65 80 103 4.47 3.89 (-15%) -
1986 SFG NL 10 10 28 28 0 0 0 156.7 137 57 77 100 3.27 3.97 (+18%) -

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
508 512 37 53 9 0 4 15 0 49 271 0.104 0.186 0.145 0.330 -3588.4

Career AVG .104 vs. league average .257 across their career seasons — 59.7% below league average.

Career OBP .186 vs. league average .324 across their career seasons — 42.6% below league average.

Career SLG .145 vs. league average .380 across their career seasons — 62.0% below league average.

Career OPS 0.330 vs. league average 0.704 across their career seasons — 53.1% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1969 OAK AL 12 10 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 4 0.000 — — — — 0.0
1970 OAK AL 6 15 1 3 1 0 1 3 0 1 7 0.200 — — — — 0.0
1971 OAK AL 39 102 6 12 1 0 0 2 0 4 63 0.118 .249 (-53%) .316 (-47%) .365 (-65%) .682 (-57%) -933.4
1972 OAK AL 27 45 4 2 0 0 0 0 0 5 34 0.044 — — — — -498.4
1973 OAK AL 38 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.000 — — — — 0.0
1974 OAK AL 40 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1975 OAK AL 39 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1976 OAK AL 37 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1977 OAK AL 38 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 — — — — 0.0
1978 SFG NL 35 79 8 6 1 0 1 2 0 16 51 0.076 .257 (-71%) .323 (-26%) .378 (-67%) .702 (-48%) -587.2
1979 SFG NL 37 83 7 10 1 0 1 3 0 6 35 0.120 .265 (-55%) .329 (-45%) .397 (-58%) .727 (-52%) -739.0
1980 SFG NL 31 68 3 5 1 0 0 1 0 3 34 0.074 .264 (-72%) .326 (-66%) .387 (-77%) .714 (-72%) -830.4
1981 SFG NL 18 35 4 7 2 0 0 1 0 3 10 0.200 — — — — 0.0
1982 KCR AL 31 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1983 KCR AL 19 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
1985 SFG NL 33 30 0 4 1 0 0 0 0 3 12 0.133 — — — — 0.0
1986 SFG NL 28 43 3 4 1 0 1 3 0 6 20 0.093 — — — — 0.0

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
17 13 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 12 0.000

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1975 ALCS OAK 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1974 ALCS OAK 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1974 WS OAK 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0.000
1973 ALCS OAK 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
1973 WS OAK 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0.000
1972 ALCS OAK 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.000
1972 WS OAK 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 0.000
1971 ALCS OAK 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0.000

Playoff Career Pitching

W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1 5 17 10 2 64.7 55 31 23 47 4.31

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1975 ALCS OAK 0 0 1 1 0 3.0 6 3 0 2 9.00
1974 ALCS OAK 1 0 1 1 0 9.0 2 0 0 7 0.00
1974 WS OAK 0 1 2 2 0 13.7 10 5 7 9 3.29
1973 ALCS OAK 0 1 2 2 0 7.0 8 8 5 3 10.29
1973 WS OAK 0 1 2 2 0 11.0 10 6 3 8 4.91
1972 ALCS OAK 0 0 4 0 1 5.3 4 0 1 5 0.00
1972 WS OAK 0 1 4 1 1 8.7 8 4 5 5 4.15
1971 ALCS OAK 0 1 1 1 0 7.0 7 5 2 8 6.43

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
P 502 473 127 427 19 21

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1969 OAK P 12 4 1 4 0 0
1970 OAK P 6 6 1 7 0 0
1971 OAK P 39 39 15 24 0 0
1972 OAK P 25 23 4 17 2 0
1973 OAK P 37 37 9 30 0 0
1974 OAK P 40 40 10 16 3 0
1975 OAK P 39 38 4 34 1 1
1976 OAK P 37 37 3 34 1 2
1977 OAK P 38 38 6 42 3 2
1978 SFN P 35 35 12 29 0 4
1979 SFN P 34 34 10 42 1 5
1980 SFN P 31 31 14 42 1 4
1981 SFN P 18 18 11 29 1 1
1982 KCA P 31 31 14 22 2 0
1983 KCA P 19 14 3 10 0 1
1985 SFN P 33 20 7 21 2 1
1986 SFN P 28 28 3 24 2 0

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 502

Awards & Honors

Year Award Notes
1978 Pitcher of the Month June
1978 TSN All-Star LHP
1978 TSN Pitcher of the Year
1976 Player of the Week Week of 1976-08-27
1971 Cy Young Award
1971 Most Valuable Player
1971 TSN All-Star LHP
1971 TSN Pitcher of the Year

Salary History

Year Team League Salary
1986 SFN NL $450,000
1985 SFN NL $250,000
Total Career Earnings $700,000

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1978 Cy Young Award NL 3rd 17.0 120 1
1978 Most Valuable Player NL 12th 33.0 336 0
1976 Cy Young Award AL 6th 8.0 120 0
1976 Most Valuable Player AL 20th 10.0 336 0
1975 Cy Young Award AL 6th 2.0 120 0
1973 Cy Young Award AL 7th 1.0 120 0
1973 Most Valuable Player AL 29th 3.0 336 0
1971 Cy Young Award AL 1st 98.0 120 14
1971 Most Valuable Player AL 1st 268.0 336 14