Vida Blue

Lore & Background

Blue was born and raised in Mansfield, Louisiana, the oldest of six children. He attended DeSoto High School, where he pitched for the baseball team and quarterbacked the football team. In his senior year, he threw for 3,400 yards and 35 touchdown passes while rushing for 1,600 yards in football, then threw a no-hitter with 21 strikeouts in seven innings in baseball. He was recruited to play college football for Notre Dame, Purdue, and Houston, but chose to sign with the Athletics for $12,500 per year after his father's death. Blue was a power pitcher whose signature pitch was a fastball consistently at 94 mph, reaching 100 mph. Pete Rose said Blue 'threw as hard as anyone' he faced, and Bill James cited Blue as the hardest-throwing lefty and second-hardest thrower of his era behind Nolan Ryan.

In Their Own Story

The October air in the Coliseum in 1974 tasted like iron and cut grass. Blue stood in the mound, his glove tapping the dirt in a slow rhythm, and the noise of 40,000 voices rolled over him like a wave that never broke. He could feel the Dodgers' lineup waiting out there—Musial, Snider, the whole wall of them. He wound up, and the ball left his hand with that particular snap, the one that made scouts scribble in their notebooks and made batters swear they'd seen it a half-second too late. The crowd inhaled. The pitch was gone. And in the dugout, Catfish Hunter just nodded, because he'd seen that arm a hundred times and it never got old. The A's would win that night, and the next, and the one after, and the city would not sleep for a long time.

Reader's Guide

Blue debuted with the Athletics in 1969. In 1970, he threw a one-hit shutout and a no-hitter. In 1971, he went 24–8 with a 1.82 ERA, 301 strikeouts, and won the Cy Young and MVP awards. He was the youngest AL player to win the MVP in the 20th century. He started the league opener, All-Star Game, and playoff opener in the same season—the only player ever to do so. After a contract holdout in 1972, he went 6–10 but pitched in relief in the World Series. He later had 20-win seasons in 1973 and 1975. In 1976, he made inflammatory comments about owner Charlie Finley. Trades to the Yankees and Reds were vetoed by the commissioner. In 1977, he led the AL in hits and earned runs allowed. In March 1978, he was traded to the Giants, where he went 18–10 in 1978 and started the NL All-Star Game. He pitched for the Royals in 1982–1983, then was released after a 0–5 start in 1983. He pleaded guilty to attempting to purchase cocaine and was suspended for 1984. He returned to the Giants in 1985–1986, winning his 200th game in 1986. He signed with Oakland for 1987 but retired that February. After baseball, he was an analyst for NBC Sports Bay Area. He faced multiple DUI charges in 2005 and acknowledged those issues may have affected Hall of Fame voting.

Did You Know?

• Blue was one of the youngest AL players to win the MVP Award in the 20th century, though not the youngest (Al Kaline was 20 in 1955).
• He was the only player ever to start the league opener, All-Star Game, and playoff opener in the same season (1971).
• Blue threw a no-hitter in 1970 but was not part of a combined no-hitter in 1975.
• He was on the covers of Sports Illustrated and Time magazine in 1971.