Legendary A's pitcher Vida Blue dies at age 73

OAKLAND -- Vida Blue, the pitching phenom who was an integral of the Oakland A's dynasty during their three consecutive World Series titles in the early '70s, has died at age 73, according to the team. 

The Oakland A's Twitter account posted a tribute to the Cy Young Award and Most Valuable Player Award winner Sunday morning.

"There are few players with a more decorated career than Vida Blue. He was a three-time champion, an MVP, a six-time All-Star, a Cy Young Award winner and an Oakland A's Hall of Famer," the statement said. "Vida will always be a franchise legend and friend. We send our deepest condolences to his family and friends during this arduous time."

The A's said Blue died Saturday, but didn't give a cause of death.  

Other former A's pitchers also posted tributes to Blue, including Dave Stewart, who called Blue a mentor, and Dallas Braden.

The powerful left-handed pitcher's fearsome fastball made him a key member of the dominant Oakland Athletics team that won the World Series for three years running between 1972 and 1974. A gifted athlete who excelled in football and baseball while growing up in northwestern Louisiana, Blue turned down several offers of college football scholarships to sign with the A's.

After a season in the minors, Blue was called up in 1970 and made an immediate impact, throwing a no-hitter against then defending World Series champs the Minnesota Twins. Blue had a 24-8 record in 1971, an AL leading 1.82 ERA and 8 shutouts, and struck out 301 batters, winning both the Cy Young and MVP awards. That same year he ended up on the covers of both Sports Illustrated and Time magazine.

Blue's on-field prowess during his peak years helped the Athletics to five straight American League Western Division pennants from 1971 to 1975. However, a contract dispute with A's owner Charlie Finley following that breakout season led to Blue holding out and missing much of the season, pitching mainly in relief as the team won the World Series against the Cincinnati Reds.  

The A's owner traded Blue twice only to be blocked each time by baseball Commissioner Bowie Kuhn, first in June 1976 to the New York Yankees and then in December 1977 to the Cincinnati Reds. Kuhn vetoed the deals under the commissioner's authority to act in the "best interests of baseball."  

He had a return to form in the years that followed, going 20-9 in 1973, 17-15 in 1974, and 22-11 in 1975. Blue's contentious relationship with Finley continued despite the success, with the pitcher famously telling reporters that he hoped the A's owner would die. 

After his worst season with the A's in 1977, he would finally be traded to the San Francisco Giants where he had some success over the course of four seasons before being dealt to the Kansas City Royals in 1982. Blue's career would go off the rails during his stint there with a mounting drug problem that eventually led to him being convicted of cocaine possession in 1983 along with three other Major League Baseball players.

Blue would eventually return to the Giants in 1985 after sitting out the entire 1984 season recovering from his drug addiction. Despite his accomplishments, Blue has never been elected to the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame, likely due to his involvement in the early '80s drug scandal.

The Giants Twitter account also posted a tribute to the pitcher Sunday morning.

"The #SFGiants are saddened to learn of the passing of six-time All-Star and longtime Bay Area pitcher Vida Blue. Our deepest condolences go to the Blue family, his friends and all those whose lives he touched," the post read.

"Vida Blue has been a Bay Area baseball icon for over 50 years," Giants President Larry Baer said in a statement, "His impact on the Bay Area transcends his 17 years on the diamond with the influence he's had on our community."  

Blue continued to live in San Francisco and has worked as a Giants baseball commentator for NBC Bay Area Sports.

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