Jimmie Foxx came to Philadelphia in 1925 as a 17-year-old farm boy. He was signed by Connie Mack after being recognized as a local sensation in Maryland. Renowned for his extraordinary physical strength and a swing that generated legendary distance, he was considered the most formidable right-handed hitter of his time. During his 11 seasons with the Athletics, he functioned as the primary source of power for the concluding significant Philadelphia dynasty.

In 1929, Foxx achieved a historic milestone by hitting 33 home runs and leading the league with a .463 on-base percentage. His clutch performance drove the Athletics to their first World Series win in fifteen years, notably batting .350 in the Fall Classic against Chicago. Throughout the franchise's two consecutive championships, he demonstrated complete command of the postseason, finishing with a .344 World Series batting average with the A’s.

In 1932, Foxx achieved a peak of personal productivity, delivering one of the most statistically impressive seasons in sports history. He topped the American League in home runs with a career-best 58, just missing the single-season all-time record, while also leading in RBIs (169), slugging percentage (.749), and OPS (1.218). This exceptional display earned him his first MVP Award, an honor he secured again in 1933 after achieving a Triple Crown with a .356 batting average, 48 home runs, and 163 RBIs. At this height, he was a formidable power hitter, combining raw strength with a strategic approach that enabled him to lead the league in both batting and slugging.

If there was a weakness with Foxx, it was that he struck out a lot and led the league in that less-than-desirable metric five times as an Athletic.

Due to budgetary reasons, the First Baseman was traded to the Boston Red Sox after the 1935 season, and he would continue to be a great player, winning the AL MVP for the third time in 1938.  As an Athletic, Foxx would post a sick Slash Line of .339/.440/.640 with 1,492 Hits and 302 Home Runs.

Foxx would enter the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1951, and was chosen for the Philadelphia Baseball Wall of Fame in 1979.  Decades later, in 2021, Foxx was elected into the Athletics Hall of Fame.

Rickey Henderson is a lot of things.  He is eccentric.  He often refers to himself in the third person.  He is the greatest leadoff hitter ever.  He is the ultimate base stealer.  He was a first ballot Hall of Famer.

He is all of those things.

Despite all of the other teams he played for (New York Yankees, Toronto, San Diego, Anaheim, New York Mets, Seattle, Boston, and Los Angeles), he is one other thing: an Oakland Athletic.

Henderson debuted for Oakland in 1979, and in 1980 he would set the American League Stolen Base Record with 100 while going to his first All-Star Game.  The following season was strike-shortened, but Henderson was again the Stolen Base leader (56) and would lead the AL in Runs Scored (89), Hits (135), and he was the runner-up for the American League MVP.  He would also earn his only Gold Glove this year and received his first Silver Slugger Award.

The fleet-footed Outfielder would break the AL record for Stolen Bases that he set in 1980 with a 130 SB season that set the standard regardless of the league.  He would have another 108 Stolen Bases in 1983 and 66 in 1984, both of which were league leading.  Henderson also established himself as a solid hitter who, in his first five full seasons (1980-84, not counting 1979), never had an On Base Percentage under .398.  This was an impressive run, but it ended when he was traded to the New York Yankees before the 1985 season. This was still the beginning and not the end.

Henderson was traded back to Oakland during the 1989 season, and the A’s, who were already loaded with talent, were going for it all.  Henderson helped Oakland win the World Series that year, which would be the only one he would capture as an Athletic.  He would have his best season ever in 1990, where he won the MVP by hitting a career-high 28 Home Runs and leading the AL in Runs Scored (119), OBP (.439), OPS (1.016), and batting .325.  The Athletics went to the World Series that year but were shocked by the Cincinnati Reds, who swept them in four games.  Henderson remained strong for Oakland but was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays midway through the 1993 season, and he would help them win the World Series.  In the off-season, he resigned with Oakland.

This period would begin his nomadic run, as he was with A's for only two seasons and would sign with the Padres as a Free Agent after.  He came back in 2008 for his fourth run, which lasted only one season, though it was a good one that yielded his last Stolen Base title.

When it was all said and done, Rickey Henderson would accumulate 1,270 runs and 1,768 Hits. 167 Home Runs, 867 Stolen Bases with a Slash Line of .288/.409/.430 as an Athletic. 

As of this writing, he is the all-time leader in Runs Scored (2,295) and Stolen Bases (1,406), much of which was accumulated in Oakland, which, as you saw above, was an awful lot!

There were a lot of different players to consider when we were looking at the greatest Athletic of all-time.

Rick Sutcliffe’s journey in Chicago began with a season-altering trade in June 1984. Sent from the Cleveland Indians while carrying a losing record and an ERA over five, he matured instantly under the afternoon sun of Wrigley Field. He arrived with a fierce competitive scowl and a downward-tilting fastball that decimated National League lineups. He didn’t just settle into the rotation; he went on a historic tear, winning 16 of his 17 decisions and serving as the emotional and tactical engine that propelled the Cubs to their first-ever NL East Title.

The absolute pinnacle of his career arrived at the conclusion of that 1984 campaign. In a feat of run suppression that remains unique in baseball history, Sutcliffe became the first player to win the Cy Young Award after spending the first two months of the season in the opposing league. He was the definition of an efficiency outlier, providing the high-leverage brilliance that galvanized a city. He followed this with continued excellence throughout the decade, earning All-Star nods in 1987 and 1989. In '87, he led the National League in wins and finished as the Cy Young runner-up, proving that his initial breakout was no flash in the pan but the start of a statistical residency.

His identity was synonymous with a blue-collar work ethic and a "big-game" persona that resonated with the Bleacher Creatures.  He played with the Cubs until he left after the 1991 season for the Baltimore Orioles.  As a Cub, Sutcliffe was a high-volume workhorse, accumulating 82 wins and 909 strikeouts.  In recognition of his role as the ace of two division-winning squads, the organization named him to the inaugural class of the Chicago Cubs Hall of Fame in 2021.