Former MLB pitcher Vida Blue, best known for his unworldly season in 1971 with the Oakland A's in which he won the AL Cy Young Award and AL MVP, passed away yesterday at the age of 73. No cause of death has been released. Blue's passing comes less than three months after the death of his A's teammate Sal Bando.
A native of Louisiana, Blue excelled at both baseball and football in high school as a pitcher and a quarterback. Although Blue was recruited by colleges such as Notre Dame to play football, he signed with the Oakland A's after being selected in the 2nd round of the 1967 MLB Draft.
Blue would make his big-league debut with the A's in 1969 at the age of 19. The young southpaw would turn heads late in the 1970 season after tossing a no-hitter against the Minnesota Twins. Blue remains the youngest pitcher in the live ball era to throw a no-hitter. It would be a harbinger of things to come.
In 1971, Blue had a season of which few could dream. Blue went 24-8 with a league leading 1.82 ERA along with 301 strikeouts while also leading the AL with 8 shutouts. Not only would this earn Blue a start at the 1971 All-Star Game, the AL Cy Young Award and AL MVP and the A's first post-season appearance in 40 years, but the cover of Time.
Following a salary dispute with A's owner Charlie Finley, Blue slipped to 6-10 albeit with a respectable 2.80 ERA in 1972. However, Blue would earn the first of three consecutive World Series rings with the Swingin' A's. Blue would enjoy 20-win seasons in both 1973 and 1975. At the end of the latter season, Blue threw a combined no-hitter with Glenn Abbott, Paul Linblad and Rollie Fingers against the California Angels.
As with most players on the A's, Blue had a volatile relationship with Finley who twice attempted to trade him to the New York Yankees and the Cincinnati Reds only to have those deals vetoed by MLB Commissioner Bowie Kuhn. Eventually, Blue was traded to the San Francisco Giants prior to the 1978 season in a multi-player deal.
Blue enjoyed a renaissance on the other side of the Bay becoming the first pitcher in MLB history to start the All-Star Game in both leagues. After an 18-win season, Blue finished third in NL Cy Young balloting to Gaylord Perry (who passed away last December). Blue would earn two more NL All-Star selections with the Giants in 1980 and 1981 before being traded to the Kansas City Royals.
After a decent season in K.C. in 1982, Blue was released by the Royals during the 1983 season. Following that campaign, Blue received unwelcome headlines for being among several MLB players who had purchased cocaine. As a result, Blue was sentenced to three months in prison and was suspended for the 1984 season. Blue would return to baseball in 1985 with the Giants and pitch two more seasons.
In 17 MLB seasons, Blue went 209-161 with a 3.27 ERA along with 2,175 strikeouts. Although Blue never exceeded 10% of the vote on the BBWAA Hall of Fame ballot, he would later be inducted into both the A's and Giants team Halls of Fame. R.I.P.
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