ABOUT THIS SITE		CONTACT NANCY FINLEY		ABOUT CARL FINLEY		WHAT THEY SAY ABOUT THIS SITE
		HISTORICAL DOCUMENTS		THE CHARLEY O. FINLEY PAGE		CARL A. FINLEY FACEBOOK		BASEBALL STATISTICS
		CARL FINLEY WIKIPEDIA		PHILADELPHIA ATHLETICS HISTORICAL SOCIETY		THE UNTOLD STORY
		HALL OF FAME & CHARLIE FINLEY		OAKLAND A'S CLUBHOUSE

Charlie Finley Nominated For Hall of Fame Nov. 3 2011 - READ COMMENTS Dec. 15 2011: On behalf of the Finley family, Nancy Finley says: "We are greatful that Charlie was considered this year for the Hall of Fame Golden Era, and extend our thanks to those who supported him. We look forward to keeping his name and legacy in the hearts of A's fans of the Great Years."

NOW AVAILABLE Finley's Champion A's Jerseys! Limited Edition!

Price $19.95 plus s&h & tax Limited time only CLICK FOR INQUIRY CLICK TO ORDER!

April 1 2011 VIEW 2011 NANCY FINLEY INTERVIEW What does Nancy Finley remember about the team's "ball girls"?

SPORTS COLLECTORS DIGEST FEATURE by Paul Ferrante March 9 2011 "A Look at the Finley-led A's with Nancy Finley Part I "A Look at the Finley-led A's with Nancy Finley Part II"

WELCOME TO NANCY FINLEY'S 1974 - The "Team of The Century" - Sports Illustrated WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONS 1972 - 1973 - 1974 Post-season playoffs 5 consecutive years!

CLOSE UP After the sale of the Oakland A's in 1980, the new owners did not want to use the rabbit "Harvey", who popped up out of the ground to supply new baseballs to the pitcher. Harvey's eyes glowed as he turned in a circle, and descended back into the ground. Whatever happened to Harvey, anyway? Look for the answer in Nancy Finley's memoir, "Dugout Daughter: Witness to Baseball History." During the World Series era in the early to mid-1970's, the stars of the hit T.V. show "Charlie's Angles" were in negotiations to visit the Oakland Coliseum, and sit next to A's owner Charlie Finley. Unfortunately, this fell through. Why? Charlie Finley never sued the City of Oakland for breaking their promises. He was not a litigator. In May 1996, the Oakland Coliseum had a Charlie Finley day, in which they presented a green and white street sign that said "CHARLIE O. FINLEY." A replica of this street sign was given to Carl A. Finley, Jr., and three of Charlie's children who attended. The original sign was to be placed in Mesa, Arizona where Spring training is held. Mesa, Arizona???   Where did Finley get the team colors, green & gold? These were the colors for his favorite football team, Notre Dame. But, is that all there is to the story? AS IT WAS WRITTEN! By Monte Moore in 1968 A's TV & radio announcer "It all started when the American League gave Charles O. Finley permission to move his baseball from Kansas City to Oakland. That occurred in mid-October of 1967 and immediately the work was cut out for the Finley organization ..."  CLICK HERE TO READ MORE From the record book: The first year the A's were in Oakland Catfish Hunter pitched a perfect game. Pitcher Vida Blue joined the team a year after they moved to Oakland. He didn't get a lot of work the first several years, but in 1971 won 24 games and lost 8, with an ERA of 1.82! Best wishes - Vida Blue           RIGHT: Harvey the Rabbit popped out of the ground to provide new balls. Pop quiz: Where was he located ... behind the pitcher's mound, or behind the batter's box? VOTE What was it about Harvey that gave Nancy Finley a lifelong fear of rabbits? What terrible fate was in store for Harvey? READ LEFT: During the Days of Glory the team frequently sold out. Rickey Henderson - champion base stealer Ricky Henderson, who spent most of his spectacular baseball career with the A's, was the most prolific base stealer in major-league history, with 1,406 stolen bases. Capable both of breaking a game open with a home run and of disrupting opponents' defenses with his base running, he was almost unique among leadoff hitters, perhaps the greatest in baseball history. In 1982 Henderson stole 130 bases, a single-season record, and in 1991 he stole his 939th base, breaking Lou Brock's career record. In 2001 he stroked his 3,000th hit and broke Ty Cobb's career record for runs scored and Babe Ruth's for walks, ultimately scoring 2,295 runs and receiving 2,190 walks. Sports Century ESPN televised a special CHARLIE O. FINLEY August 2000 Interviewed were - Former General Manager Carl A Finley "Dugout Daughter" Nancy H. Finley M.C. Hammer - Garrett Smalley Jr.       ABOVE: Miss Fire-Prevention takes a swing on "Hotpants Day" during the 1971 season.         "He was a tough guy and I learned a lot about demanding excellence and that helped mold my career. All in all, the difficulties we had improved us and we became better people. That's what it's all about." - Reggie Jackson, on the death of Charlie O. Finley. Above: Young Reggie   2009 REUNION REUNION OF KANSAS CITY ATHLETICS TEAM OF 1967 At Northern League game: KC T-Bones v. Gary Railcats Community American BallPark ABOVE: At KC T-Bones v. Gary IN Railcats game, at Community American Park, August 9 2009: From right: Taylor Finley- King, Nancy Finley-King.       ABOVE: On the field at 2009 Reunion game: From left, Nancy Finley-King, Shari Smalley, wife of the late Garrett Smalley, JR., former publisher and editor of The Kansas City Daily Record. Smalley was a huge booster of the KC Athletics.   Above: on the field at Reunion gamegame with T-Bones; Sheep in A's team colors. Charlie Finley often had sheep dyed in team colors at KC games. Petting a sheep is Taylor Finley-King, while at left mother Nancy Finley-King looks on. ABOVE: Taylor Finley-King, now 16, pitches 1st pitch at reunion game (she was 10 when she threw the first pitch at an Oakland A's game at Oakland Coliseum in Oakland, CA - see pic at right, up. RIGHT: A's Executive V.P. Carl A. Finley (center), with Miss California 1976 Linda Michelle Mouraon at his right, at an A's home game promo.   ABOVE: Nancy Finley poses with one of those famous orange baseballs, and 3 World Series Championship rings

WORLD SERIES TEAM RECORDS The Oakland A's and the St. Louis Cardinals share 2nd place for the most world series won over the last century. Below are the winning teams and the number of times they have won the series. 1. New York Yankees (26); 2. St. Louis Cardinals (11) 3. Oakland A's, Philadelphia (9) 4. Boston Red Sox and Brooklyn-Los Angeles Dodgers (6) 5. Cincinnati Reds, New York-San Francisco Giants and Pittsburgh Pirates (5) 6. Detroit Tigers (4); 7. Baltimore Orioles, Boston-Milwaukee-Atlanta Braves and Washington Senators-Minnesota Twins (3); 8. Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Cleveland Indians, Florida Marlins, New York Mets and Toronto Blue Jays (2).   THE OAKLAND ATHLETICS 1968 STARS FOR THE FIRST FULL SEASON OF PLAY IN OAKLAND Who managed the A's during their 3-time consecutive world series championships: 1972 Dick Williams 1973 Dick Williams 1974 Alvin Dark MEMORIES Charlie "O" astride Charlie "O" If you wanted to be Charlie's friend you had to kiss his ass. ABOVE - : 1966 Miss America Debbie Bryant throwing out "the first pitch" at opening night in Kansas City 1967. Catfish Hunter looks on behind. ABOVE: Catfish Hunter tries his skill on the "Milking contest" night 1967. ABOVE, from left, Ernie and Pam Fazio, Mrs. and Mr. Jim Hunter, 1967. 1979, Carl Finley, the "unseen hand" behind the team's success, with his daughter, Nancy Finley, the A's "Dugout Daughter." She came of age amid the tumult and glory of baseball history. ON THE OCCASION OF CARL FINLEY'S DEATH, U.S. SUPREME COURT JUSTICE JOHN PAUL STEVENS PAID HIM TRIBUTE IN A LETTER TO NANCY FINLEY. CLICK HERE TO READ JUSTICE STEVEN'S LETTER COMES FULL CIRCLE: A quarter of a century later, Nancy's daughter, Taylor Finley-King, age 10, throws out the first pitch at the Oakland A's game against the Detroit Tigers, April 23, 2003.     BELOW: Taylor Finley-King, age 10, gets a hug from legendary Reggie Jackson. Taylor is the grand-daughter of A's Vice-President Carl Finley, who managed the team's affairs during the big years. It will be a long time before young Taylor understands how Jackson and the Team of The Century imprinted a legacy of sacrifice and excellence that will affect her life.   T-SHIRTS COMMEMORATING 3 WORLD SERIES AVAILABLE: FOR INFO E-MAIL YOUR MESSAGE     Coming Soon! UNTOLD STORIES OF THE OAKLAND A's Who were the "ball girls"? During and leading up to the Great Years that saw three World Series championships ... there was a pair of eyes and ears at the Coliseum seldom noticed by others ... Carl Finley's pre-teen daughter, Nancy. Now, Nancy Finley tells the "untold story" of growing up and coming of age amid the glitter and glory of baseball history. She answers ... From what web of corruption did Charlie struggle to rescue the team? How did that web of corruption consign the team to bottom place year after year? How did Charlie turn it around and build the team destined for Glory? Who was the "unseen hand" behind the team? Whatever happened to Harvey The Rabbit? What was it about Harvey that gave Nancy a lifelong fear of rabbits? Who were the A's "Ball Girls"? Who was in the abandoned bank vault in Oakland in the middle of the night? What were they doing there? Who voted Charlie's proxy at annual owners' meetings? And Why? What happened on Flight 85 that caused such a rhubarb? What is a "rhubarb," anyway? Who whispered in Charlie's ear about which players to acquire? What "gift" was Charlie born with that explains his strange fondness for colors? How many times, exactly, did Charlie fire Alvin Dark in one night? Who got in a fistfight with Charlie O' the mule in right field? Who won? What happens to the clubhouse banquet food when the team loses? What mistake was made on the 1972 World Series trophy and where is it today? What prominent baseball exec tried to French 16-year old Nancy at the ballpark? What became of Charlie "O" the Mule? What secret did Charlie see in the eyes of Vida Blue? What midnight meeting took place in a car in Kansas City that changed the destiny of the team? Why did Charlie drive a bus into left field and set it on fire? What is worse: getting caught stealing second, or getting caught shoplifting? What is the truth behind the Mike Andrews affair? Nancy Finley tells all ... and she has a lot to tell! COMING SOON! NANCY FINLEY's STORY DUGOUT DAUGHTER Witness to Baseball History And The Untold Story of the Oakland As - "The Team of the Century" With Chris De Benedetti - co-writer

 

Visit the Wikipedia Page (Carl Finley)

Seldom mentioned when conversation gets around to the A's great years is the name of another Finley ... in this case Charlie's cousin CARL A. FINLEY.

Carl did not seek attention to himself, but he played a huge role in the success of the A's, as General Manager and Vice-President of operations throughout the 70's. And unlike the controversial team owner, Carl was liked and respected by all who came in contact with him in the baseball world.

It is said, "Carl did the work of six, eight, even 25 individuals." Take a look at any MLB yearbook at the present time, at the number of front office employees the team carries, compared to the A's of the '70's; where Carl and three or four others handled all of the front office functions, there are now around 80 people!

In those days they didn't have an entire organization to handle World Series tickets; Carl and his teenage-daughter simply rented a vacant bank building in Oakland, and stored the tickets in the vault. Then, in the wee hours of the night they would slip into the vault and undertake the enormous task of opening envelopes from thousands of fans seeking to purchase tickets. Just the two of them!

During those years Carl was physically at the Oakland Coliseum on a daily basis.

Charlie counted on Carl and used him as a "sounding board" in daily early-morning phone conferences with him, from his Kansas farm. During these conferences Charlie liked to brainstorm ideas, and he typically trusted only Carl to hear them. These regular early-morning phone talks continued for many years after Charlie sold the tem.

In 1976 Charlie handed his voting proxy as a team owner to Carl, so Carl could vote in Charlie's stead at the annual MLB owner's meetings. Charlie stopped attending these meetings due to his conflict with then-commissioner Bowie Kuhn.

From 1976 on Carl took over even more day-to-day responsibilities.

At Billy Martin's (A's manager) behest, when the A's were sold to the Haas family, it was agreed Carl would remain as a V.P. Carl assisted the Haas family with the transition, and preparing for their first full season in 1981.

Before Carl joined the organization, he was a school principal in Dallas, Texas. Charlie begain calling him and urging him to drop everything and come to Kansas City to help him with the team. Though Carl initially resisted, he eventually gave in and resigned his position with the school district, packed up his family (wife Helen and daughter Nancy) and flew to Kansas City to begin a new life. Charlie quickly grew to depend on Carl to keep the organization functioning as smoothly as possible during those turbulent times.

Carl's daughter, Nancy, is currently writing her story of coming of age with baseball history, her father, and the greatest team of the century.

Nancy may be contacted by e-mail (see link at top)