The first era of the A’s in Oakland, known as the “Swingin’ A’s,” won three consecutive World Series championships in the early 1970s, something only one other Major League franchise (the Yankees) has ever been able to equal. The A’s 1972 World Series win was also the Bay Area’s first professional championship.
The 1972 team, known as The Mustache Gang, won 93 games and another division title in 1972. Facial hair aside, this team was about dominant pitching. Five starters posted ERAs better than 3.00. The leader of the pack was Catfish Hunter, who had arguably the best season of his Hall of Fame career, going 21-7 with a 2.04 ERA.
Catcher Gene Tenace belted four homers in the series, including two in the team’s Game 1 victory. The A’s won the World Series in seven games—six of them decided by one run—and Tenace won the MVP Award. Oakland returned home to be celebrated by the entire Bay Area, which had never seen one of its teams win a championship in any major professional sport before the A’s.