Black Ace Vida Blue Passes At Age 73 | The Lethal Lefty Was A Generational Talent

On Sunday, the baseball community dealt with the loss of former MLB great, Vida Blue.

The former Oakland Athletics star pitcher died on Saturday, the team announced. Blue was 73.

Many current and former players paid their respect to Blue on social media.

One of the greatest players to suit up for the green and yellow, Blue had a remarkable career during his time with Oakland.

This Black Ace was a flamethrower on the mound from the left-hand side and as a batter, he was a nightmare to face.

He would go on to play for the San Francisco Giants and the Kansas City Royals as well.

During his career, he was a six-time All-Star, AL MVP, AL Cy Young winner, and a three-time World Series champion with the A’s.

Blue finished his career with a 209-161 record, with a 3.27 ERA and 2,175 strikeouts.

This man was a force on the mound and is no doubt one of the best Black pitchers to pitch in the MLB.

Oakland’s manager Mark Kotsay got the opportunity to speak with Blue recently when the organization celebrated the 1973 World Championship team.

“Always spirited and fun-loving,” Kotsay said. “He loved the Oakland Athletics. The impact he had on this organization is felt to this day. It’s definitely a sad day. You feel for his family.”

Vida Blue had a memorable career in Oakland

The Kansas City Athletics drafted Blue in the second round of the 1967 MLB draft and he went on to make his MLB debut two years later at the age of 19.

During the 1970 season, Blue achieved something not many pitchers in the league get a chance to do. He threw a no-hitter on September 21 against the Minnesota Twins and became the fourth youngest pitcher to throw a no-hitter.

In 1971, Blue became the youngest MVP in the American League or National at 21 years of age. That season, he had a 24-8 record with an AL leading 1.82 ERA. He threw eight shutouts and struck out a total of 301 batters.

Blue also went on to win the Cy Young Award that season as well.
The Louisiana native had three seasons where he won 20 or more games during his time with the A’s and in his last season with the team in 1977, he was named to his third All-Star team.

In 2019, Blue was inducted into the Athletics Hall of Fame, a well-deserved honor.

Blue’s career after the A’s

After the 1977 season, Blue joined the San Francisco Giants a year later and spent four seasons there.

He was named to three All-Star teams as a member of the Giants and put together an impressive season in his first year with the team in 1978.

That season he went 18-10 on the bump with a 2.79 ERA. He finished in the Cy Young Award voting.

After his tenure with the Giants, Blue spent two seasons with the Kansas City Royals and finished his career with the Giants spending the 1985 and 1986 season there.

Looking back at his career, Blue was a competitor and left it all out there on the mound whenever he pitched.

There’s a reason why he had so much success during his career. None of this happens by accident.

He put the work in from the time he was drafted until the time he threw his last pitch.

We will always remember you Blue and your accomplishments on the field and what you did as far as helping pave the way for Black pitchers will never go unnoticed.