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Finley never stops looking for new players or trading for established veterans. "No team is ever set," he says, "even a winner." Of the 26 players on the winning team in the 1972 World Series, only nine are still in Oakland uniform: Jackson, Rudi, Tenace, Bando, Campaneris, Blue, Fingers, Southpaw Ken Holtzman and Reserve Outfielder Angel Mangual.
This year Finley has had to make up for the loss of Catfish Hunter, who won 25 games for him last season. After an arbitrator found Finley guilty of breach of contract, Hunter got his release and signed with the Yankees in a record $3 million deal. So far, his departure has not hurt. Finley has since traded for Veteran Hurlers Jim Perry, Sonny Siebert, Stan Bahnsen and Dick Bosnian, and the A's have won 23 of the 38 games these pitchers started.
The end result of Finley's wheeling and dealing is the best team in baseball. Today's A's have speed, brilliant defense, clutch hitting, good starting pitching and an excellent bullpen. Last week the team held a 6½ game lead in the American League West. The players are the first to praise Finley's work. "He's a hell of a general manager," says Tenace. Adds Jackson: "Charlie will do anything to make his team better." That said, they still hate Finley with a passion. Mention his name in the clubhouse, and the quick response is a vehement "Screw that bastard!"
The roster of complaints ranges from the trivial to the relatively serious: hotels on the road are rarely good enough; instead of charter flights after night games, players often have to grouse their way onto morning flights on scheduled airlines; no stamps are supplied for answering fan mail; torn pants and two-year-old shirts are handed out in the clubhouse; and there is no free telephone in the clubhouse for local calls. "The problem is simple," says one player. "Charlie Finley is the cheapest son of a bitch in baseball."
Says Finley: "Those complaints are a lot of horse shit. The guys are a bunch of spoiled brats. There isn't a phone in the clubhouse because it's against major league rules to have a phone so handy —gamblers could call. We stay in the same hotels as other teams. I'm not paying $5,000 extra for a charter flight when the team is already going first class. If they want stamps, they can have as many as they need if they'll bring the mail up to the office. I know one thing. They're so selfish and lazy they won't answer any fan mail. Hell, there'll be so few letters, I'll lick 'em myself."