The 1969 Royals

The Kansas City Royals entered the league in 1969, two years after the Athletics departed for Oakland. They were the quickest of the 1969 expansion class to find success, starting with their first season!

In their infinite wisdom, the American League put both expansion teams (Royals and Pilots) in the same division, guaranteeing that one of the 4 expansion teams would not finish last. Not only did the Royals not finish last, they outplayed the Chicago White Sox, to finish in 4th place in the 6-team division.

In their first 7 seasons, the Royals finished in 4th place 3 times and in SECOND place 3 times. Beginning in 1976, they finished in FIRST place 3 consecutive years, and in 4 of 5 years.

Contrast that to the Padres, Expos, and Pilots:
Padres: Finished in last place for their first 6 seasons, and no higher than 4th until 1984.
Expos: Finished 6th or 5th (thank you Phillies!) in their first 4 seasons, and no higher than 4th until 1979.
Pilots/Brewers: Finished 6th or 5th in 8 of their first 9 seasons (finishing in 4th place in 1970!), but no higher than 4th until 1978.

The Royals finished with a 69-93 record in their first season. They found a few good players that first year:
Lou Piniella led the team with a .282 batting average, and won the Rookie of the Year award.
Joe Foy improved upon his previous season with the Red Sox, leading the team with 71 RBI.
After 2 bad seasons with the Orioles, Wally Bunker regained his old form (if only for 1 season) and posted 12 wins.

Although this is the 1970 card, the photo is most likely of the '69 team.


Here is the pitching staff, in order of innings pitched:

Wally Bunker, Dick Drago, Bill Butler, and Roger Nelson were the top 4 starters, each pitching 190+ innings. Bunker and Drago both had double-digit wins, while Butler led the staff with 156 strikeouts. Drago also appeared in 15 games in relief.

Jim Rooker started 22 of his 28 games as the #5 starter. Mike Hedlund was a swingman, pitching 34 games, but making only 16 starts.The remaining hurlers each pitched less than 100 innings, and made no starts (except for 4 by Steve Jones, and 2 each by Dave Morehead and Chris Zachary). Moe Drabowsky was the team’s closer, notching 11 saves. Tom Burgmeier was the top southpaw in the bullpen.

Rounding out the bullpen were Dave Wickersham, Steve Jones (pictured on a Rookie Stars card below), and Dave Morehead. Pitching less than 25 innings were Don O’Riley, Galen Cisco, Chris Zachary, Jerry Cram, and Al Fitzmorris.


The Starting Eight:

Ellie Rodriguez started 83 games behind the plate. Mike Fiore shared the first base job with Chuck Harrison, with Mike getting 88 starts. Jerry Adair started 105 games at 2nd base and another 8 at shortstop. Jackie Hernandez started 139 games at shortstop, the most for any player at one position.

Joe Foy started 107 games at third base. ROY Lou Piniella started 122 games in left field. The other 2 outfield spots were a mix-and-match. Bob Oliver started 44 games in center field and 41 in right. Pat Kelly also started 44 games in center, and 60 in right. Others below also made several dozen starts in the outfield.


The subs, in order of at-bats:

Ed Kirkpatrick was the fourth outfielder, starting between 20 and 30 games at each of the 3 spots. He also caught 8 games. Paul Schaal made 45 starts at 3rd base, mostly in July and August. Chuck Harrison made 50 starts at first base, with 20 of them in May when Fiore was out of the lineup. Rookie Buck Martinez join the team in mid-June, and was the backup catcher until rosters were expanded in September.

Juan Rios was the backup middle infielder, starting 30 games at 2B and 10 at shortstop. Joe Keough started 17 games each in center and right fields, but spent 6 weeks in June and July back in the minors. Hawk Taylor was primarily a pinch-hitter, only starting 2 games behind the plate in mid-April. Topps decided to call him “Bob” on his 1969 card. Jim Campanis was the early-season backup catcher. He played in 26 games (18 starts) through June 1st, then was sent down in favor of Martinez.

Luis Alcaraz spent the season in triple-A, then after his September call-up started 18 of the last 21 games at 2nd base. Fran Healey also played in AAA for the season, then played 6 games (3 starts) in September. Billy Harris also played in triple-A for most of the season, but made 5 pinch-hitting appearances for the Royals – 2 in June and 3 in September. Joe Gordon led this bunch to an unexpected fourth-place finish, then resigned after the season. He had previously managed the Indians, Tigers, and Athletics from 1958-61.


These had Royals cards but did not play for them in 1969:

Dennis Ribant was sold to the Cardinals during spring training. Jon Warden pitched in 28 games for the Tigers in 1968, but never played in the majors after that. He pitched for the Royals’ AAA team in 1969 and their class-A team in 1970.

Dave Nicholson’s last regular major-league action was with the Astros in 1966. He also appeared in 10 games for the Braves during a September 1967 call-up, but spent all of 1968 and 1969 in triple-A. Steve Whitaker was traded to the Pilots in pre-season for Lou Piniella.


Rookie Cards:

Every one of these 15 players appeared for the Royals in 1969. Steve Jones appeared in 16 games (mostly in relief) then was sent down to AAA in mid-June, returning in September. George Spriggs appeared in 23 games in April and September, mostly as a pinch-hitter.

Don O’Riley pitched 18 games in relief, from late-June to late-July, and again in September. Dennis Paepke played in 12 games (7 starts) in June. Fred Rico played in 12 games (9 starts) in September.

Scott Northey was one-and-done in 1969, making 16 starts in center field during his September call-up. Unlike the other six in this last section, Al Fitzmorris had a long career (10 years), starting with 4 games in September.

Transactions from team inception until the end of 1969: 

08/14/68 - Purchased Galen Cisco from the Red Sox.
09/08/68 - Purchased Orlando Pena from the Pilots.

10/15/68 expansion draft:
From the Red Sox: Joe Foy, Dave Morehead, Jerry Adair
From the Yankees: Jim Rooker, Ellie Rodriguez, Steve Whitaker
From the Orioles: Roger Nelson, Mike Fiore, Wally Bunker, Moe Drabowsky
From the Senators: Steve Jones, Ike Brookens
From the Indians: Billy Harris, Mike Hedlund, Fran Healy
From the Tigers: Jon Warden, Bill Butler, Dick Drago
From the White Sox: Al Fitzmorris, Hoyt Wilhelm, Scott Northey
From the Twins: Bob Oliver, Pat Kelly, Jackie Hernandez, Jerry Cram
From the Athletics: Joe Keough, Don O’Riley
From the Angels: Paul Schaal, Tom Burgmeier


10/16/68 - Purchased George Spriggs from the Pirates.

10/18/68 - Purchased John Gelnar from the Pirates.
10/18/68 - Purchased Chuck Harrison and Dave Nicholson from the Braves.

10/21/68 - Purchased Luis Alcaraz from the Dodgers.
10/21/68 - Purchased Dave Wickersham from the Pirates.
10/21/68 - Purchased Chris Zachary from the Astros.

12/02/68 - Drafted Fred Rico from the Orioles in the rule 5 draft.
12/02/68 - Drafted Hawk Taylor from the Angels in the rule 5 draft.
12/02/68 - Drafted Rich Severson from the White Sox in the minor league draft.

12/12/68 - Traded Hoyt Wilhelm to the Angels for Ed Kirkpatrick and Dennis Paepke.

12/15/68 - Acquired Jim Campanis from the Dodgers.
12/15/68 - Purchased Dennis Ribant from the Tigers.

12/16/68 - Acquired Buck Martinez from the Astros.

03/25/69 - Purchased Juan Rios from the Expos.

03/29/69 - Sold Dennis Ribant to the Cardinals.

04/01/69 - Traded John Gelnar and Steve Whitaker to the Pilots for Lou Piniella.
04/01/69 - Acquired Bill Kelso from the Reds.

06/05/69 - Traded Bill Kelso to the Twins.

08/12/69 - Purchased Billy Sorrell from the Mets.

10/21/69 - Traded Dave Wickersham to the Braves for Ron Tompkins.

12/01/69 - Drafted Ken Wright from the Red Sox in the rule 5 draft.
12/01/69 - Drafted Aurelio Monteagudo from the Cardinals in the minor league draft.

12/03/69 - Traded Joe Foy to the Mets for Bob Johnson and Amos Otis.

The 1969 Expos

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Here is a photo of the 1969 Montreal Expos. They posted a 52-110 record in their first season, 10 games better than the expansion Mets in 1962.

It appears that the Expos started the season with a rotation of Mudcat Grant, Bill Stoneman, Larry Jaster, and rookie Carl Morton, with rookie Mike Wegener getting the odd spot start. By mid-May, rookie Jerry Robertson had replaced Morton in the rotation, and a month later, Grant and Jaster were out, replaced by Howie Reed and rookie Steve Renko. In mid-July, Gary Waslewski replaced Reed.

Bill Stoneman, Jerry Robertson, and Mike Wegener were the "Big Three" starting pitchers for the expansion Expos. In only his 3rd big-league season, Stoneman was the ace of this staff, leading the team in wins (11), starts (36), innings pitched (235) and strikeouts (185).

Robertson and Wegener were alike in many ways. Both were making their major-league debut in 1969, both had only 5 wins, and were very close in starts, innings pitched, and strikeouts. All 3 of these pitchers were also used occasionally in relief.

Dan McGinn was the team’s closer, notching 6 saves. His 132 innings were 4th on the team (after the 3 starters above). McGinn appeared in 74 games, with only 1 start.

Howie Reed (6-7) and Gary Waslewski (3-7) both had unimpressive records, and pitched in 30 games, starting half of them. Waslewski came over from the Cardinals in mid-June in exchange for Mudcat Grant.

Other key members of the bullpen were Don Shaw (65 innings in 35 games, 1 start ) and veteran Elroy Face (59 innings, 44 games, no starts) who at age 41, was in the final year of his 16-year career (which ended with his August 15th release).

Steve Renko was acquired in mid-June from the Mets in exchange for Donn Clendenon. He was 6-7 in his debut season. Other starters getting some time in on the ground floor were Larry Jaster (1-6 in 26 games, 11 starts), Mudcat Grant (1-6 in 10 starts prior to his mid-June trade), and rookie Carl Morton (0-3 in 5 starts). Morton was sent down in early May, but stormed back in 1970 to win the NL Rookie of the Year award.

Others pitching only in relief were veteran Dick Radatz (0-4 in 34 innings), Carroll Sembera (0-2 in 33 innings), native French-Canadian Claude Raymond (who was acquired in mid-August from the Braves and became a fan favorite), and Steve Shea (15 innings over 10 games).

These eight had the most playing time at each position. Ron Brand made 79 starts behind the plate, sharing the catching duties with ex-Astros teammate John Bateman. Bob Bailey started 83 games at 1st base, sharing the job initially with Donn Clendenon, then with Ron Fairly. By mid-August Bob was relegated to the bench in favor of Fairly.

Gary Sutherland went from a seldom-used utilityman in 1968 for the Phillies, to starting 138 games for the Expos in '69. Bobby Wine also came over from the Phillies, and (after Maury Wills was traded away) started 110 of the final 112 games at shortstop.

Rookie Coco Laboy started 147 games at the hot corner. Mack Jones started 120 games in left field, while smacking 22 homers. The Expos employed a carousel of 10 players in center field. Adolfo Phillips led the way with 48 starts, almost all of them in the 6 weeks following his mid-June acquisition from the Cubs.

Rusty Staub started 154 games in right field (the most by any Expo at any one position). Staub was acquired from the Astros in January in exchange for Jesus Alou and Donn Clendenon. When Clendenon refused to report, the Expos sent pitcher Jack Billingham to Houston.

Here are the 2nd-line batters. Ron Fairly came over from the Dodgers in mid-season, and started most of the games at first base afterwards, along with 18 starts in center field. John Bateman started 64 games, splitting the catching duties with Brand. Ty Cline was the team's 4th outfielder (primarily sharing center field with Phillips). After 2 seasons as the Pirates' 3rd baseman, Maury Wills started 46 of the first 50 games at shortstop, then was traded back to the Dodgers in mid-June.

Donn Clendenon was drafted from the Pirates.  He was ticketed to the Astros in the Staub deal, but refused to go.  Excellent decision, Donn! After 21 starts at 1st base and another 9 in left field, he was traded to the Mets for pitcher Steve Renko and infielder Kevin Collins. Clendenon was the MVP of the '69 World Series, batting .357 with 3 home runs.

Jose Herrera began the season in the minors, but played 47 games in the final 3 months, mostly as a LF/CF/PH. Don Bosch was the team's center fielder early-on, and after playing in 49 games he was sent to the minors in early-July, never to return to the majors. Kevin Collins arrived in the Donn Clendenon trade in mid-June, and started the 15 games at 3rd base that Laboy didn't.

Manny Mota shared the center field job with Bosch and Cline until his mid-June trade to the Dodgers. John Boccabella was the 3rd "B" in the Expos' catching corps.  He played in 40 games, with most of his 19 starts coming in May and June.

Angel "Remy" Hermoso played in triple-A most of the season.  He started 16 consecutive games at 2nd base in mid-July (presumably Sutherland was on the DL), and returned in September. Jim Fairey was selected from the Dodgers, but spent the '69 season in triple-A.  He played in 20 games during a September call-up.

Garry Jestadt pinch-hit 5 times in late September, and made his only start on 10/1. After 8 1/2 seasons with the Phillies, Gene Mauch got canned in mid-June 1968.  No matter, he scored the skipper's job with the Expos, where he stayed for 7 seasons. Jack Billingham and Jesus Alou were selected in the expansion draft, but traded to the Astros for Rusty Staub prior to the season.

Also playing in 1969 were pitchers Leo Marentette (3 games) and Bob Reynolds (1), 2B Marv Staehle (6) and outfielder Don Hahn (4).

The Expos had 3 Rookie Stars cards in the '69 set. Floyd Wicker played in 41 games, mostly as a pinch-hitter.

The back of the team card shows Rusty Staub and Bill Stoneman leading the team in most categories.


25-man roster analysis:

(There is some overlap by a few days on 1 or 2 players)


Transactions from team inception until the end of 1969:

10/14/68 expansion draft: (also here)

From the Mets: Don Shaw, Ernie McAnally (P), John Glass (P)
From the Phillies: Gary Sutherland, Mike Wegener, Larry Jackson (P)
(When Jackson retired, the Phillies sent Bobby Wine as a replacement.)
From the Pirates: Manny Mota, Donn Clendenon, Maury Wills
From the Cubs: Bill Stoneman, Garry Jestadt, John Boccabella
From the Cardinals: Jerry Robertson, Larry Jaster, Coco Laboy
From the Braves: Skip Guinn, Remy Hermoso, Carl Morton
From the Reds: Mack Jones, Dan McGinn, Jimy Williams
From the Astros: John Bateman, Jose Herrera, Ron Brand
From the Giants: Jesus Alou, Bob Reynolds, Ty Cline
From the Dodgers: Jack Billingham, Jim Grant, Jim Fairey

10/16/68 - Purchased Don Bosch from the Mets.

10/21/68 - Purchased Bob Bailey from the Dodgers.

12/02/68 - Drafted Don Hahn from the Giants in the rule 5 draft.
12/02/68 - Drafted infielder Juan Rios from the Mets in the rule 5 draft.
12/02/68 - Drafted Carroll Sembera from the Astros in the rule 5 draft.
12/02/68 - Drafted Floyd Wicker from the Cardinals in the rule 5 draft.

01/22/69 - Traded Jesus Alou and Donn Clendenon to the Astros for Rusty Staub. When Clendenon refused to report, the Expos sent Jack Billingham and pitcher Skip Guinn to the Astros to complete the deal.

03/25/69 - Sold Juan Rios to the Kansas City Royals.

04/03/69 - Purchased pitchers Leo Marentette, Howie Reed and Steve Shea from the Astros.

04/27/69 - Signed Roy Face as a free agent.

06/03/69 - Traded Jim Grant to the Cardinals for Gary Waslewski.

06/11/69 - Traded Manny Mota and Maury Wills to the Dodgers for Ron Fairly and infielder Paul Popovich.
06/11/69 - Traded Paul Popovich to the Cubs for pitcher Jack Lamabe and Adolfo Phillips. Lamabe finished out the season (and his career) in the minors.

06/15/69 - Purchased Dick Radatz from the Tigers.
06/15/69 - Traded Donn Clendenon to the Mets for Steve Renko, Kevin Collins, and 2 minor-leaguers.

08/15/69 - Released Roy Face.

08/19/69 - Purchased Claude Raymond from the Braves.

08/26/69 - Released Dick Radatz.

09/13/69 - Acquired infielder Marv Staehle from the Pilots for a player to be named (Floyd Wicker).

12/02/69 - Traded Larry Jaster to the Braves for pitcher Jim Britton.

12/03/69 - Traded Jerry Robertson to the Tigers for pitcher Joe Sparma.

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The 1969 Pilots

Here are the 1969 Seattle Pilots, the one-year wonders documented by Jim Bouton in his book "Ball Four" (shown below). I read my brother's paperback version during a cross-country bus trip in 1971, and a few years ago I found the hardback version (below) at a used book store.

More than any of the other three 1969 expansion teams, the Pilots were a collection of over-the-hill veterans and low-talent youngsters. The only diamond in the rough was Lou Piniella, and he was traded during spring training. (On second thought, Mike Marshall and Marty Pattin also had good careers, but the rest were nothing special.)

This is the only baseball card showing the Seattle Pilots team. There were no team cards in the 1969 Topps set. The Pilots were sold and moved to Milwaukee early in 1970, too late for Topps to make adjustments, so they are all shown as Pilots (not Brewers) in the 1970 set.

Before continuing, you may want to check out this post on the 1969 AL expansion that I blogged a few years ago.

There are a lot of players shown below, but many did not last the entire season. A LONG transaction list is at the end of this post.


Starting Pitchers:

Here are the starting pitchers, in order of innings pitched. Gene Brabender was acquired at the end of Spring Training from the Orioles for Chico Salmon. He led the starters in games (40), starts (29), innings pitched (202), and wins (13).

Marty Pattin, Fred Talbot, Mike Marshall, and Steve Barber each pitched in 20 or more games. They were primarily starters, but also worked out of the bullpen on occasion.

George Brunet was picked up from the Angels at the end of July, and started 11 of his 12 games. John Gelnar was primarily a relief pitcher, but also started 10 of his 39 games. Gary Bell started 11 games, then was traded to the White Sox in early June for Bob Locker.


Relievers:

These are the primary relief pitchers (all appearing in more than 50 games), in order of innings pitched. Diego Segui was the team's closer, leading the staff with 12 saves. He also started 8 of his 66 games. Knuckleballer Jim Bouton pitched 92 innings over 57 games, then was traded to the Astros for Dooley Womack. Bob Locker and John O'Donoghue each pitched 70+ innings over 50+ games, all in relief.


 Other Pitchers:

Whereas the first 12 pitchers in this review each played in more than 10 games and pitched more than 60 innings, all the players in this section pitched less than 35 innings, and (except for Jack Aker) in less than 10 games. They are shown by innings pitched, from Bob Meyer's 32 innings to Jerry Stephenson's 2 innings.

Aker, Dooley Womack, John Morris, and Stephenson were used strictly in relief, while Meyer was primarily a starter, and Garry Roggenburk, Skip Lockwood, and Darrell Brandon were the swing men.


Regulars:

The Pilots did a lot of experimenting until finding the best lineup, but these 8 played the most at their positions. Only McNertney, Mincher, and Davis played more than 100 games at a position.

Jerry McNertney went from 3rd string catcher with the White Sox to starting 109 games behind the plate for Seattle. Don Mincher was on his 3rd team in 4 years, and was the team's lone all-star representative. He led the Pilots with 25 homers. John Donaldson started 89 games at 2nd base after his mid-June acquisition from the Athletics. Ray Oyler was the regular shortstop until the final month of the season.

Tommy Harper (a corner outfielder during his years with the Reds and Indians) started 56 of the first 58 games at 2nd base, then moved to center field when Donaldson was acquired. Harper was the team's regular 3rd baseman in August and September, starting 58 games there. Tommy Davis started 103 games in left field (85 more than his backup).

In his first season as a regular, Wayne Comer hit 15 home runs and started 90 games in center field. He also started another 40 games in right field (mostly in September). Right field was a melting pot with Mike Hegan (59 starts, mostly in the first half of the season), Comer (40), and Steve Hovley (40).


 Primary Bench Players:

These are the primary reserves, in order of plate appearances (minimum 125): Steve Hovley was the 3rd outfielder, actually making more starts than Hegan, although he was split between center and right fields. Gus Gil was the backup 2B-3B, but was mostly used as a pinch-hitter in the season's final months.

Rich Rollins was the starting 3rd baseman for the first 2 months, then rode the bench when Harper shifted from 2B to 3B. Ron Clark started 29 games at shortstop as Oyler's backup.

Greg Goossen came up as a catcher with the Mets, but was the backup 1st baseman with the Pilots. He started 29 games at 1st (all in the final 2 months) as Mincher needed more rest. John Kennedy appeared in 61 games, mostly as the backup 3B-SS. He missed all of July and August.

Steve Whitaker played in 69 games as a backup corner outfielder and pinch-hitter. He was demoted to triple-A for the month of August. Veteran catcher Jim Pagliaroni wrapped up his 11-year career with the Pilots. He was acquired from Oakland in late May, and replaced Larry Haney as the backup catcher.


Other Bench Players (less than 100 at-bats):

Here are the rest of the subs, by number of at-bats. Danny Walton and Sandy Valdespino were acquired from the Astros on August 30th for Tommy Davis. Merritt Ranew played in triple-A in April but spent the rest of the year with the Pilots, mostly as a pinch-hitter. It was his last season.

Early-season backup catcher Larry Haney is shown in his infamous "left-handed catcher" pose. (His 1968 card photo was flipped.) Jim Gosger began the season as the starting center fielder, but by late April had lost his job to Wayne Comer, and was sent to the Mets in late July to complete an earlier trade.

In mid-May, Jose Vidal was traded to the Yankees for Dick Simpson. Dick started a dozen games in center field for the Pilots. Mike Ferraro made 5 pinch-hitting appearances in April, then was traded to the Orioles at month's end for John O'Donoghue.


Others:

Miguel Fuentes (26 IP) and Dick Baney (18 IP) pitched briefly for the Pilots.  Long-time Cardinals' 3rd base coach Joe Schultz got his only managing job with the 1969 Pilots. He returned to coaching in 1970. Rollie Sheldon was cut in spring training, and Chico Salmon was traded to the Orioles for Gene Brabender just before the season started.

The lone Pilots Rookies card in the 1969 set.  According to Ball Four, Lou Piniella's attitude got him traded off the team.  As a rookie, he proclaimed he wasn't going back to the minors, so the team should trade him rather than send him down.  He was traded to the Royals for Steve Whitaker, and won the 1969 Rookie of the Year award.  Marv Staehle did not play for the Pilots.


Others who played for the Pilots were shortstops Fred Stanley and Gordy Lund, catcher Freddie Velazquez, outfielder Billy Williams (not the Cubs' all-star), and pitchers Gary Timberlake, Dick Bates, and Bill Edgerton.

Long-time veteran pitchers given a look-see in spring training, but not making the team were Jim O'Toole, Bill Stafford, and Bill Henry.  (Actually, Henry made the team, but retired days before the start of the season.)

Here is the back of the 1970 team card.  It seems they could have dispensed with the last column ("year the record was set").

Transactions from the team's inception to the end of 1969:

(The Pilots made deals during the 1968 season to stock the Seattle AAA team they shared with the Angels)

04/01/68 - Purchased Marv Staehle from the Indians.

05/01/68 - Acquired Gus Gil from the Indians.

06/14/68 - Purchased Mike Hegan from the Yankees.

07/09/68 - Purchased pitcher Orlando Pena from the Indians.

09/08/68 - Sold Orlando Pena to the Royals.

09/08/68 - Purchased Jose Vidal from the Indians.

10/15/68 expansion draft:
Drafted Don Mincher from the California Angels as the 2nd pick
Drafted Tommy Harper from the Cleveland Indians as the 3rd pick
Drafted Ray Oyler from the Detroit Tigers as the 5th pick
Drafted Jerry McNertney from the Chicago White Sox as the 7th pick
Drafted Buzz Stephen from the Minnesota Twins as the 9th pick
Drafted Chico Salmon from the Cleveland Indians as the 11th pick
Drafted Diego Segui from the Oakland Athletics as the 14th pick
Drafted Tommy Davis from the Chicago White Sox as the 16th pick
Drafted Marty Pattin from the California Angels as the 18th pick
Drafted Gerry Schoen from the Washington Senators as the 20th pick
Drafted Gary Bell from the Boston Red Sox as the 21st pick
Drafted Jack Aker from the Oakland Athletics as the 24th pick
Drafted Rich Rollins from the Minnesota Twins as the 26th pick
Drafted Lou Piniella from the Cleveland Indians as the 28th pick
Drafted Dick Bates from the Washington Senators as the 30th pick
Drafted Larry Haney from the Baltimore Orioles as the 32nd pick
Drafted Dick Baney from the Boston Red Sox as the 33rd pick
Drafted Steve Hovley from the California Angels as the 35th pick
Drafted Steve Barber from the New York Yankees as the 37th pick
Drafted Wayne Comer from the Detroit Tigers as the 41st pick
Drafted Darrell Brandon from the Boston Red Sox as the 44th pick
Drafted Skip Lockwood from the Oakland Athletics as the 46th pick
Drafted Gary Timberlake from the New York Yankees as the 48th pick
Drafted John Morris from the Baltimore Orioles as the 52nd pick
Drafted Mike Marshall from the Detroit Tigers as the 53rd pick
Drafted Jim Gosger from the Oakland Athletics as the 55th pick
Drafted Mike Ferraro from the New York Yankees as the 57th pick

10/21/68 - Purchased Jim Bouton from the Yankees.

11/13/68 - Purchased John Kennedy from the Yankees.

12/02/68 - Drafted Freddie Velazquez from the Padres in the 1968 rule 5 draft.

02/05/69 - Acquired Greg Goossen from the Mets for a player to be named later (Jim Gosger 07/14/69)

03/31/69 - Traded Chico Salmon to the Orioles for Gene Brabender and shortstop Gordy Lund.

04/01/69 - Traded Lou Piniella to the Royals for John Gelnar and Steve Whitaker.

04/17/69 - Signed Jerry Stephenson as a free agent.

04/30/69 - Traded Mike Ferraro and Gerry Schoen to the Orioles for John O'Donoghue and 2 minor leaguers.

05/19/69 - Traded Jose Vidal to the Yankees for Dick Simpson.

05/20/69 - Traded Jack Aker to the Yankees for Fred Talbot.

05/27/69 - Purchased Jim Pagliaroni from the Athletics. Sold Freddie Velazquez to the Athletics.

06/08/69 - Traded Gary Bell to the White Sox for Bob Locker.

06/14/69 - Traded Larry Haney to the Athletics for John Donaldson.

06/23/69 - Purchased Garry Roggenburk from the Red Sox.

07/08/69 - Sold Darrell Brandon to the Twins.

07/11/69 - Purchased Ron Clark from the Twins.

07/31/69 - Purchased George Brunet from the Angels.

08/24/69 - Traded Jim Bouton to the Astros for Dooley Womack and pitcher Roric Harrison.

08/29/69 - Traded Fred Talbot to the Athletics for Bob Meyer and catcher Pete Koegel.

08/30/69 - Traded Tommy Davis to the Astros for Sandy Valdespino and Danny Walton.

09/08/69 - Purchased shortstop Fred Stanley from the Astros.

09/13/69 - Traded infielder Marv Staehle to the Expos for Floyd Wicker.

11/01/69 - Traded Merritt Ranew to the Senators for infielder Frank Coggins.

11/21/69 - Sold Mike Marshall to the Astros.

11/24/69 - Released Jim Pagliaroni.

12/04/69 - Traded George Brunet to the Senators for pitcher Dave Baldwin.

12/07/69 - Traded Ray Oyler and Diego Segui to the Athletics for infielder Ted Kubiak and pitcher George Lauzerique.

12/12/69 - Traded Dick Simpson and Steve Whitaker to the Giants for pitcher Bob Bolin.


Next 1969 team review: Montreal Expos

Also check out my 1967 team reviews here.