OAKLAND — Former major league pitcher Ed Sprague Sr., who grew up in Hayward and later made the first relief pitching appearance in Oakland A’s history, has died. He was 74.
Sprague, a right-hander who played eight seasons with four teams, was an original member of the A’s in 1968 and became the first Oakland reliever to save a game at Fenway Park as well as win a game at Yankee Stadium.
The A’s announced Friday that Sprague had died but didn’t provide further details. He spent his first two seasons with Oakland and Sprague’s son, Ed Sprague Jr., also a former major league player, is the A’s director of player development. His granddaughter, Payton, also works for the organization as partnership marketing manager.
“The A’s organization is deeply saddened by the passing of Ed Sprague Sr., an original member of the 1968 Oakland A’s team and the 1969 club,” the team said in a statement. “He was the first of three generations to be part of the A’s family, and our condolences are with Ed Jr., granddaughter Payton, and the entire Sprague family during this difficult time.”
Sprague Sr. was a graduate of now-defunct Sunset High in Hayward, where he played with two-time major league All-Star shortstop Bud Harrelson. Sprague Sr. made his major league debut at age 22 when he relieved Catfish Hunter in the seventh inning of a 3-1 loss in Baltimore in the first-ever Oakland A’s game. He also had the distinction of being the first Oakland A’s pitcher to give up a home run when Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson took him deep in the eighth inning on April 10, 1968.
Sprague posted a 17-23 career record with a 3.84 ERA and nine saves over 198 appearances — 23 career starts — with the A’s, Cincinnati, St. Louis and Milwaukee. He played for the A’s in 1968 and ’69 and had a career-high four saves in his season.
His best season came in 1974 with the Brewers. Sprague was 7-2 with a 2.39 ERA and three complete games over a career-high 94.0 innings.
Sprague was born Sept. 16, 1945, in Boston.
Associated Press contributed to this report.