Editing Rickey Henderson (section)

===Oakland Athletics (1979–1984)===
Henderson made his major league debut with Oakland on June 24, 1979, getting two hits in four at-bats, along with a stolen base.<ref name=pros/> He batted .274 with 33 stolen bases in 89 games.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://clerkwebsvr1.oaklandnet.com/attachments/14026.pdf|title=A Resolution Authorizing the Renaming of Lucky A's Baseball Field in Arroyo Viejo Park Located at 7701 Krause Avenue, Oakland to the Rickey Henderson Baseball Field|author=Office of Parks and Recreation|publisher=City of Oakland|date=July 13, 2006|access-date=March 18, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080226232443/http://clerkwebsvr1.oaklandnet.com/attachments/14026.pdf|archive-date=February 26, 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref> In 1980, Henderson became the third modern-era player to steal 100 bases in a season ([[Maury Wills]] 104 in 1962 and [[Lou Brock]]'s 118 in 1974 had preceded him).<ref name=aspara>{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/SB_leagues.shtml|title=Year-by-Year League Leaders & Records for Stolen Bases|work=[[Baseball Reference]]|access-date=August 25, 2008}}</ref> His 100 steals broke [[Eddie Collins]]' franchise record of 81 in 1910 with what were then the [[Philadelphia Athletics]] and set a new [[American League]] (AL) record, surpassing [[Ty Cobb]]'s 96 set in 1915.<ref name=aspara/> He also batted .303, had 179 hits (tied for ninth in AL), scored 111 runs (fourth in AL), drew 117 walks (second in AL), had a .420 on-base percentage (third in AL) and led the AL by reaching base 301 times.<ref name="BBRef"/>

That winter, Henderson played in the [[Puerto Rican Professional Baseball League]]; his 42 stolen bases broke that league's record as well.<ref>{{cite book|title=Puerto Rico's Winter League: A History of Major League Baseball's Launching Pad|first=Thomas E.|last=Van Hyning|author2=Eduardo Valero |publisher=McFarland & Company|year=2004|isbn=978-0-7864-1970-8|page=221}}</ref>

[[File:Rickey Henderson and Eddie Murray, 1983.jpg|thumb|left|Henderson goes to steal second base for the Athletics in 1983.]]

Henderson was an [[Most Valuable Player|MVP]] candidate a year later, in a season shortened by a [[1981 Major League Baseball strike|players' strike]]. He hit .319, fourth in the AL, and led the league in hits (135), runs (89) and in steals (56). Henderson was also third in on-base percentage (.408), tied for second in triples (7), fourth in walks (64), eighth in total bases (185) and second in times reaching base (201). In so doing, he became the emblematic figure of Oakland manager [[Billy Martin]]'s aggressive "Billy Ball" philosophy, which received much media attention.<ref name="wiley">{{cite web|title=Rickey was a run walking|publisher=ESPN|access-date=August 25, 2008|last=Wiley|first=Ralph|url=https://www.espn.com/page2/s/wiley/011005.html}}</ref> Finishing second to the [[Milwaukee Brewers]]' [[Rollie Fingers]] in the MVP voting, Henderson earned his only [[Gold Glove Award]] in  fielding that season. He later became known for his [[showboat]] "snatch catches", in which he would flick his glove out at incoming fly balls, then whip his arm behind his back after making the catch.<ref>Henderson et al., ''Off Base: Confessions of a Thief'', 1–10</ref>

In 1982, Henderson broke [[Lou Brock]]'s modern major league single season record by stealing 130 bases, a total which has not been approached since. He stole 84 bases by the All-Star break; no player has stolen as many as 84 bases in an entire season since 1988, when Henderson himself stole 93.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://baseballbiography.com/lou-brock-1939 |title=Lou Brock |publisher=Baseball Biography |year=2006 |access-date=March 19, 2008 }}</ref> He also led the AL in walks (116), was fourth in runs (119) and third in on-base percentage (.398).<ref name="BBRef"/>

Inspired by Dodgers leadoff hitter [[Rudy Law]], Henderson adopted an exaggerated crouch as his batting stance, which reduced his [[strike zone]] without sacrificing much power.<ref>{{cite book |last=Henderson |first=Rickey |date=1992 |title=Off Base: Confessions of a Thief |publisher=[[HarperCollins]] |page=61 |isbn=0-06-017975-9}}</ref> Sportswriter [[Jim Murray (sportswriter)|Jim Murray]] described Henderson's strike zone as being "smaller than Hitler's heart".<ref name="sportsillustrated1">{{cite magazine|url=http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1029027/6/index.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081021051420/http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1029027/6/index.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 21, 2008 |title=What Is Rickey Henderson Doing In Newark? |magazine=[[Sports Illustrated]] |page=6 |first=Tom |last=Verducci |author-link=Tom Verducci |date=June 23, 2003 |access-date=October 13, 2008 }}</ref> In 1982, he described his approach to ''[[Sports Illustrated]]'':

{{Blockquote|I found that if I squatted down real low at the plate... I could see the ball better. I also knew it threw the pitcher off. I found that I could put my weight on my back foot and still turn my hips on the swing. I'm down so low I don't have much of a strike zone. Sometimes, walking so much even gets me mad. Last year [[Ed Ott]] of the [[Los Angeles Angels|Angels]] got so frustrated because the umpire was calling balls that would've been strikes on anybody else that he stood up and shouted at me, "Stand up and hit like a man." I guess I do that to people.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1125503/4/index.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081207223827/http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1125503/4/index.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 7, 2008 |page=4 |title=The defensive brilliance shared by A's outfielders – 05.10.82 – SI Vault |publisher=[[Sports Illustrated]] |first=Ron |last=Fimrite |date=May 10, 1982 |access-date=October 9, 2008 }}</ref>}}

Regarding Henderson's 1982 season, the mid-1980s book ''[[The Hidden Game of Baseball]]'' looked at such statistics as .78 expected runs with a runner on first and no outs, 1.07 expected runs with runner on second and no outs, and only .25 expected runs with no one on and one out. The authors concluded that with Henderson's 130 stolen bases he contributed 22.2 runs to the A's offense. By being caught stealing 42 times, he cost his team 20.6 runs, and therefore, the authors concluded, the net effect of his running activity was merely 1.6 extra runs for the season.<ref>{{cite book |editor-last1=Keri |editor-first1=Jonah |title=Baseball Between the Numbers: Why Everything You Know About the Game Is Wrong |date=2007 |publisher=Basic Books |isbn=978-0-465-00373-0 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VsmnfVUKJskC&dq=%22But+the+42+times+he+was+caught+cost+the+team%22&pg=PA113 |language=en |chapter=What if Rickey Henderson had Pete Incaviglia's Legs? |last1=Click |first1=James}}, James cites the earlier baseball book: {{cite book |last1=Thorn |first1=John |last2=Palmer |first2=Pete |title=The Hidden Game of Baseball |date=2015 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=978-0-226-27683-0 |language=en}} See also: {{cite magazine |last1=James |first1=Bill |title=So What's All the Fuss: Rickey Henderson may be the man of the hour but, argues the author, base stealing has never really amounted to very much |url=https://vault.si.com/vault/1982/09/06/so-whats-all-the-fuss |magazine=[[Sports Illustrated]] |date=September 6, 1982}} which gives a historical overview primarily of the '50s, '60s, and '70s.</ref> A later analysis determined his net contribution was 5.3 runs for the season.<ref name="Cold Takes: Rickey, Unwritten Rules, and the 130, Baseball Prospectus, Sept 20, 2016">{{cite web |last1=Dubuque |first1=Patrick |title=Cold Takes: Rickey, Unwritten Rules, and the 130 |url=https://www.baseballprospectus.com/news/article/30406/cold-takes-rickey-unwritten-rules-and-the-130/ |website=Baseball Prospectus |date=September 20, 2016}}</ref>

In 1983, he led the AL in stolen bases (108), walks (103) while finishing fourth in runs scored (105). He was also second in on-base percentage (.414), tied for ninth in triples (7) and fifth in times on base, reaching 257 times.<ref name="BBRef"/>

In 1984, Henderson hit 16 home runs while leading the league in stolen bases (66), finishing second in runs scored (113) and third in on-base-percentage (.399). After the season, he was traded to the [[New York Yankees]] along with [[Bert Bradley]] for five players: [[Tim Birtsas]], [[Jay Howell]], [[Stan Javier]], [[Eric Plunk]], and [[José Rijo]].<ref name="BBRef"/>