1969 Washington Senators season

The 1969 Washington Senators season involved the Senators finishing 4th in the newly-established American League East with a record of 86 wins and 76 losses.

Offseason

• January 8, 1969: John Orsino was purchased from the Senators by the New York Yankees.^[1]

Regular season

The year 1969 was a turning point in Washington sports history. The Senators named Ted Williams as manager. The Washington Redskins hired Vince Lombardi as Head Coach and he had brought a winning attitude to the nation's capital. In the same year, the nearby University of Maryland had hired Lefty Driesell to coach basketball. It marked a renaissance in sports interest in America's most transient of cities.

The hiring of Ted Williams sparked at least increased curiosity in the team. Williams' fanatic approach to hitting helped improve the Senators offense considerably, and inspired the team to its one and only winning season during its 10-year stay in Washington. For this remarkable turnaround, Williams was voted American League Manager of the Year. (Note: This was the only award that Ted Williams had ever won, but Joe DiMaggio had not.) As a result, attendance at RFK Stadium improved to over 900,000, the best attendance record the "new" Senators ever had.

Season standings

Opening Day starters

President Richard Nixon throwing out the first pitch of the Senators' season in April 1969; manager Ted Williams is at left; owner Bob Short at right.

• Ed Brinkman
• Paul Casanova
• Tim Cullen
• Mike Epstein
• Frank Howard
• Ken McMullen
• Camilo Pascual
• Ed Stroud
• Del Unser

Notable transactions

• June 5, 1969: 1969 Major League Baseball Draft
  • Dave Moates was drafted by the Senators in the 4th round.^[2]
  • Dave Criscione was drafted by the Senators in the 5th round.^[3]
• June 20, 1969: Bill Denehy and cash was traded by the Senators to the Cleveland Indians for Lee Maye.^[4]

Roster

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases

^[5]

Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases

Pitching

Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Awards and honors

• Del Unser, American League Leader, Triples (8)^[6]
• Del Unser, American League Record, Fewest Triples in One Season by an American League Leader (8)^[6]
• Ted Williams, Associated Press AL Manager of the Year

All-Star Game

• Frank Howard, Starting LF
• Darold Knowles, Reserve

Farm system

Savannah affiliation shared with Houston Astros

Notes

References

• 1969 Washington Senators team page at Baseball Reference
• 1969 Washington Senators team page at www.baseball-almanac.com
• Johnson, Lloyd; Wolff, Miles, eds (2007). The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball (3rd ed.). Durham, N.C.: Baseball America. ISBN 978-1-932391-17-6.