Vucinich Serves 19 Skippers During 54-Year A’s Career
Baseball Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson (left) with Steve Vucinich (right), Oakland A's equipment manager for 54 years and a member of A's Hall of Fame.
From Bob Kennedy to Mark Kotsay, the Oakland Athletics have gone through 19 managers since moving from Kansas City in 1968. Only one man has been there for them all: Castro Valley resident Steve Vucinich.
Vuc (pronounced Voose), as he is known to friends, worked for the A’s as peanut vendor, batboy, ballboy, clubhouse attendant, visitors’ clubhouse manager, home clubhouse manager and equipment manager for a total of 54 years before retiring after spring training in 2022. He surpassed the legendary Connie Mack, first owner and manager of the team from 1901-1950 when it was based in Philadelphia, as the man with the longest tenure in A’s history.
Vucinich was inducted into the A’s Hall of Fame in 2022 and soon will be inducted into the Castro Valley Sports Hall of Fame.
Born and raised in Alameda, Vucinich was just 15 when he began as a peanut vendor for Oakland’s new baseball franchise in 1968. That job lasted just days because he learned that a clubhouse attendant had unexpectedly quit, so he approached clubhouse manager Al Zych to lobby for the job. While he was talking with Zych, A’s coach and Vice President Joe DiMaggio walked by.
“What high school do you go to, kid?” the great DiMaggio asked.
“St. Joe’s,” Steve replied.
“He’s Catholic, Al. Hire him,” instructed Joltin’ Joe.
“I would have got hired anyway, but that makes a good story,” Vucinich chuckled.
As one could imagine, Vuc is full of good stories. Many of them have to do with team travel. Like the flight from Baltimore to Chicago in June 2011. Bob Geren had just been fired as manager but only Geren, Vucinich, and traveling secretary Mickey Morabito were aware of that. A storm prevented the plane from landing at either Midway or O’Hare and after much circling the plane had to detour to Lincoln, Ill., to refuel.
“We finally came back and landed at O’Hare. It was really bumpy; the players were scared and then there were no buses to pick us up. All the time, the players never knew they were going to get a new manager (Bob Melvin) that night,” Vucinich recalled. “It was a road trip from hell.”
Another memorable flight was after a Sunday night game in Minnesota – Kirby Puckett Night. Festivities delayed the start of the game and bad weather delayed the scheduled flight to Kansas City where the team was scheduled to face pitcher Kevin Appier on Memorial Day.
“Our plane finally landed in Kansas City about 5:30 in the morning. We had to play a day game and we’re facing Appier, who absolutely owned us,” Vuc remembered. Naturally, the A’s knocked Appier out of the game early and coasted to victory. Go figure.
Vucinich took over as visitors’ clubhouse manager in 1974, a position he held until 1993 when he became the home clubhouse manager and equipment manager. He remained at that post until his retirement.
The toughest part of his job, Vuc said, was when a player he had grown close to got traded or, even worse, released. “I guess the hardest one for me was when we released Dave Righetti. We’d been friends since he was with the Yankees, and I was in the visitors’ clubhouse.”
A calm, personable man, Vucinich got along with most everyone – not always an easy task in his position. “It’s the toughest job in baseball, taking care of prima donnas, each of whom has a special need… and expects you to take care of him right now,”former A’s captain Sal Bando once told a reporter. “The way Vuc has handled it all these years, it’s amazing.”
Vucinich has many player favorites, but his hands-down, all-time favorite was Jim “Catfish” Hunter, the A’s Hall of Fame pitcher who died in 1999 from ALS.
“They had a Catfish Hunter Award every year and I would address the players about what kind of guy he was,” Vuc said. “The way he treated kids, the way he treated me, the way he treated everyone. He was a gentleman, a total professional.”
Vucinich has had a home in Castro Valley since 1978. He and his wife, Valerie, live most of the time in Scottsdale, Ariz., since his retirement, but they keep a condo here. The couple has one adult daughter, Kayla.
This is the third in a series of 16 articles profiling the 2024 inductees into the Castro Valley Sports Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame ceremonies and banquet will be held Sunday, April 21, at Redwood Canyon Golf Course.