July, Dark had finally had enough. "I made up my mind to have a squad meeting [on July 14] at the park," he said. In the speech, he criticized the team for their attitudes, fining Blue $250. Blue paid the fine in change: "I had a big old money bag that probably weighed about 75 pounds." The speech helped the players to be more responsive to Dark, and though they would get no-hit days later by Dick Bosman of the Indians, they went on to win the AL West. In the AL Championship Series (ALCS), the Athletics defeated the Orioles three games to one, holding Baltimore scoreless for 30 straight innings during the series. The series victory sent Oakland to the World Series and made Dark the third manager (after Joe McCarthy and Yogi Berra) at the time to win pennants in both leagues. (Sparky Anderson, Dick Williams, Tony La Russa, Jim Leyland, and Joe Maddon have since accomplished that feat.) In the World Series, the Athletics faced the Dodgers in the first World Series composed of only California teams. Oakland won the series in five games, becoming the first team to win three consecutive World Series since the Yankees won five straight from 1949 to 1953. Entering the 1975 season, the Athletics had to cope with the loss of pitcher Catfish Hunter, winner of 20 or more games four straight seasons, who had used a contract breach to become a free agent and sign with the Yankees. Still, the team posted a 55–32 record in the first half of the season, and seven Athletics were part of the AL All-Star Team, managed by Dark. The team won the AL West by seven games over the runner-up Kansas City Royals; however, they were swept in the ALCS by the Boston Red Sox. Though they made the playoffs both years under Dark, he was not re-hired as the Athletics manager in 1976. During a church talk that September, Dark had said, "To God, Charlie Finley is just a very little, bitty thing. If he doesn't accept Jesus Christ as his personal savior, he's going to hell." When Finley announced Dark would not return for 1976, he stated that the manager was "too busy with church activities." Dark spent 1976 out of baseball for the first time in 30 years. He was hired as a coach for the Cubs in 1977, working