The last-weekend sweep at Seattle's hands was unseemly, but the Dan Haren, Nick Swisher, Rich Harden and Joe Blanton deals have stocked the organization with all kinds of useful parts ... I wonder what it's like to be an A's fan. Your team runs its business smartly and efficiently, yet there aren't any post-Bash-Brothers championship banners flying high over the stadium. There's always hope, at least, and you can sleep at night knowing that smart people are in charge. I'm rooting for your patience to pay off.
09/23/2008
18
20
The twice-delayed game between the A's and Orioles will not be made up, thus depriving future generations from enjoying what would most certainly have been a seminal moment in 21st century competition ... Joey Devine is going to be one of baseball's five best closers by midseason 2009 ... I love his optimism and quintessentially American stick-to-it-iveness, but Eric Chavez really ought to concede defeat on his injury rehab and spend the next 15 years of his life in a bean-bag barcalounger.
09/16/2008
20
21
Unlike many of the other bottom-tier teams, they're not trotting out a garbage lineup every day. It's a cliché, I know, but getting the kids some late-season experience in the bigs can only help. ... You sure would've liked to have seen something more from Daric Barton this season, though.
09/09/2008
21
22
The all-lefty-all-the-time rotation experiment ends Wednesday when Sean Gallagher returns from the DL ... Jack Cust's numbers: .228/.369/.453, 172 K's in 528 plate appearances, with nobody decent before or after him in the batting order for much of the season. That's good, right? I can't remember which side rational people are taking in the great "nice OPS, lotsa K's" debate of 2008.
09/02/2008
22
23
Huston Street is pitching well, but Brad Ziegler and Joey Devine are pitching better. This team will rebound in a hurry, assuming the young hitters live up to their end of the bargain ... Josh Outman is the proud owner of the best last name in the history of relief pitching, at least until a guy named Roger Rallystopper makes his way to the Bigs.
08/26/2008
23
23
The two Bay Area teams rank among baseball's lesser entities, and yet they'll seem like titans of talent when the 49ers take the field in a few weeks. ... Now that Justin Duchscherer and Sean Gallagher are down with minor ouchies, the A's will go with baseball's first all-lefty rotation since ... well, you got me. Seriously, somebody call the Elias folks. ... The Big Hurt's 23-at-bat hitless streak will further fuel speculation that the end is nigh. He'll be missed.
08/19/2008
23
24
The big news: Brad Ziegler finally allowed a run and an extra-base hit. At this rate, he'll catch up with Kyle Farnsworth in both categories by June 2164. ... They're 5-23 since the break, which puts them on pace for the worst second-half record in baseball history. The Philly A's currently hold that dubious distinction, having farted out a 15-61 mark in 1943.
08/12/2008
24
22
Well, they won a game this week. I suppose that counts for something. ... Brad Ziegler still hasn't allowed a run. ... Any sports editor who greenlights a "Huston, we have a problem" headline for a story about Mr. Street's recent struggles will be punished with three months on the WNBA beat. Don't say you haven't been warned. ... Carlos Gonzalez is hitting a little, at least.
08/05/2008
22
16
Swept by the Royals, swept by the Red Sox -– they shan't ever win again. ... Those happy run differentials of the season's first half feel as distant as the McGwire/Canseco era. ... The what-went-wrong conversation begins with Dana Eveland and Greg Smith -– great early, cannon fodder as of late -– and ends with the silenced infield bats.
07/29/2008
16
11
Either media super-crush Billy Beane had an inkling his team was on the cusp of cratering and played his cards accordingly, or the A's hitters have decided to go on a no-contact strike to protest the Harden and Blanton exiles. ... Brad Ziegler is now up to 27 consecutive scoreless innings at the start of his major league career. Looking at the way his sidearm offerings bend and bustle, I can't begin to figure out how a hitter might get beneath one and launch it fence-ward.
Preseason Power Rankings
Date
Ranking
Previous
02/28/2008
24
-
They took multiple steps back in an effort to net a step forward. It will take years to find out if it worked, especially since their farm system wasn't much to write home about before Dan Haren and Nick Swisher were traded. If not for some potential injury returns from Rich Harden, Eric Chavez and Bobby Crosby, we would rank this rebuilding franchise much lower.
