Are the A's for real????

It has been a very interesting year in baseball. I could very well have called my blog baseballs, guitars and grapes and it would have been quite accurate. Although I grew up in Pittsburgh and Chicago and favored the Pirates (Clemente, Hebner, Parker and all) and later the White Stockings (Melton, Dickie Allen, etc.) I have absolutely no allegiance to those teams. In fact, I enjoy rooting against the Black Chickens and only rooted for them a little bit when the made the Series just to shut up the Chicago fans predicting doom and so I would not have to hear about the Black Sox curse any more. Now if we could only kill the Goat (er, Ghost) of Wrigley. And the Pirates have sucked for so long who could root for them from afar.

When we moved to California in 1977 I did not really have a baseball team any more. I kind of rooted for the Pirates when the won the series, '79 and '82, if memory serves. But after that no real allegiance until I started going with my college roommate to A's games in the mid-80's. This was not too long after their phenomenal run of the early '70's and Rickey Henderson was swiping bases every which way but loose which was kind of fun. When Cansucko and JuiceGwire came up about this time, I kind of got hooked on the Bash Brother thing, although I hated Canseco and still do. Once, when he was playing for Texas, I almost got into a fight with a September call-up when I was yelling at him (he was playing right field) during a game. Canseco had been down to Triple A to rehab that year and the punk ass Triple A call-up who had played with Sucko didn't like that I was screaming shit at him from the stands. He told me to shut up and I told him where to go. Fortunately, my wife stepped in and shut me up. The beer talking, I think.

My wife and I literally were in the first row of seats right at the end of the visitor's bullpen and I used to try to talk to the players all the time. In later years we moved about three rows up above the A's bullpen on the other side of the field and got to see Eckersley warming up all the time. He was an odd character. He would come out to the bullpen late in the game, never acknowledging the fans, never looking up. I can assume that he was focused on the job ahead, but I also heard that he was kind of a dickhead. Some of the younger players used to complain that he made the A's clubhouse pretty tough in those days.

Now I will never forgive Eckersley for giving up the Gibson homer in '88. No way should they have lost that series although I think Tony Larussa has shown multiple times that he is the worst big series manager in history. Tony's one game at a time strategy, win every series works in the regular season. But you need Tommy Lasorda type emotion to win in the playoffs. Luck helps too. When dumbass Canseco and his wife got into it with Larussa in '90 and basically cost the team that series (again, Cincy played with emotion, the A's not) and the team was sold to Mr. and Mr. Fugal (Hoffman and what's his name, his partner) when the owner died (Walter Haas, former CEO of Levis, if memory serves)and I moved to Illinois, I kind of lost my fervor for the A's. And they sucked so bad in the mid '90's who could really like them?

Any how, as they got better in the late '90's and early '00's and I got DirecTv I became a fan again. I continued to be a fan even though they continued to break my heart ... always the bridesmaid but never good enough to win. I mean for God's sake, slide Jeremy dumbass Giambi. And Chavez, how about making at least one defensive play in Boston. And swept at home by the Yankees after winning both games in their ballpark. Give me a break.

And I am not sure about Billy Beane. Is he really that good a GM? I think his ego is too big and he needs to shut up and at least accept some of the tried and true ways that baseball has been won through the last 100 years. Things like stealing a base occasionally, scoring a run without a homer, manufacturing runs. Beane is not that smart, baseball wise or otherwise, to throw 100 years of baseball facts and figures out and expect to win using his own theories.

Which makes this year's A's team so interesting. Second to last in hitting in the majors, hit into more double plays by far than any other team in the major, pathetic on-base percentage and up by 7.5 games with 29 left to play as I write this. I am beginning to believe that this year may be the year for the A's. What makes this year different is that they are not only taking their walks but they are manufacturing a few runs and stealing some bases. They have their flaws but so do all team, even Steinsuckers Yankees (all $250 million worth of payroll). The A's are also playing with more swagger than I have ever seen them. And dummies like Bradley and Kendall are bringing some previously unseen emotion to the team. Bradley yelling at fans and flinging his bat all over the diamond, Kendall fighting that jackass John (I am your) Lackey from the Anaheim, California, Los Angeles we don't know where we play Angels. Yeah.

And this has been one of the most weird years I have ever seen for injuries in baseball. The A's have used the DL 15 times this year, Boston 16. We all know that the Yankees have something like $100 Million worth of payroll on the DL in guys like Sheffield, Matsui and Pavano. How about Boston without Manny or Big Crapi. But the A's, at various times this year, have been without several starting pitchers (including Harden who is truly their best when healthy), multiple relievers, their starting shortstop, center fielder, third baseman, Hall of Fame DH'er, closer, etc., etc., and they keep finding a way to win. Most importantly, someone different steps up every game. This is important. Teams that win the World Series have multiple ways to beat you because you can truly shut down certain players in the playoffs. For example, Bonds almost never hit the year that the Giants lost to the Angels in the Series. And all players go through slumps. But when guys like Bucky Dent hit homers to win games, you know you are getting contributions throughout the lineup and that is how you win in the post season.

In addition, the A's are number two in pitching and number three in defense in the majors. So these things, combined with their attitude this year, makes me think good things are to come. I mean, look, the Mets are playing in a league where like one entire team is above .500, them. They are okay but not a great team, just playing in a shitty league. It worries me a little that they A's have feasted on the Mariners this year. Without the 19 straight wins against them, they are not in first place. But they have held their own against the very best this year...7-3 versus Boston, 6-4 (I think) verses NY, 4-5 vs. Detroit (with more games in their park). The White Sox are just okay, Ozzie Butthead burned out their starters last year and I am convinced that Detroit was playing way over their head through the first two-thirds of the year. The gnashing of teeth following their recent 3-7 slide make me wonder if they will not fall out of the playoffs. I think they have been doing it with smoke, mirrors and rookie pitchers this year. With rookie pitchers, they often win early until the league gets to see them a couple of times. Then they will often have a series of quite poor starts until they adjust to what the hitters have adjusted to.

As for the A's, I am starting to become a believer.

Now if we could just get some fans to go to the game to support the team. I would go if I lived anywhere near Oakland. So you Bay Area fair weather fans, get going, the weather could not be more fair and if you don't start supporting that team they are going to end up in Las Vegas, Sacramento or San Jose.