First of all, he may not be the world’s best player but tonight Jack Hannahan had himself a ballgame. With the A’s trailing 1-0 in the 4th, Hannahan exorcised the demons that have held the A’s to 0 or 1 run more often than any team on the planet with a 3-run HR off of Andy Sonnanstine. He would drive in his fourth run as the A’s added on in the late innings, and his outstanding defense choked off an early rally, helping Dallas Braden to make it through five innings of one run baseball and earn the win. How flabbergasting was it for the A’s to hit a 3-run HR? Perhaps that is best answered by Vince Cotroneo’s call, which was “GRAND SLAM!!!!” Close enough.
Carlos Gonzalez also came up big in this A’s win, stretching all out to catch a drive to left-center field, walking twice, and showing his terrific instincts when he stunned LFer Carl Crawford by speeding around from first to third on Hannahan’s single; Gonzalez scored when Crawford double-clutched and then threw wildly to third.
I thought Braden looked better than he did last year, but not great, as he walked three and needed some defensive wizardry to keep the Rays down but also showed more confidence in his fastball and had Tampa Bay out in front of the changeup as often as not.
And while at times Brad Ziegler struggled with his command, he also threw two full innings and they were the only kind he has ever thrown in the major leagues: scoreless. Congratulations to AN’s best right-handed pitcher (notice how I don’t close the door on the possibility that I may still pull a Jamie Moyer and have a better career?) for setting the new American League record with 23.2 scoreless innings to begin his career. The major league record is 25.0 innings.
The A’s played a great game tonight, offensively, defensively, and on the bases. At this point, let’s just enjoy every well-played game, and every win we can, because tonight, and the week that preceded it, were reminders that regardless of the standings winning just feels a heck of lot better than losing.
0 recs | 180 comments
Who was it in an earlier game thread who said...
....that the A’s would score in the 4th? They were due.
gregorymark - July 22, 2008
Not too excited about Dallas Braden going forward
but I’m happy he got us a win tonight. I have never seen any evidence that he is an ML starting pitcher and hope that he proves me wrong.
ohtobe21likehuston - July 22, 2008
Braden
I will give him this… Braden looked like he had a little more zip on the fastball, w/ better control. His curveball and changeup had Ray hitters off balance (most of the time). He still needs to be able to throw any pitch, in any count.
Colorado Fan - July 22, 2008
The lesson here,
as always, is the Baseball Gods listen, when humbly approached.
Thank you, Baseball Gods, thank you.
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
Can we bottle some of that humility?
gregorymark - July 22, 2008
This bottle usually results in me humiliating myself
Swooney's Left Foot - July 22, 2008
It's a bourbon - called Blanton's
But you choke after a fifth.
elhefe - July 22, 2008
LOL
oblique - July 22, 2008
nice
ak_A - July 22, 2008
I like Nico's game wrap better than BBG's yesterday.
She could learn from this.
WaddellCanseco - July 22, 2008
Harsh!
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
Anyone can write the easy ones, because,
as leo tolstoy sorta said, “all wins are alike; each loss is unhappy in its own way.” It takes a BBG to handle the toughies….
Hot Cup Joe - July 22, 2008
question
who would you all rather have pitch a game for the a’s right now, braden, blanton, or zito?
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
Personally I would still go with Blanton. One game does not make Braden a good option IMO.
ohtobe21likehuston - July 22, 2008
i would normally pick blanton
but he just doesn’t look right. i’m not so sure he’s going to just bounce back to the pitcher he was over the last three years.
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
Will Braden ever be more than a 5-6 inning guy?
I hope Joe gets it going because I root for guys that we trade away. Guys that leave via FA is an entirely different story.
ohtobe21likehuston - July 22, 2008
No, don't worry - Braden will settle back into being a 3.1 IP guy
if he’s given enough chances.
Nico - July 22, 2008
Are we concerned with arby clocks? If not, when do you foresee
one of our “prospects” taking his place?
ohtobe21likehuston - July 22, 2008
I think Gio will be up when the A's feel he's ready,
which is when the manager, pitching coach, etc. say “He’s ready” more than any stats. He’s pitching tonight. Looks like a 1-2-3 first inning for Gio and then two hits, one run to open the second inning. Currently 3-1 Sacramento, bottom of the second (still nobody out).
Nico - July 22, 2008
I trust the A's on Gio's development. I just think we will continue to save
money any way we can. If that means an extra year of club control than so be it.
I used to get pissed off about using this avenue, but in a rebuilding mode, it absolutely makes perfect sense!
ohtobe21likehuston - July 22, 2008
Looks like that game is over from rain
mikeA - July 22, 2008
I'm thinking Meyer's going to get another shot too, just not quite yet.
rebus - July 22, 2008
I wouldn't replace him this year
He was great in the minors this year and last year.
Assuming Duke doesn’t get traded, next year we have:
Duke
Gallagher
These guys are for sure.
Smith
I think he’ll be good enough to be in there.
Then:
Eveland
Braden
Gio
These guys will all be ready. Gio has the most upside by far. It’s not clear to me that Eveland is any better than Braden. I think he probably is, but it’s not clear, as Eveland has looked pretty bad and has terrible command. Gio also has struggled a lot with his command, and has never pitched in the majors, so it’s far from clear how good he’ll be next year.
Braden isn’t going to block Gio, but it’s worth seeing if he can be a decent starter either if Gio is deemed not ready, or if he show himself to be better than Eveland (or Smith).
mikeA - July 22, 2008
Another guy Braden may wind up being better than is
Gaudin.
mikeA - July 22, 2008
He doesn't have the same arsenal but Gaudin
had so much trouble finding the plate. I always thought he would get it corrected but that ship has sailed so it’s someone else’s worry now. Personally I see Braden as another Saarloos without as much determination (if that is even realistic).
ohtobe21likehuston - July 22, 2008
trouble finding the plate
again, 1.86 bb/9 in 53 AAA innings this year.
maybe he’ll never find the plate in the majors, but i’m not ready to make that determination yet after 15 garbage time innings scattered across three call ups.
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
No, he said Gaudin had trouble finding the plate
Braden’s problem has been finding too much of the plate.
PaulThomas - July 22, 2008
ah, i misread that
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
Anyone expect Cahill by the ASB next year?
Swooney's Left Foot - July 22, 2008
Yes
Nico - July 22, 2008
I share your enthusiam
for 2009. We will laugh maniacally at the others when we are proved right.
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
enthusiasm?
how badly are most of duke/gallagher/smith/eveland/braden/meyer/gio/simmons next year if the a’s are calling up a pitcher who is barely 21?
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
If he's ready, he's ready
If he’s not, he’s not. Most 21 year olds aren’t ready – some are.
Nico - July 22, 2008
But still,
it will only happen if something goes wrong with the ~6-7 guys penciled in ahead of him, which would be bad. Or if he just completely dominates in AAA next year, but that isn’t all that likely.
mikeA - July 22, 2008
and if those they're all sucking
the pitching-reliant a’s are probably well out of it by the ASB, so why call him up?
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
no
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
no
mikeA - July 22, 2008
I'm not sure why the A's would even consider doing that
He’s not uber-polished, he’s still almost comically young, and he’s not likely to be a significant upgrade on the alternatives next year.
I would figure that he would be called up in mid-April (to get that extra near-year of service time) 2010.
PaulThomas - July 22, 2008
I think there's an outside chance
Simmons could push for a spot either in spring training or by May, 2009. He’s very polished compared to Gio, and Cahill is only 20.
Nico - July 22, 2008
Heh
I set out to mention him, but my comment got so long that I forgot. I think Simmons is more promising that any of Smith/Eveland/Braden, but the knock on him when he was drafted was that he lacked a good offspeed pitch. He’s done well this year, but also been knocked around some, so I’d like to see him focus on developing a good changeup or curve or what have you in a low pressure environment, which could take awhile. But that said, it wouldn’t surprise me at all if he made the team out of spring training next year, and I’d be more surprised to see Braden start the ‘10 season in the rotation than Simmons.
mikeA - July 22, 2008
Same - Braden is just so far down
on the depth chart (he has to even be behind Meyer with Meyer out of options, I would think) that I think he’s “rebuilding filler” at this point: Keeping the mound warm for “the real guys”.
Nico - July 22, 2008
I think Braden has a better chance to be valuable
going forward than Meyer even inluding the option situation. They both get hit hard, and Meyer has never gotten his command back. Braden’s younger, been better in AAA, better in the majors. Meyer is ok, but I think he’s still relying on the fact that he used to be good several years ago.
mikeA - July 22, 2008
Meyer seems to be regaining his command
Who knows if it’s a “2-3 starts” thing or a break-through. But he does throw harder than Braden and had/has an excellent slider. If he regains the level of command he once had, I think he could still be good. But maybe I’m just wishing it so.
Nico - July 22, 2008
If he regains his command, he'll be better
but it’s been a long long time since it’s been there.
mikeA - July 22, 2008
meyer
at this point, he’s pretty much the same pitcher he was in AAA for the braves. of course, that was a lot more impressive at 22 than 26…
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
No, he's not.
K% and BB% were both quite a bit better with the Braves in 04 than this year.
mikeA - July 22, 2008
"pretty much"
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
"pretty much except a lot worse" would have been better...
mikeA - July 22, 2008
it depends on if you consider myer a "prospect"
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
This is Meyer's final option year
He either makes the team next year or is DFA’d/traded.
Swooney's Left Foot - July 22, 2008
the question was
when will one of our “prospects” take braden’s place.
if braden doesn’t pitch well and needs to be replaced, meyer should be called up for precisely that reason.
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
Has Meyer's control gotten any better? I haven't paid much
attention to his stats so far this year.
ohtobe21likehuston - July 22, 2008
Two strikeouts per walk this season
Full stats here.
Flashfire - July 22, 2008
Though to note, in his past 10 starts it's a better ratio and...
...almost twice as good in July so far.
Flashfire - July 22, 2008
What about total pitches per game?
That used to be his biggest problem. I recall that he had trouble getting out of the 5th or 6th without throwing 100+.
ohtobe21likehuston - July 22, 2008
That is really not a problem in and of itself
Not in the slightest. You shouldn’t even want your 5th starter to pitch past the 5th inning.
mikeA - July 22, 2008
That is a confusing statement.
Please elaborate.
74mk - July 22, 2008
Typically, 5th starters are gascans
when they’re going through a lineup a third time.
PaulThomas - July 22, 2008
Well, yeah.
(I’m not that dense … close, but not quite)
Seemed like he was saying something else.
74mk - July 22, 2008
obviously it depends
on both the quality of the #5 starter and the quality of the bullpen, among other things.
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
Basically
1)The average reliever is half a run per 9 better than the average starter. The reliever you bring in in these situations will be pretty close to the average reliever, while the 4th and 5th starters will be worse than the average starter, increasing that gap.
2)Starters get progressively worse each time through the lineup to the tune of .734/.769/.819 (in 2007) 1st/2nd/3rd time through the lineup.
So in the 6th or 7th inning, there is a HUGE gap between the expected quality of the bullpen and the 4th or 5th starter (the bullpen should do better than even the 2nd or 3rd starter).
Now, that is obviously mitigated by not wanting to tire out the bullpen over a season.
However, it really doesn’t matter in a single game.
And finally, the qualities that allow some pitchers to go deeper into games than others (keeping overall quality separate), which are high K/BB vs. low K/BB, are so tiny in light of the above considerations as to be hardly worth mentioning.
mikeA - July 22, 2008
Any reliever who performed at the level of
an average starter 3rd time through the lineup would not keep his job more than a year.
mikeA - July 22, 2008
The more batters sucky pitchers face, the suckier they become, and even sucky relievers are better than sucky starters at their suckiest.
Plus other stuff.
Got it.
My $19.95 RiteAid electric razor fizzled out mid-shave this morning, I’m fairly certain the aggregate IQ of my co-workers is somewhere in the 85-90 range, my boss has added “Thanks,” to her auto-signature yet inexplicably still types the word every single time, so that each of her emails now ends with “Thanks. Thanks,”, the guys playing catch in the courtyard below my apartment have yelled “dude” approximately 114 times in the past 20 minutes, and I just had oatmeal and french fries (not even the crinkly kind!) for dinner.
So I was hoping for something clever and sabermetric-y to salvage my day.
This, while not quite revelatory, will do. Thanks.
74mk - July 22, 2008
the DUDES playing catch
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
74 wouldn't be down in the dumps if he'd witnessed the dude playing catch
mikeA - July 22, 2008
My co-worker aggregate IQ
is probably somewhere in the 60-65 range, but to be fair, there’s only one of him. So I guess that’s not really aggregate, huh?
Sorry you’ve had a rough day, dude.
Thanks
Thanks
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
It would be a better approximation if the first “Thanks” was in a normal font and size (say, 10 pt Arial), the second “Thanks” was italicized and slightly bigger (12 pt), and your name, below that, was also italicized, in a different font and color, bolded, and even larger (18 pt Monotype).
74mk - July 22, 2008
Your boss
isn’t the pointy-haired guy, is he?
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
Manual (is that the word? unelectric? bladeful?) razors are the only way to go
Thanks.
mikeA - July 22, 2008
Not sure there without looking up each start
I don’t know if the minors have an easily found stat for total pitches.
Flashfire - July 22, 2008
I think Meyer should be in the rotation for the final 2 months
Regardless of how Braden pitches. Let’s see what he can do.
Swooney's Left Foot - July 22, 2008
i could see that maybe. again, that was my point.
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
i don't know, but his numbers in sacramento were not that different from blanton's
braden
age 23 2.95era 64.0ip 0.56hr 2.53bb 10.41k 1.08whip
age 24 2.36era 53.1ip 1.18hr 1.86bb 9.11k 1.13whip
blanton
age 23 4.19era 176.1ip 0.66hr 1.74bb 7.30k 1.32whip
and 5.15 runs/game, fwiw.
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
Is this a trick question?
Jennifer - July 22, 2008
yes it was, the correct answer is blanton because he outpitched johan santana tonight.
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
(109 - 105 for the statheads)
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
If Blanton threw 109 pitches
that’s bad news for his next start.
iglew - July 23, 2008
well then i'm glad i no longer have to worry about that
xbhaskarx - July 23, 2008
Zito is throwing some serious heat tonight
mikeA - July 22, 2008
i don't have it on
is he really or is that sarcasm?
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
FSN fooled me, they had him at 87-89, but gameday knows better (85-86)
He wasn’t hitting 86 earlier in the year though.
mikeA - July 22, 2008
What, 78?
Jennifer - July 22, 2008
Yeah but it's a "deceptive" 78
ohtobe21likehuston - July 22, 2008
kei igawa
MMunoz33 - July 22, 2008
Too Fine?
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
Braden
Why?
Because Braden pitching means the A’s have Sean Doolittle and Adrian Cardenas in their minor league system.
PaulThomas - July 22, 2008
yeah but doolittle has no power
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
I'm assuming this is satirical
but I’m not “getting” it.
PaulThomas - July 22, 2008
the AN experts
were furious the a’s drafted guys like doolittle and simmons.
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
I have to be honest with you, I was questioning the pick myself
Not at the time—I hadn’t even registered for AN yet, I think—but at the end of the season.
Something about the UVA stadium makes it almost impossible to hit home runs there. I think you have to just put a question mark in the Home Run column for any prospect from the school.
I actually walked past that stadium a couple months ago, but I didn’t have time to catch a game (and they may have been on the road anyway).
PaulThomas - July 22, 2008
Zito
because he hasn’t been throwing to AL hitters much lately, he’d probably catch them by surprise….
gigglingone - July 22, 2008
John Halama!
;o
mrod - July 22, 2008
That's a good summary of how Braden looked
I thought he looked better than Eveland has looked for the past couple months, but not all that great. He’s never had any problem with BBs at any level, so I wouldn’t worry about the command.
mikeA - July 22, 2008
Was he being too fine?
Not trusting his stuff?
etc etc etc.
I’ve noticed that pitchers of Braden’s stripe (Greg Smith is another one) often see their walk rate go up hugely in the majors, where most people can actually hit a high-80s fastball from a lefthander.
PaulThomas - July 22, 2008
Braden
He threw even more fastballs than usual tonight (63/90), averaged a tick over 88 mph, and hit 90-91 pretty frequently over the course of his first 30 pitches or so – pretty good for him.
Ken and Vince mentioned early in the broadcast that he claims to have added a smidgeon of velocity, and perhaps this is true (Fangraphs says his FB average was 86.9 last year).
Once he settles in the bullpen, possibly this year, possibly next, he’s going to be an excellent reliever, death to lefties, and much better than Embree.
74mk - July 22, 2008
I have no problems with Blevins-Braden as the lefthanded side of a bullpen
for a playoff team.
PaulThomas - July 22, 2008
No problem with BBs in 70 innings in MLB last year
and he’s different than Smith in that his fastball is much more credible.
mikeA - July 22, 2008
Not really
Smith has more movement on his FB and their velocity is not substantially different.
My (admittedly untrained) scout’s eye grades Smith’s fastball as average for a lefty and Braden’s as fringey.
[Side note—I find it surprisingly annoying that fangraphs refuses to recognize “Greg Smith” as Greg Smith, and forces you to actually literally type “Gregory” Smith.]
PaulThomas - July 22, 2008
fangraphs is run by Smith's mom
mikeA - July 22, 2008
I think Smith's Fastball grades out as 45 on the scouting scale.
Syphon - July 22, 2008
I would not worry too much about Braden starting
I think he’s just keeping the seat warm for Gio Gonzalez. It’s gonna happen soon, just be patient.
Nice to see the A’s score some runs for a change, eh?
Ziggy is the baddest man on the planet next to Samuel L. Jackson!!!!!!!!
mrod - July 22, 2008
The Cleveland catcher is almost
as slow as Benji Molina. 2-0 CLE
Jennifer - July 22, 2008
The Cleveland pitcher tonight is a career Gascan
with an ERA of over 5 during that time.
And right on cue gives up a couple of runs
Trainman - July 22, 2008
Let's be glad Benji Molina
didn’t stay with the Angels. They would be leading baseball with anothr 6 or 7 more wins than they already have.
One won lost won - July 22, 2008
anybody see
any cupcakes highlights from today?
im really excited to see him swing a bat…
oakinboston - July 22, 2008
He smacked
a base hit to right field of Johan Santana… and all together didnt pitch too poorly. He gave up a 2 run homer to Delgado (a good pitch hit off the ground) and a 2 run homer to Ramon Castro (a bad pitch, hanging slider). 6IP 5ER
Duby - July 22, 2008
What the f*** happened to his command this year?
Even when he was getting knocked around last year, it was usually on straight fastballs. This year a typical Blanton start has more hangers than Meryl Streep’s wardrobe.
PaulThomas - July 22, 2008
I Couldn't Tell Ya...
His fastball command seemed pretty good, but then again of his three walks.. two of them were on 4 straight pitches, from my eye it looked like once he threw a borderline pitch that wasn’t called for a strike, he would lose focus for at least a batter and throw bad pitches. (A trait that he also exhibited in the Green & Gold, and a trait that Brett Myers has mastered).
His breaking ball seemed to be working well also, he threw a lot of 2-0 breaking balls for strikes, and maybe relied on it too much. The HR to Delgado was Vlad-Esque as in literally hit off the ground, but it was a good 3-2 pitch AND he had previously struck Delgado out on a check swing that wasn’t called by the Ump (Phils Manager thrown out shortly thereafter).
Then again, he horribly hung a slider to David Wright for an RBI single, and Horrifically hung a slider that was banged out of the park by Ramon bleeping Castro, so your Meryl Streep comment is nowhere near off base….
All in all, if Blanton can get out of his own head and pitch consistently, and the Phils offense wakes up, I think Smokin Joe will be very effective and win a lot of games down the stretch.
Duby - July 23, 2008
Just showed it on ESPN.
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
Course, It was all about
The Mets.
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
Deadspin
had this amusing headline:
http://deadspin.com/5027970/the-hopes-of-a-frustrated-phillies-nation-are-nestled-under-joe-blantons-second-chin
oakinboston - July 22, 2008
Oh Lode!
Not her again!
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
You no like her?
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
We has
sammich?
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
i like sketti, mommy.
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
MMMM!
Sketti, it tasty.
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
Whatever will Leopold Bloom do
with one less thing to complain about?
I’m happy his favorite team won in his self-proclaimed hell.
I’m happy also.
oaklandSMASH - July 22, 2008
Its a joke.
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
I know!
Isn’t it great!
oaklandSMASH - July 22, 2008
There are plenty of things left to complain about,
but the Baseball Gods have instructed me to cease and desist all bitching if I want to remain in their good graces, which I do, here in this lovely state, with its lovely sunshine and lovely weather, and nice sandy beaches.
(hums quietly to self, while crazy eyes scan horizon, rocking gently back and forth)
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
But for one night
its gorgeous, yes?
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
Oh, for weeks, it's gorgeous.
Months, even. In the winter.
The summer is a different story, but seeing as I’ve chosen to be here, complaining about it incessantly would be risking the fury of the Gods. And we don’t want that.
And…the sky is awfully pretty here, I have to admit. It’s not California, but it’s got its charms.
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
I know.
I’ve been there. And the storms are incredible, its just, there are no seasons. I would miss that.
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
Right now
We have major fog, its cool, even drizzly. We have sun for maybe an hour, but I love it. Woke up todayyyy . . . to everything gray.
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
Was it about 60-65...?
he asked, longingly…
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
The high was
73, and perfect!
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
....
(envious)
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
Yes,
But I live in one the most perfect climates in the country, Alameda. And we have the beautiful birds too
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
I love Alameda.
We will be happy there…as long as they don’t go further than Fremont.
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
We will.
Wolfe, please don’t fuck things up.
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
I wonder if we can write a letter to him...
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
And the birds
the birds here are incredible too—big and lazy and…other-worldly.
But I miss CAlifornia weather, California people and California living. As soon as my brother gets his sea legs with this business, I’m back.
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
I don't like humidity
if I lived in Florida, I might have to invest in a Space Suit with an auxiliary air conditioning unit for the summer months.
oaklandSMASH - July 22, 2008
So you feel my pain.
Not that I’m complaining, mind you….humidity just kills me.
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
I'd feel your pain
if you weren’t drenched in sweat.
oaklandSMASH - July 22, 2008
good point
I do pay the Florida version of PG&E a lot of money.
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
You save on your heating bill, though?
Always look on the bright side of life (a la Monty Python)!
oaklandSMASH - July 22, 2008
True, but there was a six or seven year stretch in CA
where I didn’t turn the heat on.
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
Whistles.
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
I love humidity.
I just can’t wait to fix my hair in the morning, only to have it go apeshit by the time I get in the car. I said screw it today… stuck it in a ponytail. I wonder if I could get away with wearing a hat to work?
Jennifer - July 22, 2008
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/apa/
mikeA - July 22, 2008
Stop It!
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
if you prefer not to rent...
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/rfs/
gigglingone - July 22, 2008
Can I have $10?
Jennifer - July 22, 2008
Yes,
as you’re “Welcome to Oakland!” gift.
mikeA - July 22, 2008
Don't get it stolen all in one place
oblique - July 23, 2008
My hair
goes totally curly with the humidity, can’t do anything with it.
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
Yep.
Jennifer - July 22, 2008
It has no body otherwise
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
Your hatred of Florida is your finest quality
Don’t become soft.
mikeA - July 22, 2008
I'm not soft.
The Gods have told me to cease and desist the negativity in order for us to keep winning. I must obey. For the greater good.
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
Forgive me for taking so long, but . . .
thank god for that.
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
A's marketing will be calling you soon...
ST - July 22, 2008
"Come watch Ziggy pitch!"
Flashfire - July 22, 2008
Every team has a slogan
2008 A’s…
2009 A’s
One won lost won - July 22, 2008
I like how McCovey Chronicles took the "All Out, All The Time" slogan...
...and turned it into “All Outs, All The Time.”
Flashfire - July 22, 2008
If the A's strike out fewer than 10 times, you get a free pizza!
Swooney's Left Foot - July 22, 2008
why don't you want us to get free pizza?
xbhaskarx - July 22, 2008
Apparently
not even Kane’s, the company putting the promotion on, wants you to get free pizza. They don’t regularly have enough coupons.
(stares up at sky, blinking)
...but, hey, the world’s not perfect, right? And if you eat too much pizza, you just get fat anyhow, so…um, it’s probably a positive thing! Yeah!
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
Only 6 tonight!
Flashfire - July 22, 2008
That just means they'll K 14 times tomorrow
Swooney's Left Foot - July 22, 2008
Hey! We can win the series tomorrow! Lets go A's!
jwnewman - July 22, 2008
Clap, clap, clap!
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
9:40 in the AM for y'all. Better set your alarms...
Leopold Bloom - July 22, 2008
Better set a second alarm for when the A's put you to sleep
Swooney's Left Foot - July 22, 2008
Up 3 hours before that
at least. Don’t need a lot o sleep.
lynnzgal - July 22, 2008
Why bother?
It’s not televised.
Helloooo 1st - July 23, 2008
Hannahan's swing
For a guy with a really pretty swing, not to mention enormous arms and quads, why doesn’t Hannahan stroke more of those HRs? Off the bat, I constantly call a home run, and the ball usually dies well before the warning track. Any insights?
dscel - July 22, 2008
Good question... Hannahan is actually listed as a few pounds bigger than Chase Utley. I know very little about hitting mechanics but would it have to do with the way he stands in the batters box?
jwnewman - July 22, 2008
Utley has a compact, lightning quick swing.
He gets the bat through the hitting zone incredibly fast.
Jackahan is the opposite. He takes FOREVER to get his bat around.
mikev - July 22, 2008
He's a backwards version of a lot of good minor league hitters
He crushes off-speed pitches, but can’t catch up to even mediocre fastballs (though his swing still looks nice as the ball sails by). Weird.
mikeA - July 22, 2008
Can't hit fastballs.
VORP is too nerdy - July 22, 2008
Looooooooooong swing
PaulThomas - July 22, 2008
K-Rod put on an especially
theatric showing today to notch the save. Perhaps the Tribe will seek retribution with a little showing of their own tomorrow. Even though the A’s are out of it, I can’t stand the sight of that little punk celebrating on the mound.
alox - July 22, 2008
Can the baseball gods give the prideful angels a season-battering losing streak a la 2007 Mets?
That would be awesome.
oaklandSMASH - July 23, 2008
Any chance of getting Andre Ethier from the Dodgers for Crosby and Street?
jwnewman - July 22, 2008
Because what the A's desperately need is an average-hitting left handed corner outfielder
PaulThomas - July 23, 2008
Turned on the game
to see the A’s ahead. It kind of figured the team would win its first post-ASG game with Dallas Braden starting.
The game was pleasant, until Ziggy took the mound. It’s a silly little record, but it’s a record all the same. I enjoyed the drama and sheer unlikeliness of it all.
Street’s great with a big lead.
bear88 - July 23, 2008
Rasmus Alert
On top of his offensive decline this year he just got hurt… the more his value falls the easier he will be to trade for…
“Colby Rasmus, the Cardinals’ top prospect, who is playing center field at Class AAA Memphis, had to leave the game while batting in the first inning Tuesday night with a knee injury. He is scheduled for an MRI today. Rasmus, who has been chosen to play for the U.S. Olympic team, had just returned to the lineup after being disabled with a groin injury.”
johnjahafanclub - July 23, 2008
ok-question for those who know things
Does his value change a bunch if the knee was banged up seriously?
From what I have read here, he is a top top hitter, but it’s also mentioned that he great as a CF. If he was slowed enough so that he had to move to a corner spot, would it drop him a lot lower in rankings, or is the bat still so good that it does not matter?
5Aces - July 23, 2008
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