Let's start with the good news...the A's actually scored five runs!* Notice the asterisk, though. We'll return to that in a moment.
He made it interesting, but J.J. Putz shut the door on the A's in the ninth by getting Frank Thomas to hit into a double play to end the game and end the A's hopes of a two-game win streak.
The A's still have not won consecutive games since July 10-11.
Gio Gonzalez delivered five innings of decent work, allowing four runs (two earned, but that's deceptive; Patterson's error didn't hurt him as much as the boxscore indicates), walking three and striking out seven.
He was in line for a win until Jerry Blevins allowed three runs in his 1.2 innings of work. Blevins hung a few pitches, didn't appear to hit his spots well and got burned.
(On a tangent, this was my first chance to see Jeff Clement hit, and he was impressive. He took two pitches from left-handers to the wall opposite field and burned the A's tonight. Beautiful swing. Not hard to envision him joining Wieters-Soto-McCann-Mauer as one of the five best hitting catchers in the game someday soon).
*About that A's offense...
Rajai Davis put the A's on the board with a patented Rajai Davis home run: the dead-pull paint-scraper just over the left-field wall.
But the truly fortuitous inning for the A's came in the top of the sixth. Frank Thomas and Zooks were beaned to lead off the inning, and Daric Barton and Pennington eventually followed with back-to-back, opposite field, check-swing, bloop RBI singles - which is about common as the five-hyphen sentence.
You could blame Blevins, and he definitely didn't pitch great. But the A's also should've done more damage to the Mariners' starter, Feierabend, who's simply not that good of a pitcher. The fact that a Rajai Davis paint-scraper was our only offense against him over five innings is not acceptable.
Two more shots against Seattle this weekend as the A's continue a grueling stretch and limp toward an off-day and expanded rosters on Sept. 1.
0 recs | 65 comments
we suck
HRH - August 22, 2008
I think the error hurt quite a bit -
Without it, it’s only runner at third one out and there’s a lot less pressure on Gio than first/third nobody out. That being said, the leadoff walk was bad and Gio didn’t rise to the occasion following the error. My problem with the error was it was such a stupid one – not bothering to follow through on a routine throw.
I noticed Gio’s changeup came in around 84 MPH. That’s too close to his fastball (90) – it was a changeup that Lopez hammered for the key double.
Nico - August 22, 2008
It seems like with that much difference...
you can be out in front and still not pull it foul, thats not good.
mattman - August 22, 2008
Baby steps
First score some runs consistently, then worry about winning.
grover - August 22, 2008
Baby steps
First try to beat the Mariners. Then worry about beating a real team.
iglew - August 22, 2008
Maybe
It’s more like the baby that takes two small steps forward and then falls back on its ass. I know it takes time to mature, but some of the recent additions to this pitching staff aren’t doing their part in keeping the momentum moving forward.
Elvez - August 22, 2008
No, they weren't
“Beaned” = hit in the head.
iglew - August 22, 2008
my mistake
I thought I could use that term interchangeably with hit-by-pitch. Never knew it connoted the head, thank you. My bad.
notsellingjeans - August 22, 2008
I thought "beaned" was when you
worked hard to become really accomplished, only to be traded for four prospects.
Nico - August 22, 2008
It's a word of many meanings...
here on AN.
mattman - August 22, 2008
laughs
jdub69 - August 23, 2008
QOTM
yep
jahs34 - August 23, 2008
"plunked" works.
The Dogfather - August 23, 2008
I disagree with this
Any HBP is a beanball, even though the etymology of the term goes back to bean being another word for the head. This is a case where the word has evolved to mean something beyond the denotation of the word, at least in the context of baseball.
But at least he didn’t say “beam.” For some reason, a lot of people said this growing up and it made me want to strangle them.
thejd44 - August 23, 2008
it's all Mesopatamia to me
jdub69 - August 23, 2008
So, then you know how I feel about the misuse of "bean."
Do you have any source material for the contention that bean=hbp, other than nsj, who, as a former pitcher, is inherently unreliable (unless left-handed)?
This issue was discussed in a diary a while back when they were diaries. Consensus then was that “bean” referred to head hits. I could not, however, get many responders to care about my annoyance that “batters” are routinely called “hitters” before they’ve even swung, much less made contact with anything, as in “Daric Barton is the next hitter.” Pf-f-f-f-f-t.
And whist I’m on my coffee rant, why the hell must Kuiper always refer to any multiple-run inning as an “x-spot,” where apparently x = any integer > 1? Anybody know from whence this “spot” business derives?
To me, this is Spot:
And this is a 101-spot: 
The Dogfather - August 23, 2008
"Ray, you almost get the feeling that..."
“…x > 1.”
notsellingjeans - August 23, 2008
Daric -- you are welcome to make me eat my words any time you wanna tee-off again.
The Dogfather - August 24, 2008
Also, why did Cust have to leave the game with blurred vision -
How would that really affect his batting or his fielding?
Nico - August 22, 2008
It would've given him a third strikeout...
instead of his usual 1-2 K’s.
mattman - August 22, 2008
USA baseball
They beat Japan 8-4 for the bronze medal!
Not bad considering how dominant South Korea and Cuba have been in the tournament.
Brett Anderson pitched 7 strong innings for the USA. 3 hits, was victimized by a 3-run homer after a little wildness early, but he settled down and finished very well.
Flashfire - August 22, 2008
the women's soccer game was much more exiting
jdub69 - August 23, 2008
exciting
jdub69 - August 23, 2008
USA wins bronze...
they just beat Japan 8-4. Our very own Anderson Anderson started the game and went seven solid innings giving up only 4 runs, both via homers. A solo shot was hit in the first inning and he also gave up a three run jack after walking two men. Jepsen came on in the 8th and also worked the ninth to get the six out save.
mattman - August 22, 2008
I didn't know we had an "Anderson Anderson" i think I meant Brett
mattman - August 22, 2008
This is a sad team....
more bad than sad actually. An epic collapse post ASB, truly one for the ages. And yet, no explanations forthcoming from the front office. Strange.
alox - August 22, 2008
Not strange. They (the front office) gave up. What's strange is that a lot of AN'ers go along happily with it.
jdub69 - August 23, 2008
Because some of us understand what the team is trying to do and accept it.
We did talk about this earlier, you and I. It seems there are people on both sides of that fence. Not really surprising or strange, is it?
Flashfire - August 23, 2008
Everyone has an opinion. That is good. Strange that people like to lose. Nothing personal.
jdub69 - August 23, 2008
Where do you get the idea that people like to lose?
This is about people who are looking at the bigger picture and seeing a plan. That doesn’t mean they’re sitting around going, “You know, I sure am glad the A’s are crap right now!”
That makes no sense at all.
Flashfire - August 23, 2008
Easy killer. I'm on your side. The only difference is I want to win now and every year after now.
jdub69 - August 23, 2008
I'm just taking issue with the claim that people here like to lose.
I can only assume you’re making that up for the response it’ll get because there’s been no evidence at all of people liking the losing except for the few who chalk up every loss as a chance at a higher draft pick.
That’s all I’m saying. I want to win every year as well but I know that just isn’t possible.
Flashfire - August 23, 2008
It is possible (to win every year) but I do apologize (for the happy loser statement) as I'm not really looking to pick a fight.
i just want people to demand more from the Beane/Wolff “no money” situation we’re in.
jdub69 - August 23, 2008
Nobody is happy with this crap...
regardless of the plan. The plan may work and it may not. But, almost one thing is for sure… it is not possible to win every year. Show me one MLB team that has won every year. Just one. ;-)
FoolshGame22 - August 23, 2008
It is a bit of an exaggeration, admittedly.
jdub69 - August 23, 2008
Nobody is happy about it here.
Epic collapse, and DL bloat, and all makes us sick to our tummies.
MobiusKlein - August 23, 2008
i feel better that I'm not alone with this feeling
jdub69 - August 23, 2008
And they're playing "Celebration" in Beijing
Flashfire - August 22, 2008
Flashfire - August 22, 2008
Flashfire - August 22, 2008
this team is so terrible...
they’re almost fun to watch. Just to see how they’ll manage to lose. Now, I won’t pay to go see their antics live at the ballpark, but it’s good comedy on TV.
FoolshGame22 - August 22, 2008
I'm realizing the usual allure of expanded rosters come 9/1 isn't really there for me this year.
Maybe it’s because we’ve already seen almost everyone who would’ve been considered for a call-up.
Flashfire - August 22, 2008
if they call up Cahill, Anderson, Doolittle and Carter...
I’ll be interested. But, it’ll be Buck and ummm…. somebody else, so I probably won’t watch.
FoolshGame22 - August 23, 2008
Lenny will be back.
So, right, nobody will watch.
thejd44 - August 23, 2008
oh yeah, Lenny...
I knew there was a pitcher I was forgetting. I actually kinda like Lenny, but not enough to watch.
FoolshGame22 - August 23, 2008
Not to nitpick, but, I will anyway
Technically, your sentence only has four hyphens and one dash. They’re two different punctuation marks. (Random aside: One of my favorite scenes from The West Wing is when they were trying to figure out the fourteen types of punctuation in English grammar. I am, in fact, a total language dork.)
thejd44 - August 23, 2008
I think he meant to put a hyphen between...
bloop and RBI… the appropriateness of which, I am not sure. But, just out of curiousity, what are the fourteen types of punctuation?
FoolshGame22 - August 23, 2008
A hyphen wouldn't go there, but a comma possibly should (I should know this, but it's 2:15 AM)
They are: Period, comma, colon, semi-colon, quotation marks, apostrophe, parenthesis, brackets, braces, ellipsis, dash, hyphen, exclamation point, question mark.
Another good question from that same episode: Which three words in the English language begin with the letters “dw”? (Dweeb, a slang word, apparently doesn’t count)
thejd44 - August 23, 2008
I love ellipsis...
even when inappropriate… I use them in almost every AN post. ;-)
FoolshGame22 - August 23, 2008
even google didn't help on the "dw" words...
dwarf and dwindle. It returned dweeb, but, if you say that doesn’t count, there must be two more.
FoolshGame22 - August 23, 2008
I'm going with dwell and dwelling...
which are, obviously, derivatives of the same word, but, nevertheless, different words.
FoolshGame22 - August 23, 2008
wow... I just reread your post...
and, you said there were only three. I found four. No wonder Galt is a genius!
FoolshGame22 - August 23, 2008
I am excluding plurals, of couse...
because that would be more.
FoolshGame22 - August 23, 2008
dwarven then too
dwindling, dwindled, dwarfed if we’re going for derived words.
dweomer too if you count words backformed from obscure 1215 texts stuffed into Dungeons and Dragons:
http://phrontistery.info/disq6.html
MobiusKlein - August 23, 2008
yes...
see, many more that three. LOL
FoolshGame22 - August 23, 2008
Thomas
Isn’t it about time for someone to call out Thomas for sucking bad. I didn’t watch or follow the game because i can’t stand it anymore. It’s even more gruesome than the Sweeney Todd movie i just finished watching. But reading the play by play – it is time for the Big Hurt to give it up. He’s horrible.
sacto - August 23, 2008
Thomas is the least of our problems
jdub69 - August 23, 2008
he's not the "big bat" he proclaimed himself to be when he came off the DL...
but, you’re right. He’s the least of our problems right now.
FoolshGame22 - August 23, 2008
please tell me we have this Teagarden guy...
is that how you spell it? If we don’t have him, I want to know why Billy didn’t draft him or trade for him.
FoolshGame22 - August 23, 2008
Yeah
And Pujols, too!
Helloooo 1st - August 23, 2008
did Billy draft and trade Pujols?
FoolshGame22 - August 23, 2008
Random A's and Radiohead note
At their show tonight in Golden Gate park, the intro to National Anthem had overlays of Ken Korach and Vince calling the game.
rebus - August 23, 2008
Thomas and Mike Sweeney
I thought it was interesting that Mike Sweeney went on a rehab assignment and Frank basically said, “I don’t need one,” and that Frank didn’t go. You could argue that with his career numbers and his age, he’s earned that right, especially since he didn’t need to practice playing the field. Or you could argue that he and Sweeney really aren’t that different, and if one guy went on a rehab assignment, they both should’ve.
I also will be interested to see how many ab’s Mike Sweeney and Thomas get in September. If Thomas continues for the next two weeks to hit like he has since he came off the DL, I hope the team uses the opportunity to get more at-bats to someone else – someone like Baisley or Cunningham, while still playing Pennington/Petit/Patterson as much as possible in the field.
From a “developing for the future” perspective, it makes almost no sense to give Thomas and Sweeney much action. But that wouldn’t sit will with the two older guys who have worked hard to rehab for months, only to sit when they’re finally healthy.
What do you guys think? And how will it play out?
notsellingjeans - August 23, 2008
If they are not part of the plan for 09,
then the team should sit them down. They’ll get the message, and it will make things much easier in the off season. I mentioned the epic collapse post ASB earlier, so I’m wondering how the FO tends to view the matter. I can’t help but think that the rapid implosion caught them off guard too, as evidenced by their silence. If so, its become rather obvious that they are unsure how to react to it going forward. They are going to have to make some wholesale changes, which probably means that Ellis, Thomas, Sweeney, and E. Brown are going to be relegated to the dust bin. If they do cut that many position players, I can see them attempting to bring back Giambi for the proverbial, “veteran presence” in the lineup. For the first time in a while, the A’s are going to have to overcome a losing culture. Bringing back Jason would go a long way in reinforcing the idea that the A’s are serious about winning, even while rebuilding. A healthy Chavez, a resurgent Giambi, along with a core of young players may just do the trick.
alox - August 23, 2008
Thomas looked slow at the plate
whether he’s “done” or just needs more ABs to “heat up”, it’s a bit late in the season…then again, it’s not like the A’s are in contention or anything.
OaklandSi - August 23, 2008
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