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Open Thread: Game 138 - A's at Kansas City

Emil Brown, incensed that the A's refuse to value more highly a hitter who can't OPS .700, get on base 30% of the time, run the bases competently or, you know, catch the ball in the outfield, returns to the place where he was duly appreciated...well actually, non-tendered after leading the Royals in RBI two years in a row. YOU'RE sorry the A's signed you? Puh-leese.

All I ask from the A's tonight is that they do not mess up and score six early runs, because with Gio Gonzalez on the mound that could be disastrous. Gio tries to rebound from a disappointing start in Anaheim when he was staked to a 6-0 lead and could not retire a man - or a woman or even a ferret - in the fourth inning. Gonzalez is opposed by über-talented right-hander Zack Greinke.

The latest additions to Oakland's expanded roster are lefty Josh Outman, obtained in the Joe Blanton trade, and "Good Sweeney," i.e., Mike Sweeney, who replaces Frank Thomas as the A's "old, formerly great hitter who can draw walks but can't actually walk."

Tonight's starting lineups, not featuring the tragically underappreciated Emil Brown:

Davis - CF
R. Sweeney - RF
Crosby - SS
Cust - DH
Suzuki  - C
Barton - 1B
Hannahan - 3B
Cunningham - LF
Patterson - 2B

DeJesus - CF
Aviles - SS
Guillen - RF
Butler - DH
Shealy - 1B
Olivo - C
Teahen - 3B
Callaspo - 2B
German - LF

UPDATE: Rain Delay before first pitch. The game is scheduled to begin around 5:40pm PDT. This is the longest the A's have not trailed in a game since the 2006 season.

0 recs  |  269 comments

Comments

no tv?

gah…

Only 16 of 25 September games on Bay Area TV

Seems like the A’s, “CSN-Giants” and KICU have decided to euthanize the interest that remains in the 2008 club.

That's pretty sad
Haven't heard much about Outman

Anybody know what his scouting report is like? Thrower like Eveland? Nibbler like Smith? Just bad like Meyer?

Seems like he's closest to Eveland
Very hard thrower - 94MPH-98MPH

who historically has had control problems. So maybe the best comp is Henry Rodriguez.

That overstates his velocity by a good bit
I've never seen him throw, but here's from the Chron:

Outman’s fastball registered as high as 97MPH, and he was consistently working in the mid-90s, according to Sacramento manager Todd Steverson.

yeah, I saw that

all the other reports I’ve seen have been lower, and in any case that blurb doesn’t say “94-98” to me.

Fine, 94-97

I think "consistently in the mid 90s and registering as high as 97" translates to "94-97".

He could do that as a reliever maybe

but I’d fall out of my chair if that was his range as a starter. I would expect 90-94. “94-97” for a starter would be top 5 or 10 in the majors. He would have way more hype if he threw that hard.

He WAS doing it as a reliever

since the quote was from Sacramento’s manager and he has pitched in relief for the Rivercats.

Didn't know this before, but

Through Google, I keep finding things about how he had a completely unorthodox delivery in high school that worked great, but he learned “conventional” mechanics in college.

The delivery, awkward in its appearance, begins with the pitcher raising his arm vertically with the ball, then bending it behind his head — seemingly touching his opposite shoulder. The pitcher then pivots his front foot, beginning his follow-through with a “walking step” forward. There is no leg kick as with conventional mechanics.
I used to do things like that in high school actually

All of my stuff sucked, so I’d change my windup and arm angle every pitch to confuse the hitters

One time I was so desperate to confuse hitters that I threw my shoe

Unfortunately, it was laced.

Does anyone know what roster moves were made to clear space for Outie and Sweeney?
Frank Thomas to Disabled/Dead List - maybe he's big enough to count for two moves.
He would need to go to the 60-day though, which would mean done for the year

We need to clear two 40-man roster slots to add Outman and Sweeney…Frank to the 60-Day DL would be one…

I'd imagine either DiNardo or Robnett DFA'd.
I think Frank is done - I expect he'll be 60-Day DL
Then not offered a new contract, hopefully.
Rain delay, according to Gameday.
Rain delay? Booo.
So, um, it's been a weird couple of months for my family

First, my car accident and now, last night, my wife fell down the stairs in our house and broke her ankle. She can’t put any weight on it. This happened the day AFTER she ran the Disneyland half marathon.

happened to my friend

last year after the Disney Half Marathon, she said he knee felt like it gave up on her and she fell onto a chair and somehow fractured something.

Yeah

She was fine though. Wasn’t very sore, she just happened to be traversing our stairs in the dark and just completely missed a step. One of the worst sounds I ever heard was the crash and then her screaming.

So you've never listened to Cotroneo, then.
sounds like a real Mickey Mouse injury to me
Ack. Here's to a speedy and safe recovery.
You have my

sympathy empathy – my mom broke her ankle in December (triple fracture plus dislocation) and is equipped with Airport Security alarming hardware (bolts, screws). She really needs the “Clear Card” but she’s waiting for an A’s player to walk and Emil Brown just keeps on hacking away.

How did she do it?

We have an appointment with the orthopedic surgeon tomorrow, so I’m hoping it isn’t very bad. Judging from her screams (she has a pretty high pain tolerance and said the pain was worse than childbirth) and the size of the swelling though, I’m not hopeful.

She should have just asked for an epidural before taking the stairs.
Well, my mom was sent by ambulance to the hospital

where she stayed overnight and had “emergency surgery” the following day. But the dislocation left her foot temporarily deformed so there were no options. It has been a slow path to recovery because while the ankle is now healed and strong, compensating has caused much pain on the opposite side. I hope Mrs. Blez’ injury is not as severe and it sounds like it isn’t, in that there was presumably no dislocation.

My mom has more hardware than she has bones, I think.

I think our moms should go through security checkpoints together and get everyone distracted while we steal some stuff.

What is one going to steal at the airport, though?

Certainly not the food.

Stuff from the conveyer belt.
Not trying to one-up all of your moms' stories

but my mom created a scene at a TSA screening — six years after she died, when I finally got around to taking her ashes back to Minnesota. It seems the chemical signature of cremated human remains and Semtex are pretty much the same.

My mom can beat up your mom's ashes
Let's hope terrorists aren't reading this thread!
Didn't you get the memo?

The only people allowed on AN are terrorists, and you.

Best wishes to you and Mrs. Blez.
dammit, Nico, you tease!

I thought your first paragraph was leading up to an announcement that DFA had become truly eponymous.

Lenny D DFA'd, Outman is on the 25-man roster

It’s updated on the team 40-man roster, but there’s no news release yet.

new nickname for Lenny

Lenny DiFA

KC telecast..

just put up CarGon’s photo next to Gio’s stats as tonight’s stating pitcher. I did a double take and said, “Cool, maybe Carlos can pitch” .

Game about to start for those listening…

more KC telecast

“Crosby, the veteran of the team at SS…” ouch.

Anyone have a tally on how many starting pitchers we've used this season?
Eleven

Smith 27
Eveland 24
Duchscherer 22
Blanton 20
Harden 13
Braden 8
Gallagher 7
Gaudin 6
Gonzalez 6
Meyer 3
DiNardo 2

seems like more. sigh
Sure to don't want to become a Rangers fan?

They’ve used 15 different starters this season.

Does Sidney Ponson count as one or two?

At least their offence is exciting.
We've traded three of them away, so it's not THAT bad.....it just feels like it.
notice I didn't ask how many total pitchers we've used
But you're going to find out anyway: 22

Those who have appeared only in relief:
Embree 60
Street 54
Casilla 45
Ziegler 35
A. Brown 31
Devine 30
Foulke 27
Blevins 25
Saarloos 5
Calero 5
Hernandez 3

Who the hell is Hernandez?
Rule 5 guy who was more Mike Neu and Jay Marshall and Ryan Goleski

than he was Josh Hamilton or Joaquim Soria.

Rings a bell.
Yowzers, have you seen his minor league numbers?

Why would you pick that up?!

In Greg Smith's ML debut in Toronto (4/9)

Fernando Hernandez also made his ML debut, pitching the bottom of the 8th and picking up the victory when the A’s scored 4 in the 9th to win the game, 6-3.

He then had two disastrous outings later on that road trip, in Cleveland, and was quickly returned to the White Sox.

Gio's looked awful in his last two starts.

Cunningham’s a bit rubbish in the field too.

I'm sorry, but none of these young pitchers are giving me any hope

for the future

sigh, just another day in A’s baseball

A walk, an error and a homerun

your 2008 Oakland A’s.

well, maybe we'll see Outman!
someone ask the Commish to light up the Out-Signal!
What does it look like?
Gio doesn't have an out pitch, they're fouling everything off.
Gio was brought up a year too early

Not very impressive so far.

Control is a major problem. Has a nice curve and a very, very hittable meatball

Hopefully he gets his problems out of the way during a lost year.
Isn't Jennifer at this game?
I think she's at the entire series
Hope they can give her something to cheer for.
Sweeney's out in RF, right?
Yep!

Hopefully that will make up for a lot!

Glad this one's not on TV
How bad was Cunningham's error?

I missed it.

So did he, apparently
Not bad

the warning track is like a friggen lake. The ball was hit pretty hard and Cunninham was right against the wall in a ton of water.

Can someone describe how Cunningham made an error?

Was it fielding or throwing? Tough play or easy flub?

Fielding:

Fly ball to the warning track (which looks like a quagmire). He was more concerned with his footing and the wall than catching the ball and just missed it.

Soaked warning track

Cunningham first at the field, on the move through the water and the ball just hit his glove and bounced out.

Thank you

Sounds like it would’ve been tough for just about anybody.

Hannahan still can't hit a fastball. Jeez.
And he never will

Why he is even playing is beyond me.

So, according to the team page,

Mike Sweeney isn’t active for this game, even if he is in the dugout.

I’ll bet they’re waiting a day or two to decide if Frank’s done for the season for sure, and then Sweeney and Frank will swap 60-day DL slots to open up a spot on the 40-man for Mike Sweeney.

also note

Dan Meyer is back on the team, and is listed as the starter for Thursday’s game (oh boy!)

Well I suppose we've nothing left to play for, so why not.
so does that mean Duke/Gallagher aren't coming back?
Duke is still listed for Saturday's second game

buy I’m skeptical, given yesterday’s news.

What happened yesterday?

per Slusser:

Justin Duchscherer is still considered a possibility for one of Saturday’s games at Baltimore, but the right-hander had a bit of discomfort in his right hip during his most recent side session, so he’s not a sure thing.

Duchscherer will get an injection of Synvisc, a synthetic joint-cushioning product, for the hip and he hopes that he will be pain-free his next throwing session; if so, he’d be OK to go at Camden Yards in one game of the doubleheader.
That sounds not good.
Shut him down already, A's
Had to..

bring Meyer back bc AA is over and you can’t bring a guy to AAA while in playoffs… but the reason for NOT sticking him in the bullpen…. beats me!

oh my gawwww

can we bring barton in?

Don't be silly.

That’s like asking for a miracle

Greinke has a very live arm!
He's just crazy.
Cunningham appears unable to hit good fastballs....
At the moment, yeah. I'll give him a pass though 'cos he's just finding his feet.
yeah, and it's just 2 games...
Jack H

hates booze and fastballs. He wasnt even close.

Patterson's got a quick bat.
Nice Ab goiing there

he is trying to go to Left field, good try

Not quick enough to ever actually get hits
Meh, I'd give him an extended shot before writing him off.
you guys think

when hannahan and emil get back to their house they read what we say and cry?

Whilst rolling around in their money?
or in hannahans case his food stamps
League minimum these days being $390k...
well...

if they cud pay based on performance hed get food stamps

cud? Why does Hannahan regurgitate the food he gets from those food stamps?
He is still knocking down

over $30,000 a month. Nothing to sneeze at.

I'm holding my nose, in fact.
I think Emil looks in his bank account and laughs
Hannahan makes Emil look like Babe Ruth at the plate

when you compare the two.

AT least Emil can hit LHP.

Hannahan couldn’t hit his way out of a paper bag.

And yes, he probably laughs when he looks in his bank account.

If Emil could draw a walk the way Hannahan can

That would actually be a halfway decent player.

Well Hanny could draw 100 walks and he's still bad

I see what you are saying about Emil but Hannahan is flat out bad and should not bve getting playing time.

id like to coin a phrase

a Jack Cust hat trick.a homerun, a walk and 2 strikeouts

The sad part:

If he did that every game, he’d be the best player of all time and people would still think he sucked because he struck out 324 times a season.

and as mlbtv fires up for the first time here,

i am greeted with “strike out number 168 for Cust”

And . . . welcome!
nice to be back

on the floor, no furniture, one lawn chair, air mattress etc. etc.

And this is different how?
movers won't have my household stuff here for another 3 weeks.
J/K you!
got it. head still spinning from metro culture shock
How's Denver?
Nicest weather I have had this summer.
and....the new boss is NOT an idiot. damn, kc HR...
I'm likin' the Rockies avatar
yah, colorado state flag.
"who can draw walks but actually can't walk"

hahaha thank you for that, i very much enjoyed it…still laughing…

It's funny cuz it's true.
Is Braden pitching in this series?
Yes

Thursday

actually

just read someone wrote Meyer was starting Thursday….geez… who knows? i’m tired of keeping track

That ball was over Shealy's head

How the hell did he hit that out?

too slow...
That's not a nice thing to say about someone's head
Well Gio's painful to watch at the moment.
Other then Braden and Duke when he comes back, the entire pitching staff is painful
Give it just a little more time.
he is

and he’s only given up two hits

Yes he is

He is a year away from being ready IMO.

Ray Fosse called that a BP fastball
No more TV

Well looks like they want everyone to watch football.

They rarely show the bottom feeders.
Barton!

Barton’s favorite month is September

He's done the hard part of the cycle.....
yeah

bout the only thing to look forward to this game

maybe Barton heats up …. after labor day

For gossakes Jack!

Snap out of it!

DIid anyone read oakland A's beat writer Mycheal Urban's mailbag:

Where he said that Oakland should trade for Garret Atkins?

I think it would be a good cheap move! Any takers for a debate?

how about the list of teams with A's ex players

and he said his favorite blog corrects him all the time. I think that’s a challenge from him

He isn't good.
290/340/460 with 18 jacks.

hell of a lot better than hannahan.

granted i wouldn’t give up any of our prospects for anybody at this point

He's a bad defender, and he plays in the #1 hitter's park

better than Hannahan, though….

I think Barton's going to be hitting .290+ with about 20 homers for a long long time for the A's
I wonder if they can convince him that

April, May, June, July and August are all September next year

lumps man... lumps
You sound just like my gynecologist
You're a woman?

I’m so confused.

I'm definitely not a woman

I don’t think.

Fosse says Hannahan should have scored.
He should have. I don't know why he slowed up at second.
Especially with our offence - always send the runner!
the third base coach stopped him because he slowed up at second. he would have been out

by a mile if the third base coach sent him at that point.

Missed opportunity.

Wasn’t that DeFrancesco’s call?

Our 3rd Base Coaches

Are terrible

You can't wave someone who isn't there yet
im not complaining but...

where was the monday minor report by taj?

Labor Day hangover!!!
More picking on Jairo Garcia!!!
Curt Young better chew Jairo's ass!
OK, the Giants just scored three to tie the game 5-5

It can be done. By bad Bay Area teams.

Yeah, but the A's would probably have the worst offense even if they played half their games in Coors
The game I'm watching

is the Braves-Marlins game. Somehow they managed to quit scoring as soon as I tuned this game in, despite the fact that the current pitching matchup is Julian Tavarez vs. Arthur Rhodes.

after dinner in my sparse kitchen

I watch Crosby……K

So much for dinner

Enjoy it the second time.

jeebus, it's late. not used to this with A's games
Get used to mountain time.
i am thinking it's a plus as I will be

more apt to get in other activities before night games and have less conflict.

Other activities, good.

Less conflict with other activities, also good.

and best of all would be contention in 2009
Don't hold your breath.
I'm sorry. You deserved a better welcome.
You obviously haven't met him
I reserve judgement.
the voice of reason.
Despite all proof to the contrary.
80 proof, as a matter of fact
Haha!
I just realized.

I’m the only female here. Right now.

What happened to Grover's elite 8 sluggers the A's should persue?

I need to rosterbate!

where did Outman come out of.....nowhere?
Pretty much - Blanton
Outman says, "You're OUT
So far

fastball looks good: 94, 94, 95, 95. Offspeed stuff is not so good.

96 on strike 3
I imagine the combo of control and offspeed pitch (lack thereof)

explains why he wasn’t a more heralded prospect. I think he does throw legitimately hard – hence the Embree comps.

Probably about right

I’d be a bit disappointed if we wound up in the bullpen. He won’t be a plus plus reliever, as BBs hurt just as much for starters, and he seems to have some upside as a starter.

Also, if the fastball is his strength, that increases his value as a starter relative to him being a lefty specialist
It sounds like the A's want to consider him for the rotation

Only thing is, there’s a pretty big (and good) logjam for spots – especially for lefties! – but if he can learn to throw enough strikes, he can rear back and throw heat out of the pen, whereas starting he’d also need to sharpen up 1-2 other pitches.

Gameday had him 95, 95, 96, 96, 97 for fastballs

i always pictured him as a big tall lanky guy with crappy stuff like DiNardo

Your fantasies need work
No visual, need help.
Adrian Cardenas is kinda fat and Chris Carter kind of looks like Morgan Freeman
I thought Adrian looked like Sylvester Stallone

And I kind of saw Carter as a mid-70s peanut farmer.

lets see him beat Ziggy's record

that would be impressive

Yeah, Ken Korach was quoting him at 96 on the radar gun

Man, that sounds pretty good to me. Another power arm out of the pen to replace Embree next year!

He's been doing pretty well as a starter in Midland hasn't he?

Why not let him continue doing that next year?

we have enough starting pitchers
That statement is never true
You can never have enough starting pitchers.
That statement is always true
I think it's funny that Outman is #55.

What, they didn’t want to retire Cupcakes’ number? How sad.

Wow, Cunningham really can't hit Greinke's fastball.
Welcome to the Bigs rook!
well yeah. it's got zip

none of the A’s can hit anything with zip!

Is "anything with zip" slang for "a baseball"?
well "a baseball" doesn't include the bottom of a pool, so yes
Cunningham's career BABIP is 1.000

Therefore, he’s awesome.

Pretty awful game for Cunningham. No chance against those fbs.
Reminds me of

Barton and Hannahan this season. Swinging through a ton of fastballs

Reminds me of 8th grade

swinging and missing all the time…..with the ladies!

Now that takes me back to that summer on the farm...
Bahhhh.............
We had like 15 sheep for every human where I come from

Kiwiland

You also have Pulp Sport, so it balances out.
Not so many sheep around here

LOL

I fear sheep.

As a young girl I got knocked down by one. They’re pretty powerful!

Not when they're drunk and have their hooves tied together,

with their horns wedged over the headboard to the bed.

Leave it to you to put a childhood fear to bed.
why start meyer on thursday

we’ve seen pretty much what he has to offer which isnt much

give outman a shot…he’s been stretched out in AA/AAA enough

Well Hannahan should end this, right?
call up baisley, send down hannahan
oh, freaking well

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