Congratulations to those ANers who actually sat through The Game That Would Never End, as the Texas Rangers absolutely crushed the A’s in their riveting battle for who finishes in second place in the AL West.
The A’s held a brief lead in the second, as Cliff Pennington singled home the A’s first run, but the Rangers scored three in the fourth and two in the fifth to take the lead. After Cust hit a solo homerun in the six to bring the A’s within three, Texas absolutely lit up Oakland pitching in their half of the inning like the pitchers were throwing batting practice. The debacle started with a warning by the plate umpire after Eveland hit Blalock to put the leadoff man on base. I have no idea why anyone really thought that was intentional, but Eveland paid for it in spades, as the very next pitch was hit out for a two-run homerun.
It only got worse from there. Casilla replaced Eveland and faced four batters: Walk, double, wild pitch, single, double; exit Casilla. Enter Jeff Gray: Double, double, out, single, out, out, to mercifully bring the inning to a close, but not before eight runs crossed the plate.
The A’s would go on to score two more runs on a double by Bowen and a homerun by Denorfia, and Texas would get another homerun, and by the time the dust settled, the final score would end up 14-4.
There was nothing terribly memorable about the game, unless you had fantasy players on the Rangers; it will go down as just another loss for the A’s in the 2008 campaign. The A’s now fly to Seattle to play one last weekend series against the Mariners. Three more games. Three more games. Three more games.
0 recs | 91 comments
I sat through most of the game.
[pats self on back]
whiteshoes40 - September 24, 2008
Has Cust just cracked the .850 OPS barrier for the season?
By my rough calcs: .375 OBP .476 SLG
monkeyball - September 24, 2008
Basically...
He’s 2007 Travis Buck with worse defense.
VORP is too nerdy - September 24, 2008
Except he's played a full season, so he's been almost twice as valuable.
thejd44 - September 24, 2008
ugly
Maybe Jeff Gray’s father got to see him pitch. Denorfia HR. Only positives.
One won lost won - September 24, 2008
I pat myself on the back for reading through the recap
Good thing, Texas has 3 remaining in LAAA, and A’s have 3 in Seattle. We may still end up in 2nd place.
asfansince1989 - September 24, 2008
II really hope not...
2008: Smoak > Weeks
I know it’s not a big thing, but that hurt.
Colorado Fan - September 25, 2008
Well yeah, but Wallace > Weeks also, and most likely Hicks > Weeks.
mikev - September 25, 2008
OK, it's alright then.
WaddellCanseco - September 25, 2008
Smoak >>>> Hicks > Wallace >> Weeks
Colorado Fan - September 25, 2008
Not that it matters...
This game was a dismal end to a series. That 6th inning was absolutely painful to see.
athletics68 - September 24, 2008
Darn, I missed this one (which I was irritated about because it was on at a reasonable
time for once) to go to Ewood Park – pretty good decision in hindsight! ;-)
OldhamA - September 24, 2008
So is this the hazing trip?
anybody know?
lynnzgal - September 24, 2008
Please.
Jennifer - September 24, 2008
Thanks, SuSlu!
Eeee!! I can’t wait for the pics.
linky
Devil girl? What exactly does that mean? And he’s a loser, for ditching the wig.
whiteshoes40 - September 24, 2008
Thud.
Jennifer - September 24, 2008
I know.
And we haven’t even seen the photos yet.
whiteshoes40 - September 24, 2008
Don't google "devil girl" without your safe mode on.
Eek.
(but it gives me hope)
Jennifer - September 24, 2008
Haha!
are you referring to devilgirl.com? Wouldn’t that be the get-up?
lynnzgal - September 24, 2008
I was looking at google images, but forgot to say that.
Jennifer - September 24, 2008
Whoa!
lynnzgal - September 24, 2008
Exactly.
Jennifer - September 24, 2008
Yikes!
This could be verrrry interesting.
whiteshoes40 - September 24, 2008
I've canceled all of my plans for the evening
(who am I kidding? I didn’t have plans) and I’ll be scouring the internet until I see photos.
Jennifer - September 24, 2008
I've got photos
and I’m making a diary right now.
Jennifer - September 24, 2008
Wow woman!
you are fast!
lynnzgal - September 24, 2008
Yay!
now I have something to distract me until Project Runway.
lynnzgal - September 24, 2008
Woo!
How nice of yahoo to give us a close-up of Ryan right away.
whiteshoes40 - September 24, 2008
I'm looking at that group pic
but I can’t figure out who everyone is. It’s so small. Need help!
whiteshoes40 - September 24, 2008
So many! 17!!
And yeah, I’m really distracted now. Need. Photos. ASAP.
whiteshoes40 - September 24, 2008
Here ya go...
http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/photo;ylt=Auk5y8qevF8DFo7jJkwehooRvLYF?slug=c099bd16cfb44635833aab823ce343f1.athleticsrangers_baseball_arl109&prov=ap
OaktownPower - September 24, 2008
Ugh..that is Sweeney..but wont paste
OaktownPower - September 24, 2008
ok, Slusser has the photos up
wow…so ugly
(by contrast, Street looked quite fetching in his rookie hazing garb)
OaklandSi - September 24, 2008
"file not found"
OaklandSi - September 24, 2008
AN 3.0 wants to protect us...
…from turning into stone.
FormerHuntsvilleStar - September 25, 2008
What were Ziggy and Devine?
Blicks - September 24, 2008
I'm convinced that this is the only reason Embree wasn't framed for murder months ago
Same with Emil Brown. They needed these guys around just for the hazing.
thejd44 - September 24, 2008
Haha! Yeah,
my bad?
lynnzgal - September 24, 2008
I stepped out for two hours
Who scored the second touchdown for Texas?
67MARQUEZ - September 24, 2008
Hey, at least the defense played well
Held Texas to two touchdowns, and scored two safeties. Good thing I bet the under.
FreeSeatUpgrade - September 24, 2008
Second that!!!
Oh my!!! I was like listening to nails on a chalkboard…no, sorry….that’s when Foulke comes in. Heck, they should have thrown him in too!
I was surprised that the A’s staff threw Gray in, I heard the A’s pitching staff was changing his motion, why? Oh well, he’s going to be a work in progress…I guess they figured out that they were already out of it and decided to let him get some work in on it and iron out the kinks…but look at the bright side, he didn’t give up a HR or a walk unlike the other guys!
jerrymcguire - September 24, 2008
well it was enjoyable to see the A's back in second place
for one evening
OaklandSi - September 24, 2008
come home. check yahoo mlb score lines oh well
ak_A - September 24, 2008
The game?
Or the slobbering next door?
67MARQUEZ - September 24, 2008
You're just jealous.
whiteshoes40 - September 24, 2008
Jack Cust sucks
he’s a crappy ryan howard
we need to get rid of him and bring up chirs carter
ya i said……i said it and i meant it
LosAltosA's - September 24, 2008
your idiosyncratic notions have been duly noted, and shall be registered in your permanent record
monkeyball - September 24, 2008
{scribbles in notepad usually reserved for observations about ak_A}
Nico - September 24, 2008
Nuh-uh!
lynnzgal - September 24, 2008
Not to be overly argumentative, but...
Yuh-huh.
Nico - September 24, 2008
Alrighty then,
just seems a little harsh to ak_A is all.
lynnzgal - September 24, 2008
oh no, Nico and I just have fun that way.
(i think that’s right. or have i once again mistook malicious hazing as jocularity)
ak_A - September 25, 2008
No, we have fun
{submits notes to American Psychiatric Association contact, stamped "URGENT"}
Nico - September 25, 2008
Is your sigline actually accurate?
Because if not, there’s no excuse.
PaulThomas - September 24, 2008
Cust might well be a slightly worse version of Ryan Howard (or he might be about the same)
It also wouldn’t surprise me if Carter were to take Cust’s spot in two or three years.
WaddellCanseco - September 25, 2008
Those are logical statements
And not actually what my new favorite AN poster said. “Slightly worse” and “crappy” do not have the same meaning, and “we need to get rid of him and bring up chirs carter” implies, like, immediately (or, at worst, by the start of 2009). It’s reasonalbe that when Cust is 32 and Carter is 24, Carter will be the better player and Cust will no longer be very good. I think you might be right. That doesn’t make the original statement any less insane.
thejd44 - September 25, 2008
No your ignorant
end of story
LosAltosA's - September 24, 2008
Guess you won't be around long.
I’m thinking Jack Cust will out last you. With the A’s, that’s really saying something.
alox - September 24, 2008
What about my ignorant?
Please finish you are sentences!
Nico - September 25, 2008
I don't think your end of stories are ignorant at all.
But maybe I’m just ignorant.
67MARQUEZ - September 25, 2008
Maybe it’s more like Know Your Enemy, Know Your Ignorant
DCinWC - September 25, 2008
Nico, we don't always agree on baseball things
But this post makes me love you in a very heterosexual sort of way.
thejd44 - September 25, 2008
(not that there's anything right with that)
Nico - September 25, 2008
Hehehe, oh the irony is delicious. Yum yum yum.
thejd44 - September 24, 2008
Okay, at what point does
irony give way to mocking special olympic participants?
alox - September 25, 2008
Who would mock someone who overcame a debilitating ailment to reach the pinnacle of their sport?
WaddellCanseco - September 25, 2008
I was kidding
i just wanted to see how everyone would react to my statement
and i found it quite entertaining to say the least
thank you and good night
LosAltosA's - September 25, 2008
Well, perhaps you'd care to lend us your view on this questionnaire, sir.
Oh, no, no, no, no.
You were doing fine. You had been courteous and receptive to courtesy.
You had established trust, with the embarrassing truth about Miggs.
And now this ham-handed segue into your questionnaire. It won’t do.
67MARQUEZ - September 25, 2008
It simply will not do.
alox - September 25, 2008
Hmm...Harden tonight so far for the Cubs:
4 IP, 2 hits, 3 runs, 2 BB, 0 K, 57 pitches, 28 strikes. The lack of strikeouts and lack of strikes makes me wonder how the ol’ right arm is doing.
Nico - September 25, 2008
Uh-oh
67MARQUEZ - September 25, 2008
Just checked Gameday and it has Harden
consistently at 88-91 on his fastball.
Nico - September 25, 2008
Every Cubs fan right now is chanting "six days rest" under their breath
PaulThomas - September 25, 2008
What's been especially bad his last two starts is Harden's control
98 pitches, 48 strikes tonight, and IIRC 6 BBs in 5 IP his previous start.
Nico - September 25, 2008
He probably won't pitch until Game 3 of the playoffs
Which is, at least, a week of rest before his next start.
thejd44 - September 25, 2008
That might help his arm and velocity,
but could also wreak further havoc with his control.
Nico - September 25, 2008
Dempster's been announced as Game 1 starter
WaddellCanseco - September 25, 2008
Bahaha.
Rincon is pitching for the Mets… wearing a Cards hat in his gameday pic. Random.
whiteshoes40 - September 25, 2008
And he just gave up a 3-run homer to his first batter.
Of course.
whiteshoes40 - September 25, 2008
the twins game is exciting
fired up mlb to catch it when they tied it up in the 8th.
ak_A - September 25, 2008
Awesome - PUT IT ON THE BOARD, Twins!
My hatred of the White Sox’ broadcast team has me rooting for Minnesota to take the Central.
Nico - September 25, 2008
heck of game just finished.
kind of fun to see a team that is so jacked up.
ak_A - September 25, 2008
They're a remarkable story
Maddon and Gardenhire are good managers.
Nico - September 25, 2008
I think Gardenhire is a pretty terrible manager
He just happens to have a team perfectly tailored to playing baseball in a giant garage..
As for this series: As much as I hate Hawk’s umpire ripping, he makes a good point. A known terrible umpire like Marquez has no business umpiring that series. Why doesn’t MLB put the best umps for important series?
thejd44 - September 25, 2008
I'm not the most familiar with Gardenhire's in-game strategy work
(mostly just from watching A’s games) but year in and year out he seems to me to get the most out of the team he has. I happen to think “in game tactician” work is a relatively low percentage of a manager’s overall job, so I’m speaking generally, not just about specific strategic decisions.
Nico - September 25, 2008
I can tell you that every Twins fan I'm aware of absolutely loathes his in-game skills
I know every fan hates the manager, but I’m telling you, it goes well beyond the typical.
PaulThomas - September 25, 2008
Why doesn't MLB put the worst umps in very unimportant series
like, say, AAA?
If the guy is “known to be terrible,” he shouldn’t be umpiring in MLB at all.
PaulThomas - September 25, 2008
I resent that remark.
67MARQUEZ - September 26, 2008
I hate off days
And lemme tell ya, the stretch of 194 off days in a row which starts Monday is gonna be hard to take. Damn schedule makers.
FreeSeatUpgrade - September 25, 2008
We need DWL game threads.
WaddellCanseco - September 25, 2008
At least for once they released next years
schedule in such a manner that I can plan my life.
alox - September 25, 2008
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