Opening Day held promise of a better season, one that even if the A's didn't win a lot of games, at least for the first time in 3 years the offense would not flail away game after game.
On Opening Night, the A's were shutout, and it would take 3 months for much to change in that regard.
Game 3 featured a dramatic comeback win that left the A's in 1st place, over .500, guaranteed no worse than a series split in Anaheim with a chance to win the series. It was such an exciting victory -- the A's down to their last out twice, a dramatic game-tying hit by Nomar, a loss hung on new Angels closer Brian Fuentes -- that when I got up the next morning the first thing I did was to log onto AN to continue the post-game celebration. That's how I learned that the opposing pitcher had lost his life in a tragic car accident just hours after shutting the A's out for 6 innings. I have never gone from so "high" to so "low" without a game in between.
On May 3rd, the A's and Mariners battled overtime until the A's scored 3 in the top of the 13th, only to see the M's come back with 3 in the bottom of the 13th. When Seattle hung a heartbreaking loss on the already wobbling A's in the 15th, I felt -- with the certainty only a fan can feel, even if a 2-game winning streak will change his mind -- that 2009 was just not going to be the A's year.
The A's were out of contention by June, Holliday and Cabrera were sold off by July, and by September the A's were throwing their "#10 starter" because first Outman and Braden, then Mazzaro and Tomko, were dropping like flies. Meanwhile, outfielders Cunningham and Patterson were dropping, like, flies.
Fittingly, following a 16-4 run the A's dropped the last 7 games of the season, ending the season with over 100 errors and finishing last in the league in HRs.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that it was a thoroughly enjoyable season and I can't wait until 2010. Anderson and Cahill! Bailey and Devine! Carter and Wallace! This division is wide open, baby!
Coming Monday and Tuesday: Blez sits down with Billy Beane for an AN exclusive interview.
0 recs | 75 comments
Doomy!
GreenNGoldSooner - October 4, 2009
I did gloss over the whole
“Brett Anderson could be emerging as a superstar” storyline. Or did I Glaus over it?
Nico - October 4, 2009
It depends
Were you applying a moisturizing sheen to your lips, or were you taking steroids?
Hmmm, maybe you could have been doing both…
Nick - October 4, 2009
You forgot about the brief career of Tommy Everidge!
Oh, the shame…
mrod - October 4, 2009
Re: It Was The Worst Of Times, It Was The Worst Of Times
To quote Norm Peterson, “Wait, whoa, whoa, whoa. Which was it?”
FormerHuntsvilleStar - October 4, 2009
the best part of the end of the season is that i no longer have to listen to this mgd commercial. ever again, hopefully.
Jjjsixsix - October 4, 2009
….but you did not spilllllll your draft beer!
GreenNGoldSooner - October 4, 2009
Let's go Twins!
And Rockies. Next year will be great for our A’s! I predict 85 wins and over 100 in 2011. It was a great year thanks to all of you on AN! I look forward to Playoff Game Threads and off season information! Thank you all! I hate that we have to wait until Tuesday for more baseball, though!
A'sfansince1970 - October 4, 2009
120 in 2012 and 150 in 2013
183 in 2013
Future Ed - October 4, 2009
Just got back from the game
I am so glad that I went to the postgame celebration for season ticket holders yesterday. The glow from that experience dulled the loss. This morning’s AN brunch tailgate continued that great feeling …if only the game lived up to it…
In 2007 the A’s went 76-86, in 2008 they went 75-86, and in 2009 they finished 75-87. So there’s no way you can really dress this up.
As in every season there were many good moments, and good things about the team. This year some of those positives include the bullpen (!!), the clear promise of Brett Anderson and hopeful promise of Gio and Cahill, the bulldogginess of Braden, the maturation of Kurt Suzuki into one of the game’s best catchers, and the emergence of Rajai.
I won’t dwell on the negatives, but one disturbing trend I saw all season was sloppier defensive play than we’ve been used to seeing from the A’s in recent years. That’s something even non-stars can do better and need to do better.
I of course will watch or listen to every postseason game that I can. (Looking for some good sports bars in Oakland or Berkeley to see the games that I can’t get on TV, any suggestions?)…and I love that the Tigers and the Twins have to play a one game decider — those are the most intense games…
and next year? I hope to convince my season ticket buddy once again to buy season tickets with me…because I am an A’s-aholic!!!
OaklandSi - October 4, 2009
You and Clayton Mortensen both --
Oh, A’s-aholic. Never mind.
Nico - October 4, 2009
are you starting a rumor?
OaklandSi - October 4, 2009
never mind -- I just read the rotoworld notes
and he was so nice at the event yesterday…
OaklandSi - October 4, 2009
There's your reason
Helloooo 1st - October 4, 2009
sports bars in Berkeley
If you decide to go anywhere near campus (perhaps Triple Rock?), let me know, I’ll see about joining you! :)
gigglingone - October 4, 2009
that would be awesome!
OaklandSi - October 4, 2009
I love Triple Rock!
Sigh. Too bad I’m not in the Bay Area anymore.
whiteshoes40 - October 4, 2009
The fact that triple rock
passes for a “sports bar” makes me want to vomit. Overpriced beers, muted TVs and a snobby crowd? That doesn’t sound like any sports bar I’d be interested in. Give me a loud, crowded bar with cheap pitchers of Bud Light instead.
darooster - October 5, 2009
well I don't really go there for the "sports bar" experience
but I can see why you wouldn’t like it.
whiteshoes40 - October 5, 2009
I don't consider it a sports bar
as much as a “place to watch the game that undergrad students won’t be caught dead at, which means I can enjoy the game without being bugged about work”
gigglingone - October 5, 2009
that's about the best recommendation as far as I'm concerns
I basically want to find a place to watch the game…hopefully without having to contend with vomit…
OaklandSi - October 5, 2009
That rules out watching any game Crosby is playing in
Nico - October 5, 2009
so, I guess any postseason MLB game is safe...
OaklandSi - October 5, 2009
Might want to skip the Yankees
Nico - October 5, 2009
and the Sux and slegnA
OaklandSi - October 5, 2009
Sigh.
As groups of 8 teams go, this is one of the worst in recent memory.
Nico - October 5, 2009
yeah, and since Fox decided to cover the ALCS
but not the NLCS, if I want to watch the LCS at home I’m stuck with at least one of those three, and possibly (shudder) two of them…which brings me back to the “sports bar”
OaklandSi - October 5, 2009
AN Tailgate was awesome.
mikev - October 4, 2009
So true
sill in a food/booze coma.
designatedforassignment - October 4, 2009
Totally agreed
Thanks Lynnzgal for all your hard work in setting it up and getting us all organized.
gigglingone - October 4, 2009
So last game of the season and Bobo had
Reverse Ramon batting cleanup and The Cros batting fifth. That was just cruel for the brave and hardy A’s fans who watched this game.
I guess I didn’t miss much of a game and besides I got to see a great Raiders team lose by 23 points so it was a real fun day.
On the plus side the ribeyes were good and even bad sports is better than no sports I guess (if the Raiders keep losing I might change my mind on this)
As far as the A’s go it wasn’t much of a season as I enjoyed the game threads here on AN more than the games themselves.
I do hope Mr. Beane will add a bat or two this off-season and I’d sure like to see one of those bats play third base. AK plays hard and did his best but he’s not a third baseman and it is unrealistic to think Chavez can comeback next year and be the starter.
I have some hope with the pitching although I’d like to see Bailey do it for a second season before we put too much faith in him.
One last thing I want to say thanks to everyone here on AN. You folks made this season a lot more fun for me than it would have been otherwise. Go A’s and Go AN
sirbed - October 4, 2009
same here sirbed
l always enjoy your comments, though i wish i could have partaken in the ribeyes. alas, the life of an NRAF
cuppingmaster - October 4, 2009
You didn't miss much.
The breakfast casserole things, several different types of sausages, ham and cheese croissants, grilled shrimp, bacon wrapped scallops, and guacamole weren’t very good at the tailgate.
mikev - October 4, 2009
Yep.
And those Bellinis…bleh!
I’m uploading over a 100 pictures right now so you can see that you didn’t miss anything over the last two days. ;-)
lynnzgal - October 4, 2009
yeah, it was so forgettable
I still can’t stop not thinking about it…
OaklandSi - October 4, 2009
I'm bummed I miss the last series
but reallllllyyyyyy bummed I missed the last AN tailgate…
on the plus side I went to The Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival in the city and it was awesome!
mrod - October 4, 2009
i meant to see John Prine's set
but reality intervened this weekend, oh well. Was it awesome? Did you see Gillian Welch? Please tell all.
emperor nobody - October 4, 2009
Didn't go today, I went yesterday...
I saw Steve Martin, Boz Scaggs w/ Jimmy Vaughn, James Cotton, & Nick Lowe….
Then caught Nick Lowe’s solo set….just beautiful.
And to top off the evening I caught World Party as a trio with acoustic guitar, electric guitar, and a combo mandolin/violin player….and they just tore that shit up!
A lovely time had by all indeed…
mrod - October 5, 2009
I wanna hang myself for missing.
And I didn’t even know it was going on until almost after the fact. Plus I’m 3,000 miles away.
Leopold Bloom - October 5, 2009
Yeah, it is fun, but it was *crazy* busy.
People were locking bikes to trees!
Mostly I like it because we can go hang out in the sunshine, listen to pleasant music and chat away.
Good times.
bobnothing - October 5, 2009
you suck
dtownmbrown - October 5, 2009
overall D+
Tambo45 - October 4, 2009
NO MORE CROSBY!
THE CROS IN GONE. I REPEAT, THE CROS IS GONE.
ALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL GONE.
Had fun this season guys. Here’s to a great one next year (and every year after, please?).
Boonee - October 4, 2009
MMIXed bag thoughts
time everlasting time to play b-sides time ain’t on my side time I’ll never no no no not three years of identical sub-mediocrity in a winnable division hello and welcome to the best last place club in baseball you know you’re in for a long year when you wake up after the first big win of the season the next morning and players you just watched have tragically died (rip #34) hi i’m billy beane and i’m getting the band back together unfortunately i neglected to mention that the band is the damned come on now if i’d have told you in april that matt holliday jason giambi and orlando cabrera would all be in the playoffs i bet you’d have been thrilled wow rajai davis hits .305 i will have to take 305 hits off this bong to celebrate that too bad he takes routes to flyballs that occasionally have stopovers at oakland airport oh no here come the mariners are we still apologizing to them for 2006 well it looks like we have our closer just no one tell joey devine ok i’ll take distracting whiny never-were’s who blame the failings of those they love on everyone but those they love alex (jeopardy music plays) who is ed crosby? we have a winner select again ok alex i’ll take aging and out of position for 29 who is biff clankington? no i am sorry wrong category you were looking for “quadruple A’s” on that one select again ok alex i’ll take two tin cans and some chicken wire for 860 what is the athletics’ radio network? you call this a network? i’m as mad as hell and i’m not gonna take this anymore! ok alex let’s try too much foul territory for 330 down the lines oh look it’s huston street also in the playoffs chris carter brett wallace and adrian cardenas pick up the emergency green telephone please i give that fresh draft pick signin’ bon-us grip-pin on a 9th seed so giambi wonders if you’ve ever been to oakland well he’d know the answer if he’d have bothered to show up his damn self this is what happens when you hire your best man and not the best man for the job i know let’s get within striking distance of respectability and then lose the last week’s worth of games sometimes i think we make this division an easier ride for the slegnA than lassie or trigger or champion or whatever the hell the name of that pony was for gene autry oh well as christine miller liked to say where there’s life there’s hope brett anderson poised hope trevor cahill sinker hope andrew bailey dominance hope raj davis 50 steals hope al davis natural causes hope please somebody anybody fire bob geren already hope is it march yet? cuz yeah you know it’s true 2010 i’m burnin i’m burnin i’m burnin i’m burnin for you
emperor nobody - October 4, 2009
that was almost as long as the season ;-)
OaklandSi - October 4, 2009
brilliant!
wrt al davis, I don’t care what the cause is.
eastcoasta'sfan - October 4, 2009
Toronto and San Diego replace GM's
Maybe there’s hope we can do the same change in Oakland and go in a new direction in 2010.
Morada Mudshark - October 4, 2009
Huh?
mikev - October 4, 2009
whaa?
Future Ed - October 4, 2009
...
Nick - October 4, 2009
Why?
Flashfire - October 4, 2009
Hahaha.
danmerqury - October 4, 2009
Cheezombie - October 4, 2009
No.
PaulThomas - October 4, 2009
Failblog.org
or
designatedforassignment - October 4, 2009
Oh well
Another pretty boring season overall and of course I was not able to watch a single game during the one month when the team was actually fun to watch. Count me in among those who hate CSN-CA and the fact that everywhere I reside in the Bay Area does not have the channel.
I can’t really see this offseason being that exciting since we tried going the route of acquisitions last offseason and we didn’t improve at all. I’m thinking BB will just sit back and let the kids grow and maybe throw in a veteran or two around January/February.
Helloooo 1st - October 4, 2009
mee too
only saw the giants games
Future Ed - October 4, 2009
So, I'm going to make a prediction
The A’s will not lose another game for the rest of the year.
Take it to the bank.
bobnothing - October 4, 2009
Funny that in the thread picture, Crosby's actually hitting a 2 run double
Not that this made him a great ballplayer, but a swing and a miss at a slider would have fit better with the caption.
williadc - October 4, 2009
Yeah, I thought I'd remembered that was actually a hit
Flashfire - October 4, 2009
Wow, you guys are good
Nico - October 4, 2009
Of course, you can click on it and it loads it with the original caption
Flashfire - October 4, 2009
Oh, I see we have a blog full of CHEATERS.
In other news, I hate it when my team’s player is on RotoWorld for being arrested.
Nico - October 4, 2009
Changed the photo and caption
Wise guys.
Nico - October 4, 2009
the thing is, he caught that ball
Future Ed - October 4, 2009
with his teeth
the big one
ElQuesoCapitan - October 4, 2009
I can’t wait for next season, because all our exciting young guys will seriously have exclamation points next to their names. You forgot Gio and Rajai!
Also pumped for this off season, we could make some splashy/interesting moves.
Daniel777 - October 4, 2009
I am hoping for some non splashy moves
I think the team can be OK in 2010 as is, but the real hope for me is 2011-2013. Splashy lost the A’s patrol craft in favor of lego head. Unless there is a Sweeney for Sabathia trade somewhere, I think palying around the margins is A-OK.
Future Ed - October 4, 2009
I think we need to splash around for some power hitting
And baiting our trade hook with a reliever or two could be interesting.
I’m not saying we need an overhaul or break the bank (because I love most of the guys we have), but we do need one or two moves to really put us in the contention picture for ’10.
Also, I can’t believe we were 14th in the MLB for runs scored. That’s either a great sign for the future, or lucky.
Daniel777 - October 4, 2009
look at Jason Werth's numbers for his career
he was out for a whole year too.
Early, no HR power. This year, 36 dingers.
Sweeney, Barton, even Zook. If Wallace can stick at 3rd, hit like 20+ and the others start producing (Hairston looks like a certainty to hit 30 if he stays healthy) then we don’t have to buy hitting, just let it grow.
All IMO.
One won lost won - October 4, 2009
Actually, that's an interesting thought
If Beane looks at what the team has at the moment, adding in the near-to-the-majors potential of Carter and Brett Wallace and decides that there’s internal ways of getting better on offence, but that the trio of Cahill, Gonzalez and Mazzaro might not pan out, perhaps the ‘splash’ we could see might be trading for an established starting pitcher, with a few years of team control left?
I’m excited to see what happens, of course. Roll on the winter meetings!
bobnothing - October 4, 2009
Why would someone trade power hitting for a relief pitcher?
PaulThomas - October 5, 2009
They were mad with power and felt the need to "pull the strings"?
Leopold Bloom - October 5, 2009
Looking at '09
My favourite game of the 3 I went to was the Hairston grand slam + Gio owning Mariners hitters one.
My favourite of the other 159 is a tie between the 14-13 comeback vs the Twins, and the early season Angels = FAIL that Nico is talking about – the only one I got to see on T.V here (sad face)
Daniel777 - October 4, 2009
A Mixed Bag
I thought with some luck the A’s might win 84 games. I was never on the Giambi/Cabrerra/Nomar bandwagon, but I did think the Holiiday would be more productive than he was.
I agree that the sloppy defense for many parts of the season is worrisome. When you don’t have big boppers in the line-up good defense is even more vital. Suzuki and Ellis were the only two players that could be trusted.
The emergence of the young guns in the rotation and the awesome bullpen was the highlight for me. I hope the A’s can keep Wuertz and I see Bailey getting better. If Devine can come back healthy watch out.
Finally, the fact that the A’s started running more made watching them enjoyable. This is a trend that I hope continues in 2010 and beyond.
Go Twins and Rockies. Screw the rest.
KCa's - October 5, 2009
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