"Fee, Fi, Fo, Fum,
I smell the blood of an Englishman,
Be he alive or be he dead,
I'll grind his bones to make my bread."
The Baltimore Ravens are named for the poet Edgar Allen Poe who was born in America and had his early education in England. Poe's poem, The Raven, is a favorite in American literature classes. It's a poem about a bird; its a poem about depression, I believe.
The Oakland Raiders are named for a more fierce and aggressive presence. The Raiders are the pirates who sometimes have a bird on their shoulder.
The Raiders were established years ...
As much as Oakland A’s GM Billy Beane is trying to change the A’s into a more speedy, athletic team, he never misses an opportunity to go back to his Moneyball roots.
Yesterday, the A’s brought back a classic Moneyball player. According to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle , the A’s have re-signed OF/DH Jack Cust to a one-year contract. The one-year deal is for $2.65 million plus incentives.
Cust will be back with the A's in 2010
After the A’s traded for Jake Fox and signed Coco Crisp, many, including myself, didn’t think there was a chance that Cust ...
Anytime the Oakland A's deficiencies are brought up, the first thing that tends to come up is "They need a shortstop."
Why?
Cliff Pennington hit .279/.342/.418 last year. Shortstops as a whole hit .271/.328/.393.
He ranked 12th among shortstops in OBP and OPS. That places him in average to above-average starter territory, and Pennington is only 25.
His UZR last season wasn't incredible (-7.3 UZR/150), but that knocks him only from a bit above average to average.
I don't see a problem. Pennington is young, cheap, competent at the plate, versatile in the field (he switch-hits and has experience at second and third as well ...
Should Tom Cable be retained? Well, the experts say no, but the final decision will be made by Al William Davis (just kidding on the middle name). Al Davis has a history of firing coaches after a year. Shocking, isn't it?
Well, here are the Pros and Cons for keeping Tom Cable:
Pros
1) He is generally a low profile coach, not counting other incidents that will be addressed shortly.
2) He's not afraid to make a bold move. Even though everyone was calling for JaMarcus' head, it's not easy to bench the franchise quarterback. Luckily for him (and us) he did that. Because ...
As the House of Usher that is the Oakland Raiders continues to crumble from within, we occasionally get a little peek at the madness. Al Davis is surrounded by yes men and women who continue to tell him how great and right on track he is. They also tell him he doesn't need advice from his former players, so they can continue to have his ear. They keep him walled in, paranoid of the intentions of those outside Raider headquarters.
Former Raider quarterback, and 2002 MVP, Rich Gannon recently reached out to Al Davis to offer his help in tutoring JaMarcus ...
What impact does the A's resigning Jack Cust, their main source of power for the past three seasons, have on players like Jake Fox, Eric Chavez, Chris Carter and other DH-eligible players?
What if (and I know it's a huge if) Chavez does comes back next season and is able to at least swing the bat? Or what about the one-in-a-million possibility that Chavez returns to the hot-corner next season? What happens to the newly acquired Fox?
And what about Carter? He's really playing well in the minors and although is a first baseman, is built like a DH. Now, I doubt the A's ...
With this season already in the record books for the Oakland Raiders, it’s never too early to look to next year.
Next year starts with the evaluation of those college football players who will be selected in the upcoming draft, and whilst the Raiders are quite well stocked at some positions, in others they are in desperate need of some new blood.
Oakland has the No. 8 pick this year, and the chance to pick up a real difference maker. But they have to address the same old problems that have dogged this team over the last seven years. That is, a ...
It looks like the Oakland Athletics will retain their main source of power from the past three seasons by bringing back Jack Cust for a one-year, incentive-laden deal. The deal is reportedly similar to the $2.8 million he made last season.
Cust was targeted by several teams this offseason, but decided to stick with the A's instead. In 2009, the A's slugger had a .240/.356/.417 season, blasted a team-leading 25 homers, and walked 93 times.
Cust's ability to not only hit for power, but to draw a lot of walks, is what the A's like most about him. Cust collected 93 free ...
A Historical Graph of Oakland Raiders' History is worth a thousand words.
During the first of the year, many of us reflect on our past experiences, and we made some assessments about our progress over the year, and over a decade.
Since the 2009 season for the Oakland Raiders had its ups and downs, this aricle gives a pictoral account of the Raiders performance, in part. We have entered a new decade and we need to constantly do "self-studies."
Consider these graphs either the spine or the skeleton of the complex organization callled the Oakland Raiders.
One thing is certain, however, is ...
Al Davis is staring down the barrel of another offseason that begins with the organization at square one.
The previous five offseasons that have come since the firing of Bill Callahan have amounted to nothing of significance.
The Oakland Raiders have managed to make no improvement over seven years of attempted reloading. I say reload because Davis does not rebuild. He does not have the patience for it.
It should be painfully obvious to him now that the fans have no patience for the continually bad product that he puts onto the field each year. Attendance is down, support is down, and confidence ...