Brandon Moss is a perfect example of what baseball people call a "Quadruple-A" player. He's had several tours of duty in the major leagues over the last several seasons, but he's spent the bulk of his professional career in the minors.You have to give Moss this much credit, though: The dude's got some major league pop in his bat.Moss showed just how much pop he has on Tuesday when he and the Oakland A's took on the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. He blasted two home runs, driving in three to help the A's dispatch the Rockies by the final ...
The Oakland Athletics once again lack offensive firepower, but there are a few moves Bob Melvin can make that could jump start the bats. Granted, the A's won't leap into the top 10 in team batting average or home runs. Still, fans can see the potential the roster has. It's like a puzzle. You never know how the pieces fit together until you play around with it. Then things start clicking and the overall picture becomes larger and clearer. The team has made plenty of moves already. Brandon Allen and Kila Ka'aihue have been designated for assignment, Daric Barton was sent ...
A lot can change, but the Raiders have surprising few starting jobs that are likely to be altered by performances during training. Several backup and situational jobs are yet to be determined, and that's where there is potential for training camp performances to make a difference.The Raiders lack depth, and injuries have the most potential to change things. Injuries can thrust a third-string player into a backup role at multiple positions or force the team to keep an extra player at a certain position.Staying healthy is going to be a key for the Raiders in 2012. Football is such a ...
It’s been a year where the Oakland A’s can say there’s been some good, but too much bad to go along with it. When he’s been healthy, Cuban stud Yoenis Cespedes, who was acquired just days before spring training, has been a solid contributor in the lineup, midseason free-agent acquisition Brandon Inge has solidified the third base spot, and Bob Melvin has been a vocal presence as the A’s manager. There’s a buzz that the A’s haven't had in recent years. For one, it doesn’t seem Billy Beane is calling as many shots as in the past. How can one ...
The Oakland Raiders defense was atrocious last season. They gave up over 250 passing yards per game and 136 rushing yards per game last season, good enough (or bad enough) for 27th in the NFL in both categories.That being said, their defense will not be anywhere near as bad in 2012.They were hit with a rash of injuries to key players and, to be honest, they ran a defensive scheme that just wasn't right for their personnel. With the addition of Dennis Allen as the Raiders new head coach, the defense will certainly improve.Allen was the Denver Broncos defensive coordinator last ...
Yes, mini-camp attendance has the tag of being mandatory as veterans joined the rookies and free agents in Alameda today. But the fact that there is no talk of holdouts or contract disputes has to be music to the ears of new head coach Dennis Allen. As the new way of doing things slowly takes hold, here are a few things to take note of as spring comes to an end for the Oakland Raiders. Begin Slideshow
The A's came back from a four-run first inning and played long ball en route to an 8-5 victory over the Colorado Rockies.The longest and largest of the four home runs the A's hit was by Brandon Moss, who hit a third-deck shot estimated at 461 feet in the third inning to give the A's the lead for good. Moss would hit two home runs, and both Brandon Inge and Cliff Pennington also went deep. Seth Smith hit a pair of doubles and drove in two RBI on the night, as well.While Bartolo Colon was not his best, he did ...
It is always fun to look at Organized Team Activities (OTAs) and get a prelude of things to come for the upcoming NFL season because it allows fans to get an early look at their team and satisfy their craving for football.It is also easy to forget that players have not even put on pads yet, and people want to speculate winners and losers of these practices, which is premature. The real time to take a look at the progress of a team is during training camp and the preseason. The Oakland Raiders and Raider fans have a lot to look ...
2011 was a rough year for Oakland's defense. They finished 29th in both total defense (with 387.6 yards per game) and points per game allowed (with 27.1). It's not all that surprising; defense was always on the back burner during the Al Davis era.But the Davis era is over, and Reggie Mckenzie is running the show in Oakland now. He hired Oakland's first coach with a defensive background since John Madden in Dennis Allen and has slowly gone about rebuilding the unit. It started with addition by subtraction, as Mckenzie decided to release big contributors like Stanford Routt and Chris Johnson, ...
It was a crapshoot at best when the Oakland Athletics signed disgraced slugger Manny Ramirez last winter in hopes of channeling production from his glory days to the middle of the A’s bargain basement lineup.With the San Jose Mercury News reporting that the franchise has not set timetable for the aging star’s return to the bigs, it is possible that Ramirez might not even get a chance to make a comeback effort this season in Oakland. What was a competitive start for the A’s in the early stages of 2012 has quickly turned for the worse, with Oakland now dwelling ...