As we grow ever closer to the start of the season (why is it taking so darn long?), it’s time to start considering who might be the standout performers for the Oakland Raiders this season. No matter how the team performs, no doubt there will be some great individual efforts this year. So let’s speculate as to who might have a great year for the Raiders this season.Begin Slideshow
It’s a given that Billy Beane will be remembered by A’s fans as the greatest general manager in the franchise’s history, and one of the most renowned all-time in the history of the sport. However, with Oakland not having made a postseason appearance in more than half a decade, those same fans might wonder If Beane still possesses the same front office Midas touch that helped seamlessly build a cash-stricken small-market franchise like the Athletics into a perennial playoff contender in the early 2000s. And while six straight losing season is more than a reason for A’s fans to be ...
With the regular season less than two months away, the Oakland Raiders look to finally get over the hump and make the postseason for the first time in nearly a decade.The Raiders have been stuck at .500 for the past two seasons, but it's been a big step from where they were just a few years ago, when they were the laughing stock of the NFL.With the Peyton Manning-led Denver Broncos expected to win the AFC West this year, the Raiders need to play mistake-free (and yes, that means keeping the penalties extremely down) football.As training camp is set to ...
The Oakland Athletics currently find themselves in an extremely interesting position. Currently only half a game back in the wild card race, the big question for the A's is whether or not they should be buyers or sellers come the trade deadline.Clearly they headed into 2012 in full blown transition mode, rebuilding for the future, but now in the midst of a playoff race, can they really sell off all their assets and give up on the season? So again, the question is, do they buy or sell come July 31st?The answer is both. The A's should trade anyone expendable, ...
"In matters of race, in matters of decency, baseball should lead the way." —A. Bartlett Giamatti
The late Commissioner was a smart man, and I would have written that even if he hadn't gone to and later served as president of Yale.Look, we all know that Major League Baseball (MLB) was just a mirror institution for the social segregation going on in this country during the 1920s, '30s and '40s. That obviously changed when Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in 1947. But did you know that persons of color are still being treated as second-class citizens by MLB?Here's ...
After an 8-8 third place finish in the AFC West, the Oakland Raiders are looking towards a breakout season that hopefully takes them back to the playoffs for the first time since 2002.Behind first year head coach Dennis Allen, the Raiders will have their work cut out for them, as they saw Peyton Manning join the division in the offseason.That said, the Raiders have potential with a deep enough roster to challenge for the AFC West crown, or at least an AFC wild card spot.The following are three players who need to step up in training camp in an effort ...
For the Oakland Raiders to be a playoff team in 2012, they need a few key players to have impressive seasons. There are several players that need to impress to have a job on the Raiders in 2013 and beyond and several others that need to impress just to stay in the NFL. It's easier said than done as some of these players will have to overcome their own weaknesses and others will have to rely on the coaching staff putting them in the right position to be successful.There are a few notable players that are not on this list. Richard ...
The Oakland Athletics are only 1.5 games back from a wild-card spot, but a few of their "superstars" are going to have to amp up their play if the A's are going to make playoffs. To the diehard fans, this isn't a shock. To the rest of the nation, the A's are a Cinderella story—a team no one expected to be within sniffing distance of a wild-card spot. Not this year, not with this team. But the team has outproduced expectations. Young talent such as Ryan Cook and Josh Reddick immediately blossomed into All-Star players. Castaways such as Brandon Inge ...
The trade deadline is approaching and this is the time of year that the Oakland A's have been the most interesting they have ever been in recent years because fans were watching and waiting to see their young, up-and-coming stars get traded for prospects.This season has a different vibe though. With the A's over .500 and playing their best baseball since 2006, general manager Billy Beane should once again be busy this time of year, but not for the reasons he has been busy at the deadline in recent years.Usually by the All-Star break, the A's are no longer in ...
Backed by four home runs and Yoenis Cespedes' first career four-hit game in MLB, the Oakland A's completed their first three-game sweep over Minnesota in over 12 years with a 9-4 victory.The game was busted open in the second inning, when Jonny Gomes, Cespedes and Chris Carter all went deep to make the score 6-1. Seth Smith added his 10th home run of the year in the three-run sixth inning to close the scoring for Oakland.Jarrod Parker was the third A's starter to go six innings and win without having his best stuff. Parker allowed four runs on nine hits ...