WhatIfSports.com utilizes its award-winning baseball simulation engine to present the most comprehensive and unbiased ranking possible of all 30 teams in baseball each Monday during the regular season. To come up with the rankings, using only their statistical performance to date this season, each team is simulated against every other team 100 times – 50 at home and 50 at the opposing ballpark so that all five pitchers in the current rotation start ten times at each location. (Note: This means that if a pitcher who was in the rotation was recently put on the DL, ...
The Raiders agreed to terms on a one-year contract with cornerback Joselio Hanson, according to Adam Caplan. According to ProFootballTalk.com, the team released former third-round draft pick DeMarcus Van Dyke to make the move. The new era in Oakland is not just a marketing campaign—general manager Reggie McKenzie has demonstrated that he’s going to do it his way, and releasing 2011’s third-round pick is yet another clear indication of that. By signing Hanson, the Raiders have dramatically altered the personnel that will play in the nickel package, but his signing doesn't do much to provide depth behind starting cornerbacks Shawntae ...
The Oakland Athletics go into action today with a 76-51 record, identical to that of the New York Yankees.The A's sit a mere three games behind the Texas Rangers in the American League West and are the proud owners of the first wild card slot in the American League. They are 9-1 in their last 10 games and that nine comes in the form of a nine-game winning streak.To say that the A's are red-hot is an understatement.Not a single member of the team has a batting average over .300 (though rookie Yoenis Cespedes is the closest at .297), and ...
Every once in a while, you get a story in sports that defies all methods of logic. I am hard pressed to find one more illogical than the 2012 Oakland A's.Picked for last by most prognosticators and projected to lose anywhere from 85 to 100 games, the A's sit in prime position for not only a playoff spot, but possibly a run to the American League West title. The last time they were a playoff team as the month of September started, the A's went to the American League Championship Series in 2006.However, that team had a superstar having one ...
Before the second of a three-game series against the Boston Red Sox, Oakland Athletics manager Bob Melvin sat down to speak with reporters about his message to players, what it will take to secure a playoff spot and a few other notable roster issues. One month away from the postseason, the A's find themselves as the front-runners for a wild-card spot come October. As of September 1, MLB teams are allowed to expand from a 25- to a 40-man roster. Typically, September call-ups act as time to scout for next year. But this year is different. Charging hard into the ...
It is hard to believe that in mid-June, the Oakland Athletics were nine games under .500. Or maybe it is hard to grasp that the A's have a playoff spot as of Labor Day weekend.One thing is certain. The Athletics, who were nine games behind the division-leading Texas Rangers on July 17th and were six games back as recently as August 25th, are only three back.Today they increased their winning streak to eight games with yet another victory over the Boston Red Sox. They did not pour on 20 runs as they did on Friday. Today's game was a much ...
As the 2012 MLB season trickles down to the final stretch, a handful of teams are seeking playoff berths, while others seek vacation destinations following game 162. For the first time since 2006, the Oakland Athletics are putting their postseason paradises on hold. Oakland's midseason surge peaked in July during the 19-5 stint and has yet to fully subside. Boasting a 31-14 record since the All-Star Break break, Bob Melvin's Athletics have patched up their 2012 season quilt with variations of miscellaneous fabrics—and boy, is it warm. Following the series-opening 20-2 demolition of the Boston Red Sox, the A's preserve the top spot in the ...
Baseball is so unfair. How can a small-revenue team like the Boston Red Sox hope to contend against a big-market team like the Oakland Athletics?Yesterday was an example of how momentum in baseball is not always simply seeing who the next day's pitcher is. Sometimes, it is a direct reflection of the team.The Oakland Athletics are a team that, against all odds, have arrived at September in the lead for a playoff position. They are doing it with deep pitching and power from multiple sources. Seven Oakland hitters are in double digits for home runs.And it seemed like they hit ...
The Oakland Raiders were one of the last teams to announce the roster moves that would bring the team down to the league-mandated 53-man roster. Once the moves were announced, there were very few surprises. One thing is certain: general manager Reggie McKenzie is far from done shaping the roster. Even though the 53-man roster is likely to be much different when the Raiders face the Chargers a week from Monday, there's value in understanding where the Raiders could add players and what it means for the depth and rotations at certain key positions. Seven Cornerbacks The Raiders kept seven cornerbacks ...