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Archive for October, 2012
On October 8, 2011 the Oakland Raiders, and the entire NFL, were shaken up when the owner of the Oakland Raiders, Al Davis, passed away after ruling the Oakland Raiders since 1963. One day after Davis died, the Raiders played their most emotional game in franchise history with a come from behind win at Houston.It is now one year since Davis left, and that has been a very difficult time for the Raider Nation.First, the Raiders, who were 7-4 and on the path to a division title, fell apart at the end of the season to finish 8-8 and missed the ...
On Friday night, Oakland A's pitcher Jarrod Parker made the most important start of his young career, as he held the Detroit Tigers to three runs (two earned) over 6.1 innings. The 23-year-old right-hander pitched well for the most part, allowing seven hits and one walk while registering five strikeouts before departing in the seventh inning. Now down 2-0 in the best-of-five series, the action will shift to Oakland where the A’s hope to keep their World Series dreams alive. While left-hander Brett Anderson is unofficially slated to throw Game 3, the majority of the pressure remains on the rookie, ...
Despite starting off their playoff run with two straight losses and being just one more away from elimination, the Oakland Athletics have learned much about their team's weaknesses and still have a chance to right the ship.Many of us expected big things from the A's this postseason after their lively performance in the second half, when they went 51-25 to close out the regular season. But they ran into an angry force that might be not just the best pitcher, but the best baseball player in the world in Detroit Tigers ace Justin Verlander.One thing they learned from Game 1 ...
The Oakland Raiders are rested and ready, coming off a bye and heading to Atlanta to take on one of the better teams in the league in 2012 in the Falcons. Matt Ryan is having his best year as a pro and has been able to kill teams in any number of ways. The one thing the Falcons have had to worry about on offense is keeping Ryan upright. For as great as this team has been throwing the ball downfield, they continue to give up way too many hits and sacks. For the Raiders, you have to think they'll watch the ...
The Oakland Athletics have hit a wall in the ALDS after storming back to take the AL West title on the last day of the regular season. In order to avoid a sweep at the hands of the Detroit Tigers, the A's must make adjustments in Game 3.Both games have been low-scoring, scrappy contests. Detroit won on Sunday on a walk-off sacrifice fly by Don Kelly, after all.Oakland-Almeda County Coliseum crowds should provide some positive energy for a club that looks to be in serious trouble. Here is what the A's need to do to force Game 4, and possibly ...
Here's a joke you haven't heard 30 times this week: At least the Raiders didn't lose this week! As Oakland continues its bye week, preparing for the now 5-0 Atlanta Falcons next Sunday, I felt it was time to assess the team after the first four weeks of the season. There have been a few patterns established. One, the front four simply is not generating a pass rush. The absolute must for the 2012 defense to improve was a dominant quarter led by Richard Seymour. Instead, the unit has been patently average so far and a huge reason for the defensive ...
After a terrible offensive showing by the Oakland Athletics, it's easy to say everyone in the lineup needs to step up. While that may be true, certain players must do more in order for the A's to once again come from behind to shock the baseball world. It's been done before. In fact, the last time the A's were in a "backs-against-the-wall"-type position with three to play was on October 1. The outcome: a three-game sweep of the Texas Rangers to take the AL West crown. The Tigers lineup is not as daunting as Texas'. Even the pitching is comparable, after ...
Last week, the Oakland Raiders faced off against the Denver Broncos.  In a game that was expected to be somewhat close, the Raiders were blown out after trailing by just four points at halftime.  While many things went wrong during the game, there was one thing that really stuck out for me.  Last week, I wrote an article about how the Raiders need players who hustle.  If you were to look at the Raiders' depth chart, one player who does not hustle is middle linebacker Rolando McClain.Rolando McClain is a player who was expected to take the next step this ...
A famous employee who once made his name at the Oakland Coliseum once said this of a tough loss on the road: "It's in the can."That was Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker Ted Hendricks after the Raiders lost an overtime game to the San Diego Chargers in 1980. The Raiders responded by getting to the conference title game and avenging that loss to San Diego to go to their third Super Bowl.How does that relate to a baseball team 32 years later? It's simple. When all the analysis is done, the A's still have their home-field advantage. Detroit did ...
Don Kelly's sacrifice fly in the bottom of the ninth inning lifted the Detroit Tigers to a 5-4 victory over the Oakland A's. Detroit now leads the best-of-five series 2-0 as the teams head to Oakland for Game 3 Tuesday night. For six innings, it was a taut pitching duel similar to the first game of the series. Doug Fister and Tom Milone were both brilliant, going seven and six innings respectively and keeping the score tied at one until the seventh inning. Oakland scored its initial run on a Yoenis Cespedes RBI single in the top of the third. Detroit ...