The MLB season is already roughy seven weeks old. By now, players should be settling into their comfort zones, shaking off the winter rust and acclimating themselves to the 2012 campaign. Some players are egregiously on fire right now (e.g., Josh Hamilton, Matt Kemp, Lance Lynn), while others are struggling mightily (Albert Pujols, Tim Lincecum, Clay Buchholz). Fantasy owners are paying close daily attention to these upward and downward trends, trying to determine if the past month-and-a-half are blips on the radar or thumbnails of the bigger season-long picture.The thing about determining who's hot and who's cold is that fantasy ...
It is halfway through May and the Oakland A's are only four games out of first place in the AL West with a 19-17 record. They trail the Texas Rangers who are proving to be one of the best teams in baseball.The team that many believed would challenge the Rangers for the division sits in last place and are the A's current opponents. The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are having a rough season and have a 15-21 record entering the second game of the series against the A's. The A's can help to keep themselves close to the Rangers as well ...
Based on the results, Tyson Ross should only pitch against the Los Angeles Angels.Ross was sharp, throwing six shutout innings. Ross threw 94 pitches in six innings, with 60 for strikes. That is a marked improvement in control from his struggles of just a few starts ago. He allowed five hits and just a single walk while striking out two.And Josh Reddick's solo home run in the top of the first inning was all the A's would have needed to win this 5-0 affair. Grant Balfour, Jordan Norberto and Ryan Cook combined for three shutout innings as the ...
If you are going to lose, you might as well lose to the best in the business, and the best would be Justin Verlander.He was as advertised, holding the A's to a single run on just two hits. He also recorded one walk with eight strikeouts in seven dominant innings, as the Tigers won 3-1.A's starter Jarrod Parker was not sharp, as he allowed six hits and two walks in 5 2/3 innings. However, he left with the score tied at one with two outs in the sixth, when Grant Balfour walked in the go-ahead and, ultimately, game-winning run.Miguel Cabrera ...
Note to the Reader: If you have not already done so, be sure to read "Lineup the Oakland Athletics Should Use When Manny Ramirez Arrives: Revised." It serves as a precursor to this column.Now that the A's are 18-16 and currently beating the incredibly talented Detroit Tigers 2-1 in a four-game series, it is safe to say that the beginning of the season has been quite the pleasant surprise.One of the pleasant surprises on this team has been the outfield. Josh Reddick has been phenomenal thus far, Yoenis Cespedes has shown flashes of potential for the future in center field, and ...
About three weeks ago, I started a series of columns that will discuss what I think the Oakland Athletics' lineup should look like when Manny Ramirez makes his debut with the A's. More change occurred in those last three weeks than I expected.Josh Reddick proved that he can continue to hit as hot as he is at the moment, and has therefore asserted himself as a 100 percent mainstay in the lineup. He's one of those guys that gets fewer off-days than most of his teammates because he's needed more than the rest of them on a day-to-day basis.Also, Jemile ...
Brandon McCarthy was just a little bit better than Doug Fister, and as a result, the A's defeated the Tigers 3-1 at the Coliseum this evening. McCarthy was fantastic over seven shutout innings, allowing only four hits and striking out 10.Fister was not much worse, going six innings and allowing only a first-inning run on five hits and two walks while striking out eight. Brian Fuentes allowed a run, but managed to get his second save of the year in the ninth.The A's offense was provided early by Jonny Gomes, who singled in Jemile Weeks to open the scoring in ...
Oakland A's slugger Yoenis Cespedes was scheduled to play in his first game Saturday, since missing four games due to a strain in his left hand.That plan did not go as the A's had expected.Cespedes was not only scratched from the lineup against the Detroit Tigers, but Cespedes was placed on the 15-day disabled list before the game began on Saturday.Cespedes felt discomfort in his injured left hand after two rounds of batting practice, forcing the scratch and the placement on the DL. The DL stint will be retroactive to May 7th, but there is currently no timetable for his return.The A's are ...
With this type of run support, Tom Milone could win 20 games. After getting nine runs in his last start, the A's offense gave Milone 11 total runs and thumped the Detroit Tigers 11-4 at the Coliseum.Josh Reddick went 4-for-4 with two home runs and five total RBI. Brandon Inge added four RBI, including his fifth home run, a three-run blast that busted the game open.That was more than enough for Milone, who bounced back from a shaky first inning to go seven strong innings. He allowed two runs (one earned) on five hits and struck out six total. The A's ...
If you were asked who had the highest batting average on the Oakland Athletics going into the game against Detroit yesterday, who would you say? Inge? Reddick? Gomes?You’d be wrong if you guessed any of those guys.Coming into last night’s game against the Tigers, Kila Ka’aihue was batting .283, the highest on the team. He was also tied for fifth in hits and fourth in doubles.Kila has been dominant in his last few outings. In fact, six of his last eight hits have been for extra bases: five doubles and a home run. Not bad for a player who ...