In our day to day lives we tend to focus on what is happening today rather than looking at the big picture.

In baseball, you have to keep in mind that what happens today does have a bearing on the game, but what happens over six months really tells the story of the season.

Teams slump for two weeks, then get hot. Pitchers lose three in a row, then turn it around, hitters go oh for fifteen, then hit .400.

You can’t lose faith until it is over, that’s what makes baseball different, among other things, from all the major sports.

With that in mind keep your eyes on the Arizona Diamondbacks who reached the magic .500 mark Friday night. One of these days, Curt Schilling and Randy Johnson will return, and if the young hitters on the team are still hitting, they can quickly get back into the race.

More baseball below!The A’s are smoking. I said yesterday on my show and MLB radio that the A’s are heading for a 12 to 14 game winning streak. Many raised their eyebrows, but Oakland is winning at home, where it takes a special pitching performance to beat them, and the lineup is producing enough runs to beat the mediocre teams, which the A’s are now getting a steady diet of (Giants not included because Reuter and Schmidt can control the game, see next weekend).

The A’s need some bullpen help. Chad Bradford will wear out, I guarantee it, if the A’s don’t pick up two reliable arms. Michael Neu is a terrific young man, but let’s face it, Ken Macha will not use him in any meaningful situation. The A’s simply can’t carry this Rule V pick on the roster. Ricardo Rincon is used sparingly, Jim Mecir can only be used for one inning every other day, and Keith Foulke has a history of wilting from overuse.

SOS! The A’s need to add to the bullpen. It’s the first day of summer today and the bullpen innings are only going to increase over the next two months.

The Giants are not hitting in critical situations. No kidding, that fact is reported every five minutes by the media. The bigger issue is who is going to hit third in their lineup. Marquis Grissom has given them more than they could have hoped for in center field, but a third place hitter he isn’t. Ray Durham should lead off. Right now they do not have a true three hitter on the team other than Barry Bonds. To me, this is the problem with their offense. The third hitter should be the best hitter in the team, so Barry you are it.

Jerome Williams better throw strikes because Tim Hudson will. Bullpens rule the day in baseball, and this one might come down to that tonight. If Bradford isn’t available, the Giants will come to life late in the game. Can Williams keep it close? Perhaps, but he better throw a solid game, keeping the A’s off base and in the park.

The White Sox crushed the Cubs Friday. Mark Buehrle threw extremely well his last start and goes today against inconsistent Matt Clement. Cubs bullpen looking a little weary. The Cubs traded Mark Bellhorn to the Rockies after getting tired of Bellhorn’s laid back approach to life. Jose Hernandez strikes out an awful lot, but he can hit with some power which is what the Cubs need. By getting Hernandez to play third, does this mean the Cubs are out of the Mike Lowell sweepstakes. Let’s hope so, because if the Marlins trade Lowell, they are stupid and cheap.

See you have to play the games. Rondell White hit a two out grand slam to beat the Mariners last night for the Padres. The big hit came off Jeff Nelson who just might not have the stamina to pitch as often as Bob Melvin would like. With Kaz Sasaki on the DL for an extended stay, the Mariners need one of LA’s relievers to ensure a smooth ride into the playoffs. Without a big time closer, their games will get dicier as the summer moves on.

So much for Oliver Perez and his new found control. The San Diego lefty walked six in five innings last night.

The Giants were very impressed with the Dodgers defense and their bullpen during the last series in LA. I still say LA needs some more punch or they will never win the West.

The A’s might not catch Seattle during this winning streak, by the way they are now 27-10 at home, but they will establish themselves in the Wild Card race. Toronto and Boston and NY better be careful or the A’s will open a nice Wild Card lead.

St.Louis throws its second sore armed pitcher in a row today at KC. You know Matt Morris can’t be right after getting knocked around by the Royals Friday, now Woody Williams tries to rebound from his last start in Yankee Stadium where he was very wild, in today’s game against Darrell May, who will get a win one of these days.

Houston goes against the Rangers. A Rod hit another home run yesterday, his 18th, by the way Texas lost 12-3.

Mark Redman threw 138 pitches for Miami yesterday. I guess he is over any arm miseries, let’s see what his next start looks like. Phenom Miguel Cabrera got the game winning hit in his first game. The Marlins have hope, they just need to stay the course and not bust up this team.

David Eckstein is down to .236. the Angels are falling quickly, it ain’t over, but they need to start their push pretty soon. Jarrod Washburn got tagged for more crucial home runs in his loss Friday. Home runs are ruining his outings.

Jason Giambi is on fire and the Yankees are winning, there is a correlation here.

The Twins got a decent game from Brad Radke, now need another one from Kyle Lohse today against the barely passable Wayne Franklin of Milwaukee.

Yogi said it best, it ain’t over til it’s over, and on the first day of summer, you can’t forget it.