Rick Kaplan
Staff Writer

OAKLAND – Nobody likes A.J. Pierzynski, the in-your-face, gets-under-your-skin backstop.

Except the White Sox and me.

Pierzynski is a ‘throwback’ player. Throwbacks are walking baseball cliches. They would look normal walking out of a cornfield in a woolen baseball uniform. They crash into walls. Most wear their pants fashionably ‘high,’ socks exposed to the knee.They run ’em all out, including everything from game-changing dropped third strikes in the 2005 ACLS (Thank-you, A.J.) to routine grounders in a 14-1 laugher. They get on base anyway they can, they move runners up, and they rise to the occasion with clutch hits.

They beat you.

Click below for more.Gamer. Clutch. Hustler. Sparkplug. Old Oriole. Baseball has all kinds of names for these old school, gritty players – some legendary and some more marginal – who win with their saavy and guile and guts as much as with their potent bats and arms.

Shooty, Charley Hustle, Yaz, Mr. October, Sey Hey, Billy the Kid, Satchel, Country, the Fordham Flash, Leo the Lip, Hit ‘Em Where They Ain’t, nicknames are clearly a vital part of throwback identity and history. Frankly, the lack of these colorful and meaningful monikers in today’s game concerns me. It says alot about how MLB baseball is played in 2006.

Nicknames are a way to capture the added dimensions and unusual skills of an extraordinary player. Their absence may mean that those dimensions are absent.

Pepper Martin, the inspirational leader of the Depression-era St. Louis Cardinal Gas House Gang, was so intense and colorful that his nickname had a nickname! He could run, hit, field, and lead. He was Pepper Martin, the Wild Horse of the Osage.

Wanting the ball, quick on the draw, always moving and scrapping, constantly looking for a crack to squeeze through with a decisive run. That’s who a throwback is. Pierzynski. David Eckstein. Sean Figgins, Derek Jeter. Baseball players.

Winning organizations recognize the value and necessity of these players. The Giants called Pierzynski a “cancer” and let him go. The world champion-to be Chisox signed him, despite – God have mercy – that A.J. had played gin rummy before a game instead of going over the opposing hitters with Brett Tomko.

They’re not always popular with their teammates. They’ve even been known to take a nap while their teammmates are taking B.P But once the game starts, they’re all business, and they seem to be in the middle of every rally and game situation. And the fans love them.

Jose Guillen came to the A’s mid-way in the 2003 season. Despite the label of “troublemaker” accompanying him from Cincinnatti, the perpetually smiling and hustling J.G. immediately solidified the Oakland outfield and helped to lead the second-half surge to the playoffs with his great defense and run production. Then he stepped up in the ALDS, despite playing with a broken hand.

What more could you want?

Yet, to the dismay of his many new fans at the Coliseum, the A’s let him walk away. The Angels proceeded to grab him for a bargain $6M for two years. Sure enough, he was instrumental in an Angel pennant in 2004 with his 27 HR and 104 RBIs, only to be hit with a relapse of the mysterious ‘disruptive’ stigma after insisting Mike Scoscia leave him in a critical game during September. Some guys just can’t stop hustling.

This column believes that a 2005 Guillen-assisted A’s club would have gone to the World Series last year, rather than the White Sox (whom the A’s totally dominated in the 2005 season series by 7-2). Thus, the Athletics would now be sitting in second place in baseball history, behind the Yankees, with ten world series titles. This, of course, only after almost certainly putting away the NL (Triple A) champ Houston Astros, led by the A’s’ personal punching bag, Roger Clemens. (Please see my earlier column, “A Secret War,” the story of the covert 100 year battle for baseball supremacy between the Yankees and the A’s.)

In fact, it was the mid-season energy boost and timely hitting of Jay Payton, another gamer, which nearly got the Athletics over the top. One can imagine the effect of a full season of the more gifted Guillen vs. the gallant half-season effort of Payton. In other words, the A’s probably threw away a title when they discarded Guillen.

Now the A’s have another chance. Milton Bradley is the second coming of Jose Guillen. He could be the next great Throwback. This kid can flat out play ball. He hustles on every play and expects his mates to do the same. Forget about all the moodiness and ‘injury-prone’ innuendos. Let’s face it. These kind of players sometimes have an intensity and competitive fire that can set them apart from, and even conflict with, their more nonchalant compatriots. But they create a climate for winning.

The A’s haven’t had a presence with the potential of Milton Bradley since the original ‘straw that stirs the drink,’ Reggie Jackson. Certainy not Canseco, McGwire, nor even Rickey Henderson brought this kind of energy to the field. Only Dave Stewart was close. It’s possible that they have finally found the missing piece in the puzzle. We shall hold our breath.

Following is my first and second 2006 All-Throwback Team. Please send me your comments and substitutions. I haven’t spelled out what a throwback player is, in the absolute, statistical terms that baseball fans sometimes crave. Let’s just say it’s one of those things that you’ll know one when you see one.

2006 All-Throwback Team

Pos Player comment
C A.J. Pierzynski born with grass stains
Jason Varitek points for highest socks

1B J.T. Snow scoops make others better
Paul Kinerko all-business mustache

2B Craig Biggio 19 years with one team
Mark Ellis UFla DP combo with Eckstein

SS Bobby Crosby Plays too hard
Derek Jeter Plays almost as hard

3B Sean Figgins Kills the A’s
Melvin Mora has like seven kids

LF Jose Guillen what else?
Tim Salmon shouldn’t even be walking

CF Marquis Grissom retired, but I love him
Dave Roberts pure hustle and grit

P El Duque nickname, stuff, and heart
Tim Hudson needs a nickname

2006 Not-Throwback Team

C Pudge Rodriguez stay with one team, then we’ll talk

1B David Ortiz stop admiring HRs and run

2B Alfonso Soriano proves that hi-pants aren’t everything

SS Khalil Green surfing, anyone?

3B Eric Chavez too cool, but there’s hope

LF Barry Bonds He would be King

CF Jim Edmonds always posing for Web Gems

RF Sean Green emotion is OK, Sean

P Mark Mulder La Russa effect