Marty; You mentioned today that good pitching requires the throwing of strikes. In that respect, I call your attention to the recent publication of Roger Angell’s collection of articles from the New Yorker, going back twenty five or more years. The most perceptive writing about the great game that I have read.

Fans Click Below for Another Excellent Analysis By Ed Stern

Thanks Ed! [Read more →]

With 65 games to go in the 2003 season the Mariners lead the A’s by 5 and the Angels by 9 and 1/2.

So, big deal. There is so much baseball left to play that it is ridiculous for anyone to feel like their pennant hopes are fading away after a bad weekend in the East or Midwest.

The Mariners have a tight defense, good pitching and a solid bull pen. The A’s have the best three starters in baseball and perhaps one of the top three closers as well. The Angels have true grit and will not go away easily.

It is only July the 21st. So much can happen over the next ten weeks, that you will think you are trapped inside a grade B Hollywood movie.

One solid week of baseball brings anyone over .500 into the chase. You just need a little cooperation from the teams ahead of you in the standings.

And every year it happens somewhere along the way.

Now, the A’s and the Mariners should stop pining for reinforcements. If Eric Chavez, Miguel Tejada, and Erubiel Durazo do what they should be doing everything will be fine. If Bret Boone, Freddy Garcia, Mike Cameron and John Olerud do what they are capable of doing, Seattle will be OK.

To put all your hopes on some mystical trade that a GM may or may not make is erroneous reasoning. No matter who Billy Beane brings in, the big three hitters in the lineup better do their job. Now, a new hitter may give them confidence to play better and if that is what they need to excel, then they have big problems as championship ballplayers anyway.

Ken Macha finally said the right words yesterday. These guys better dig down deep and play baseball and not look to the GM to save their season.

It is time for somebody on the A’s to get dirty, break up a double play, hit a three run homer, lay down a surprise bunt, get a clutch hit, and play some interesting baseball.

The whole team has the look of a deer in headlights.

Click below for more!

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Dontrelle Willis pitches today for the Marlins against Carlos Zambrano and the Cubs. The way the Cubs hit Willis should be overpowering when facing this listless lineup.

I would expect close to 35,000 for this game. The Marlins are 5 games behind the Phillies in the wild card chase and are playing nice and loose right now.

The Cubs ought to go out and pull the trigger on a trade with Pittsburgh and grab Kenny Lofton for the rest of the season.

John Olerud is hitting around .130 in July and making Seattle very nervous at first base.

Kaz Sasaki threw without pain yesterday and gave Bob Melvin some reason to hope that he will be back sometime before Melvin retires.

Seattle is faltering, but you knew that already. Trouble is the A’s and the Angels are not showing any signs of consistent play and Seattle’s losing won’t go on forever.

The Angles starting rotation is not doing the job, but their bull pen is fantastic. Until the starters pick up the slack the Seraphs will win three, lose two, win two, lose two, and end up playing .550 ball which won’t be enough to get into the playoffs.

Now if Troy Glaus ever got out of his funk and the Angels offense reappeared, then they might have something to build on.

The A’s can bury the Angels next weekend when they meet Anaheim for four games in Disneyland.

Click below for more. [Read more →]

Anyone who thinks the Arizona Diamondbacks are being carried by rookies and only youngsters better take a look at last night’s Arizona box score.

Steve Finley, Luis Gonzalez, and Shea Hillenbrand hitting in the middle of the order, went 7-12, with 6 runs scored, and 4 rbi’s in the win over San Diego. All experienced players.

Couple that hitting with Miguel Batista’s dominating pitching, and you can see why the NL West will be a terrific baseball race to watch for the rest of the season.

Randy Johnson comes back tomorrow from a serious knee injury. He loves to pitch in San Diego and that is why the Arizonans don’t want his debut to be in Pac Bell Monday night. Today is the anniversary of the day Johnson struck out 16 Padres in the completion of a suspended game in 2001 in San Diego.

The Unit flat out can pitch in that park and with Brandon Webb all set to go today, the series with the Giants will be one to watch.

Shawn Chacon comes off the DL to face SF this afternoon. Chacon has handled the Giants quite easily in the past, so Felipe Alou will send out his ace Jason Schmidt to further destroy the Rockies season.

The middle of the A’s batting order continues to struggle.

Click below I have some thoughts on what may ail them. [Read more →]

Seattle keeps looking like a team that is just waiting for something bad to happen. They got their wish last night as the Royals knocked them off 7-1, in a game that wasn’t that close.

Freddy Garcia has trouble with Raul Ibanez (13-18 lifetime off Freddy) and Ibanez did him in last night again. Garcia has now lost three in a row after going 5-0 in June.

The Mariners don’t hit with any authority. Ichiro is batting .354, but he doesn’t drive in many runs. The Mariners are looking for a new third baseman, left fielder, and first baseman, all traditional power spots. Those needs clearly sum up what is wrong with the Seattle offense.

Are they after Aramis Ramirez (I don’t think so, his 22 errors don’t fit on this defensive oriented team), Brian Giles (they don’t have the players to get Giles from Pittsburgh), Reggie Sanders may be more in their league or possibly Juan Gonzalez. GM Pat Gillick isn’t in Billy Beane’s league when it comes to nerve, so I don’t think the Mariners will do much to change their offense.

All this is good news for Oakland. Now, if the A’s could just play good ball on the road they might cut the four game deficit they currently have with Seattle more quickly.

Click below for more!

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Idealism, that is what it is all

about.

I do not know anybody

that enjoys playing more

the game of baseball

than one 77 year old

man by the name of

Orestes Saturnino Arrieta

Armas Minoso, aka

Minnie Minoso who at

the age of 77 walked

last night, playing in an organized game for the seventh decade, a major league record !

By Amaury Pi-González [Read more →]

First of all, I thought the All-Star game was terrific. It had the feel of a very interesting game. Most baseball games really take off once the teams reach the seventh inning, then the wheels start turning and the tension of a baseball game takes hold.

Obviously, this game was played with the idea of getting most of the players into the game. It worked out where the relievers actually were the ones who determined the outcome of the game. Just like during the season.

Hank Blalock simply crushed the ball Eric Gagne threw, another loss for Gagne in a non save situation, something that plagued him against the Giants earlier in the season too.

The players were scrutinized more carefully than ever before in an all star game. There was no room for frivolity. I don’t buy the fact that they were not aware of the consequence of the game, however trivial they would like to make that seem.

The fans took the action more seriously, and the way the players approached the game was clear to me. The atmosphere in the park was electric at the end of the seventh inning, you just had the feeling that this game wasn’t over.

One thing, in a “real” game I think Dusty would have brought in a lefty to face Blalock, but then again Smoltz was out there and available.

Or how about Dontrelle Willis in relief, now I would have enjoyed seeing Willis face Blalock, that would have been an all star moment.

Click below for more on the game and the second half! [Read more →]

“This Time It Counts”

Reads the promos for

the 74th All Star Game

this tuesday July 15 at

US Celullar Field (actually

New Comiskey Park)Chicago.

By Amaury Pi-González

San Francisco [Read more →]

The A’s need go for it now, because next year they won’t have Tejada and they won’t have Foulke. The missing link now is Brian Giles.

Here’s what they do: the Pirates can have Bobby Crosby and any other two prospects they want except Harden. That means Joe Blanton, Nick Swisher, Bill Murphy. Anyone. I’d maybe even give em a fourth prospect, if they will also send along some cash to pay Giles.

Now, this leaves the A’s with no heir apparent at shortstop next year. No problem. At the end of the season they get Khalil Greene from the Padres. He’s in Triple A and has numbers very much like Crosby. The A’s wanted to draft Greene last year in the first round, but the Pads took him. The Padres, opening their new ballpark, are probably going to go after a big name shortstop (Tejada or Aurilia?), so Greene will be expendible. The A’s could also sign some journeyman shortstop to be a fallback if Greene doesn’t work, but they would have had to do that with Crosby anyway.

The A’s also have the option of trading Giles over the winter to get their shortstop. Giles makes $9 mil a year for 04 and 05. Obviously they’d be better off keeping Giles and trading Jermaine Dye, but it would harder to trade Dye.

This also leaves the A’s farm system a little bereft. No problem again. When Tejada and Foulke leave, the A’s will get four more comp draft picks in the first two rounds. That’ll refill the cupboard.

I recognize this proposal from a very astute baseball analyst who shall remain anonymous.
Thanks,
Marty [Read more →]

Marty; The Giants have just concluded three games with Arizona, winning two of them at Arizona’s home field. In assessing the significance of this short series, is it an overemphasis to call it a microcosm of the remainder of the season?

Click Below for Ed’s Analysis.
Marty [Read more →]