Let’s all breathe a sigh of relief.

Reason and logic prevailed.

The Dish will return Saturday.

Detroit Tiger pitcher from the 30’s and 40’s Elden Auker will be my guest on Right Off The Bat tonight at 5:50 PM right here on loveofthegameproductions.com, the A’s web site, and KFRC 610 AM in Northern California. Elden Auker pitched in two world series, 1934 and 35 and is a great interview. I’m looking forward to talking with him. [Read more →]

Does everybody have to ‘get along’ on a

team to be successful or does the

“chemistry”of getting along get overblown?

By Amaury Pi-González [Read more →]

Barry Zito did what he does best, win ball games. The A’s won their fifteenth in a row and moved 4 1/2 games ahead of the Mariners and 4 ahead of Anaheim.

The Twins and Mariners play Thursday with lefty Jamie Moyer, the best the Mariners have on the hill, matching up with tricky Rick Reed.

The Mariners don’t hit and the Angels are wilting under the weight of injuries and a tired bull pen. All parts of the game that the A’s are immune to right now.

The Angels play the pesky Devil Rays. Tanyon Sturtze who looked like a good bet for 20 losses two weeks ago all of a sudden is 3-13. Kevin Appier needs to give his team eight innings, the Anaheim bull pen is running on fumes, blowing the lead and the game Wednesday night to Tampa Bay 8-5 in ten painful innings.

The Giants try to sweep the Rockies behind Livan Hernandez. With Mike Hampton on the mound for the Rocks, get out the calculator to add up the runs that will be scored Thursday in Coors Field.

And Bud is in NY. I’ll look at his dilemma.

Click below for the true story. [Read more →]

Barry Zito versus Shawn Sedlacek, is there any doubt as to whether or not the A’s end the road trip 10-0 and with a new Oakland consecutive game win streak at 15?

The A’s are on an amazing roll for the second time this year, they did this to the NL in June, too.

The gap is widening between Oakland and the Angels and Mariners. More importantly the A’s are building a cushion, just in case they slip once the win streak ends.

With 29 games to go, you tell me which pitchers left on the schedule will be favored to beat this team. Maybe seven or eight, simply because they will be road games for Oakland.

Who are they, click below and let’s see. [Read more →]

The man who knows more about the behind the scenes workings of major league baseball than any other reporter in the country is USA Today’s Baseball Weekly editor Paul White. Paul is my guest on Right Off The Bat Wednesday at 3:50 PM Pacific right here on loveofthegameproductions.com, the A’s web site, and KFRC 610 AM in Northern California. [Read more →]

Depending on your perspective, the role and demands of a closer may be a piece of cake or a stressful, ulcer-causing task. Entering September it seems very rare for some of today’s big league closers to stop opposing hitters and save the game in a smooth and peaceful manner.

Read on about Dale’s views about closer’s (Thanks, Dale, from Marty Lurie)
[Read more →]

Last year the Mariners swept through the American league with such regularity that the A’s would look at the scoreboard and ask “when are these guys going to lose a game?”

This year the A’s are sweeping through the weak sisters of the AL and NL enroute to a 39-10 mark against those patsies.

It is hard to imagine KC jumping up either tonight or tomorrow to beat Mark Mulder or Barry Zito, meaning the A’s should end this road trip with 15 straight wins.

The Angels bull pen wilted under the stars in Fenway, blowing a 9-5 lead in the ninth inning when Troy Percival, who couldn’t throw the ball past Rey Sanchez when it counted, gave up a two out single to the second baseman to tie the game.

The Giants picked up a game on the Dodgers, while the Cards, Astros and Mariners were idle.

Today is more of the same, bull pen collapses and late game comebacks, for sure.

Remember it’s the Dog Days. [Read more →]

New York sportswriter Maury Allen, who has written acclaimed baseball books on the greats of the game including Casey Stengel, Joe Dimaggio, and yes, George Steinbrenner, is my guest Tuesday at 3:50 PM Pacific right here on loveofthegameproductions.com, the A’s web site, and 610 AM KFRC in Northern California. This will be a good show. [Read more →]

The Giants need to root for the Diamondbacks as crazy as that sounds because the Dodgers face Arizona three times, while the Giants are in Colorado for four games.

The key for teams trailing the leaders by more than three or four games is not to slip back in to the six or seven range because that means you have to sweep a series to get back into the race and that is tough to do in September.

The A’s get one more crack at the dregs of the Central before returning home to the Twins on Friday.

Boston needs a win today, Seattle gets a day off, and the Yankees face Kenny Rogers in Rogers’ house of horrors, Yankee Stadium.

Let’s see what else is up.

[Read more →]

Friday night saw the A’s take over sole possession of first place in the West as Barry Zito won his eighteenth game.

More importantly, the Mariners let one get away in Cleveland, the Angels ran into the best pitcher in baseball, Pedro Martinez, and the Red Sox look like they may have some life left in them after all.

Expos manager Frank Robinson brought back the squeeze play to beat the Giants, the Dodgers dodged another bullet in LA, and the Cards continue to give hope to the Astros.

Saturday poses a challenge for the losers last night to turn things around.

[Read more →]