The A’s get a chance to close serious ground on the Red Sox this weekend when they host the White Sox while Boston concludes a week against Seattle and Minnesota.

Oakland continues its good fortune as they may miss Sox hurler Mark Buehrle in Oakland (turns out they will face the 15 game winner Friday night). The A’s have recently avoided Pedro in Boston, Clemens, El Duque( one inning) and Pettitte in New York and Roy Halliday with Toronto.

How good is the Oakland pitching? Here’s what I think.The A’s remind me of the ’69 Mets who had Nolan Ryan, Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman, and Gary Gentry in their rotation. The Mets were 9 1/2 games back of the Cubs on this date in 1969.

The Mets pitching was so strong that the blew the Cubs away in the first year of division play in 1969 and won handily overcoming the deficit almost daily down the stretch, relying on their young guns on the mound.

The A’s have two teams to catch to make the playoffs, Boston and Anaheim.

Neither team has the deep starting rotation of Oakland. Peter Gammons was in Oakland yesterday and I asked him if the Red Sox were going to pick up another starting pitcher.

The well connected Gammons opined that he thought Boston would go for bull pen help before reaching out for another starting pitcher. This answer should be music to the A’s ears.

With very few off days, the starting rotations will dictate how these races finish.

Boston has two reliable aces, that’s it.

I contend that Oakland with Zito, Mulder, Hudson, Lidle (if he continues his resurgence), and Harang (if he could just get a few ground ball outs) will lead this team into October. Don’t forget this is the fourth season Art Howe has led the team down the stretch. Experience counts when the season is on the line.

If the A’s can score four runs per game, not the six or seven everyone would like, the pitchers will take care of the rest.

The Mets did the same thing when they swept through the East in 69.

The Angel’s offense is the problem for the A’s. Anaheim is getting production 1-9 in the order. I wouldn’t trust Ortiz, Lackey, Appier, or Sele if they needed to win a crucial series against Oakland or Seattle late in September, but Anaheim has that knack for getting the big hit, which may off set any weaknesses on the mound. This race may come down to how good the Angel’s bull pen is in September. I’ve noticed that they (Angels pen) are not shutting down the opposition with the regularity they did earlier in the summer.

With the schedule set the way it is over the next 10- 12 games or so, the A’s will be leading the wild card by September first.

When Oakland’s starters smell the finish line in September, they will be tough to beat.

The A’s are the most experienced team in the stretch run (not counting Seattle or NY) and it will show very soon.

Just be patient and watch the pitching.