A's lose again, to Texas, at home, in a starting pitcher matchup of Kazmir vs. Tepesch. Tire fire. Dumpster fire. I have a ticket for the play-in game, for which Melvin is hoping to use Jon Lester. Will I get to use it?
What is happening to the Oakland A's?
- Thread starter Al Zarilla
- Start date
This would have to be the biggest collapse in baseball history for this reason. The A's have three playoff spots available to them in this new second wild card era, a luxury the '64 Phillies and even 2011 Sox didn't have. Choking away a division lead and both wild card spots would be an epic collapse.
Probably so. And they are losing games in the cruelest fashion also. They had the based loaded no outs in the 8th and got nothing out of it. Fans booed the challenge made by the Rangers, should be booing the A's.SemperFidelisSox said:
If Melvin were not so highly regarded, it probably would. Maybe it does anyway. 6 - 1 now. I don't even like the A's but I feel for them. I have a ticket for a play-in game in Oakland too.soxhop411 said:
Split off from the September game thread.
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What is happening to Oakland? The trades didn't exactly backfire - Lester has pitched like an ace, and Samardzija has been pretty good - but the rest of the team seems to have collapsed.
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What is happening to Oakland? The trades didn't exactly backfire - Lester has pitched like an ace, and Samardzija has been pretty good - but the rest of the team seems to have collapsed.
Yoenis envy?
(I don't have an answer to the question. It's baffling. Like many, I had OAK vs. DET penciled in for the ALCS on August 1st. That being said, I won't be upset if they supplant the 2011 Red Sox as the Biggest Collapse team people talk about.)
(I don't have an answer to the question. It's baffling. Like many, I had OAK vs. DET penciled in for the ALCS on August 1st. That being said, I won't be upset if they supplant the 2011 Red Sox as the Biggest Collapse team people talk about.)
Sprowl said:
Here it is in a nutshell. An even more epic collapse than the 2011 Sox pitching.
[tablegrid= A's Offense Dying on the Vine ]
Trading away your cleanup hitter was a strange move - not sure what the fan reaction is in Oakland to this.
And to top of this year, the AAA Sacramento Rivercats just ended their relationship with the Oakland A's and is now the AAA affiliate for the SF Giants.
The A's are underperforming their Pythag by 10 games, which indicates they should be 93-58 instead of 83-68.
I haven't watched a ton of their games this season, but is this just bad luck? Have there been many managerial moves people are questioning?
I haven't watched a ton of their games this season, but is this just bad luck? Have there been many managerial moves people are questioning?
MakMan44 said:
That chart shows significant slippage in HR and RBIs. Both are areas that a cleanup hitter has solid impact on. Of course it's not the only reason why they are falling, but it sure is a factor.
Sure it's a factor, but again Cespedes isn't major reason they're collapsing. The team as a whole just isn't hitting, and they're not walking much either. One man isn't going to change the direction of the team all that much.gryoung said:
EDIT: Fangraphs had an article today that goes into the topic at depth: http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/delving-into-the-as-epic-near-collapse/
Actually, I'm sick about it. The As were my back-up rooting target for the post-season. I don't really like any of the other teams, except the Giants, and they've won it all fairly recently. I guess the Pirates are my back-up now.
Hindsight and all that, but the A's (Beane, etc.) assumed they had an offense that would last when in reality it was just a bunch of buy low guys that we're overachieving pretty much all at once. Norris, Vogt, Reddick, Lowrie, Crisp, Moss, pretty much all the offensive players except Donaldson have fallen off a cliff. Losing Cespedes who, by the way was their best post season hitter in '12 and '13, was the icing on the cake.
2 run triple for Sam Fuld, their best hitter of late.
2 run triple for Sam Fuld, their best hitter of late.
I feel terribly for their fans. This team looked like one that would have been great to root for in the playoffs, but even if they hold onto the wildcard, they look like they might be one and done. (Especially if they face King Felix in the WC game.)
If Oakland ends up tied with KC, with Seattle out of the WC, the Royals get the home game based on head to head record.
The only time in recent memory I recall this kind of epic slide where the team rebounded to succeed was a few years ago when the Cardinals wound up winning the series. But their slide wasn't nearly as long as this
The only time in recent memory I recall this kind of epic slide where the team rebounded to succeed was a few years ago when the Cardinals wound up winning the series. But their slide wasn't nearly as long as this
Most recent collapses of note (think 07 mets and 11 Red Sox) wouldn't have been possible without the high number of inexcusable losses to bad teams within the division. Looks like A's are experiencing same thing with Rangers
Don't know why I'm still watching this game, but Beltre just batted and some of the "fans" still there were taunting him, chanting "Beltre, Beltre". They wish they had a player like him.
Ed., well, their best player does play the same position.
Ed., well, their best player does play the same position.
Jerome F'n Williams shutting them out. One of my A's fan friends, who has been to five straight game 5 playoff losses at the Coliseum, including the Derek Lowe crotch grab game, says he's ready for football (49ers).soxhop411 said:
Beane got duped by Brandon Moss' career year start and figured he had enough offense out of him and the others to do with out Cespedes. Moss' first half OPS was .878. HIs second half...
.578. That is fucking Jose Iglesiasian (thank you ITP, that was for you and your binkys).
.578. That is fucking Jose Iglesiasian (thank you ITP, that was for you and your binkys).
AJ Burnett is practically giving them the game today but Kazmir keeps giving it back. Burnett walks in a run, 4 - 3 Elephants.
Yup, Kazmir is awful. 4 - 4 now. I think Beane getting Shark and Lester gave them a chance they wouldn't have had with Kaz going bad and Sonny Gray running out of gas.Al Zarilla said:
I thought your job was to find the jokes.E5 Yaz said:
Thinking Ellsbury and Lowrie were best buds when they were with Boston. Maybe infirmary buddies?
Was at the game this past Saturday when they got shut out. Other than a threat early in the game, their offense seemed lifeless. Last night they give up two unearned runs to give away the game and Lester loses 5-4. Seems they're playing kind of uptight. Not encouraging.
So if the A's beat the Royals in the WC game, do they play the Angels in the ALDS, or do the rules say they play Baltimore instead to avoid the first-round divisional matchup? (I'm assuming, of course, that nothing dramatic happens this weekend, such as the O's overtaking the Angels, the Tigers blowing the division, or a collapse by one of the two presumptive WCs opening the door for Cleveland or Seattle to crash the party.)
