Reverting to Form

by monkeyball on May 12, 2007 5:46 PM PDT in News Comment 27 comments

Things looked good early -- bright sunshine, wind blowing out to left, Carmona throwing straight and predictable pitches, Braden working with Kendall to mix his pitches well, the daily Cust HR -- but perhaps that Swisher first-inning baserunning blunder was an omen that the A's just weren't going to be terribly sharp today.

Braden eventually looked like he usually does (like a replacement-level fill-in fifth starter), and the offense reverted to the form of a couple of weeks ago, banging out hits and runs in the first and then not adjusting to the opposing starter's adjustments.

What's worse, the fielding looked shaky today -- two bad throws (at least one of which should have been caught) and a passed ball by Kendall, and a couple of short-arm throws to first (at least one of which should have been caught) by Chavez.

Looking back at the opening game thread, it seems as though Fausto Carmona is making the sorts of adjustments in pitch selection and location that it takes to be a major-league starter; Dallas Braden (and, by implication, Jason Kendall?) is not.

Which certainly isn't to say that Braden doesn't have what it takes to stick in the bigs or to contribute to the A's relentless '07 march toward 87 wins. Even without "Pronk" Hafner in the lineup, the Indians are a quality offense, and Braden kept them mostly off-balance. But, to borrow Nico's apt precis of Zito, Braden threw a lot of good pitches.

Side notes: the consensus among the AN'ers sitting in 228 was that Chavez simply doesn't look sharp (throwing or at bat; though his glove and footwork still sparkle), and that his forearms and/or shoulder may be more chronically debilitated than he or the front office will admit. On the positive side, it was good to see Witasick and Street throwing well, and Geren deserves serious props not only for batting Kendall ninth again, but for PH'ing for Kendall in the ... seventh inning!

(And I'll have the "Billy, Injury and the Jack of Custs Poetic Interlude finished and posted in a separate diary later this evening.)

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zito currently batting on FSN!

A's v Giants "is kind of like the difference between going to see the Ramones and going to see the Bee Gees. A's fans will go see the Ramones." -BB 07/27/05

by xbhaskarx on May 12, 2007 5:48 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

down 0-2 yet doesn't K!

A's v Giants "is kind of like the difference between going to see the Ramones and going to see the Bee Gees. A's fans will go see the Ramones." -BB 07/27/05

by xbhaskarx on May 12, 2007 5:49 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Bad Defense is a concern ..

.. as, that is not traditional A's baseball. Also, as I just posted to previous thread: I'm concerned that to date, Texas/Seattle have combined to beat us six games to beating LAA zero games - a six game swing within the division already. I hope that will change because even if we were to significantly outdo the Angels in our record against non-division opponents we will be in trouble if the other AL-West teams cannot beat them ..

.. the Athletics may be small-market but they have BIG-heart! ..

by Randy Bell on May 12, 2007 5:56 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Dang you're quick

I haven't even gotten the dinner BBQ coals going yet.

Braden seemed to me to have the array needed to make a good big league starter someday. During the first few innings he smixed his pitches pretty well; it just seemed like he lost location (and/or the confidence to hit the spot when he had to throw a fastball strike) when things got tight in the 4th.

by FreeSeatUpgrade on May 12, 2007 6:01 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Watching Kendall is beginning to hurt

The offense (or lack thereof) was bad enough, but seeing the endless parade of base stealers might be even worse.

On the bright side, the calendar giveaway today is probably the cutest thing I've seen in a while.

Kettlecorn! Swishercorn!

by TurnTwo on May 12, 2007 6:17 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

what's wrong with me?

the a's losses are not bothering me right now and it's making me sad. today's game should've been a win. at a minimum we should've made it closer.

i agree we're not playing well defensively. crosby, kendall and chavez all need to get it going. i'm willing to forgive crosby's offense (though i'm a bocro h8ter) so long as he plays reasonable defense. unreasonable right now.

kendall is a joke. he can't hit for average, hit for power or throw/defend. he can run but who cares when he's never on base. he's barely a one tool player right now. and he wants an extension. good luck with that.

only one solution to the division right now. we have to pound texas and the m's. the m's are a sh*tty team and we've made them look decent. and people, STOP PITCHING TO VLAD. PLEASE! THEY'VE GOT LITTLE ELSE!!

by inbillywetrust on May 12, 2007 6:43 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Ironically ..

.. the only AL-West team we have a winning record against right now is LAA ..

.. the Athletics may be small-market but they have BIG-heart! ..

by Randy Bell on May 12, 2007 6:45 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

And ..

pounding texas and the m's - is what the Angels {not us} have been doing! ..

.. the Athletics may be small-market but they have BIG-heart! ..

by Randy Bell on May 12, 2007 6:48 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

ugh

by season's end, we better be on the right side of the ledger against all three.

keep up the good work, RB

by inbillywetrust on May 12, 2007 6:50 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I'm feeling the same way

A lot of times last year I'd be pissy for hours after a loss. Now I'm just like, "Meh." Maybe it's because I don't have high expectations at the moment (although I do think we'll still be in contention later in the season).

"We are a complete freak show." -- Billy Beane

by day-to-day on May 12, 2007 11:43 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

afternoon baseball

Listening to the game, I had the feeling that the Indians would come back as scoring in the 1st inning usually leads to little scoring afterwards so that was not a surprise.

"Talk about impressive. My point is this: Break's over."- Josiah Bartlet

by doublehustle22 on May 12, 2007 8:48 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Face it...

we were not going to go on a winning binge with Dallas Braden as the fifth. I just hope Harden,Dick comes back before we need to use DB again. Or they could give Halsey a shot if his mouth isn't too big for the Show.

With the Oakland A's, the intravenous drip is always half full!

by OaktownRajah on May 12, 2007 11:17 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Chron says Harden

probably won't be ready before the last week of May, so that fifth starter spot is going to come up two or three times before then.

"We are a complete freak show." -- Billy Beane

by day-to-day on May 12, 2007 11:34 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Looking at the Schedule ..

Looking over the A's schedule, it looks like we have a break on the 24th - a travel day between Chicago and Baltimore. So Braden will pitch against KC on the 17th and then his spot will come up on the 22nd in Chicago. Maybe they could skip his spot against Texas at the end of the month, or Harden/E-Lo be back by then. :)

.. the Athletics may be small-market but they have BIG-heart! ..

by Randy Bell on May 13, 2007 6:45 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Correction: Loaiza ..

.. isn't eligible to come off the 60-day DL until May 31 so it would have to be Harden in Texas, or maybe the A's would be able to skip the fifth starter there - RotoWorld says "Braden will likely make at least one more start before Harden returns" - but the schedule looks like the A's will need two more starts from the fifth spot unless Harden gets back sooner than expected. :)

.. the Athletics may be small-market but they have BIG-heart! ..

by Randy Bell on May 13, 2007 7:33 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Blood on the Basepaths

is a wonderful album.

by green star oakland on May 12, 2007 11:41 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

i thought "Blood on the Tracks" was ...

... the story of how FSU and I were killed trying to walk from BART to the new stadium in Fremont.

You don't promise a fat girl doughnuts and don't deliver. ~ Jennifer @('.')@

by monkeyball on May 13, 2007 10:08 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah Stewarts Baserunning was an omen

of things to come for this game. But I think that the A's are going to have a great half which will be sparked by our excellent pitching and our much improved offense which now actually looks like a moneyball team. I just want to know why it has taken us so long to get Cust in the Green and Gold.

Go A's!!!! Mike Scioscia is a fat tub of lard

by 3Chavy3 on May 13, 2007 9:31 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

A couple things:

1. It was Swisher, not Stewart, who bungled the first inning on the basepaths. I was at the game and can say it was not warranted to think the ball had any chance to drop--just a baserunning blunder.

2. Cust has been awesome, but let's face it: He's probably not that good and we're catching "Mabry in a bottle" for as long as we can. Think Kevin Maas. Comparing Cust favorably to Piazza for June-September is not realistic.

I like Cindi. A. She never pretends to know more than she does. B. She has unbridled enthusiasm for her "Hotties," and isn't afraid to show it. -IM4Oakgal

by Nico on May 13, 2007 9:48 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

He's 872% a better hitter than Kendall

will be for the rest of this season, at only a 1% OF the cost. Don't worry about that %, I checked it myself.

by Pucking Insane on May 13, 2007 10:13 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

but kenKo and vince

said that swisher's view from second base ( he must have had a camera on his hat) probably construed it was gonna drop.

subject to revision pending next issue

by ak_A on May 13, 2007 10:25 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

It really wasn't that close

Peralta was able to camp under it, didn't even grab it on the run.

I like Cindi. A. She never pretends to know more than she does. B. She has unbridled enthusiasm for her "Hotties," and isn't afraid to show it. -IM4Oakgal

by Nico on May 13, 2007 10:44 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

The view from sec 125 sez ...

... it was, well, stoopid. Swisher was at least 60' off the bag when the bloop was caught. If he was gonna be that far off, he should have just high-tailed it for home because there was no chance of his getting back. IIRC, the SS caught it going toward the LF corner, and had time to catch it, stop, set and fire back to 2B.

Stewart, OTOH, stole second that inning, and showed good mobility and some pops, even, in the outfield.

The meaning of life is not so much 'found,' as it is 'made.' --Opus

by The Dogfather on May 13, 2007 10:45 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Cust has hit homeruns where ever he has been

And it looks like he will continue to do so. Is he going to be the greatest player ever? No he wont be but he will se a lot of pitches and he will hit some homers and drive in some runs which I think is all that one can ask for after him I love Cust he kind of reminds me of a bigger version of Matt Stairs.

Go A's!!!! Mike Scioscia is a fat tub of lard

by 3Chavy3 on May 13, 2007 4:59 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Monkeyball....

your musical tastes are solid but archaic...

Your last two choices for parody have been Neil Young circa '79 and Bob Dylan circa '75.

Let's get into the 21st century with it, already...

What about a Kelis reference? "My Swisher... He's better than yours... Better than yours..."

Or what about Franz Ferdinand? "I say he can't hit. You say he can't hit. I say he can't hit.... now Kendall's out!"

"Work like you don't need the money. Love like you've never been hurt. Dance like nobody's watching."- former A's pitcher Satchel Paige

by The Pilots Dared Me To Die on May 13, 2007 11:08 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

don't forget Yeats ca. 1920

You don't promise a fat girl doughnuts and don't deliver. ~ Jennifer @('.')@

by monkeyball on May 13, 2007 11:38 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Braden still young

Dallas had a great game against the O's and a bad outing against the rays. The Indians game showed he has more to learn. Hes got all the intangibles to make a big impact with this club. Look at his numbers leading up to this season!

by GoBraden209 on May 13, 2007 3:16 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs