A throwback game ... to yesterday and Friday: A's score 3

by monkeyball on May 4, 2008 3:36 PM PDT

... but only allow 1. A's 3, Rangers 1.

Greg Smith looked fantastic today--his slider and running fastball were untouchable by lefties, and froze a lot of righties. At one point in the game, as Fosse and Kuiper pointed out, the Rangers 3-5 hitters were 0/7 with 7 Ks vs. Smith. Smith ended up striking out 10 in 6 innings, but all those strikes (as well as a few unnecessary balls in the 5th) took their toll on his pitch count, and Geren smartly pulled him after 6, Smityh's only blemish being a gopher ball to German Duran in the 3rd. Casilla, Embree, and Street came on for a mostly uneventful 7th, 8th, and 9th..

For that matter, Rangers rookie starter (and Burlingame resident) Scott Feldman looked pretty darn good, too. For most of the afternoon, the A's batters were confined to the infield. The 7th proved to be an inning too far for Feldman, though, as Frank Thomas hit a "double" on a high fly that Hamilton lost in CF, Jack Cust struck a typically (and increasingly frequent) Custian blow to left-center for a 2-1 lead, and the A's tacked on another courtesy of a Crosby double inside the third-base bag and a sharp single by Ryan Sweeney. And Mark Ellis nearly drove one out to LF for the final out of the inning.

Smith continues to demonstrate that he belongs in the rotation, Cust continues to demonstrate that April was just a cruel month, and the bullpen continues to just generate out after out after out.

And damn, did those throwback unis look good. With the exception of Frank's pants and socks.

Three more at home starting tomorrow against the Orioles.

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Comments

holy crap

you’re fast!

Things could be worse. Suppose your errors were counted and published every day, like those of a baseball player.

by 149 on May 4, 2008 3:45 PM PDT reply reply 0 recs

I don't believe in the Woofing Gods

I started writing it as soon as Cust’s bat hit the ball in the 7th.

And what did we do once we discovered a rift in the fourth dimension? We launched a monkey into it. @('.')@

by monkeyball on May 4, 2008 3:49 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

True Believer

and optimist.
My kinda fan.

Things could be worse. Suppose your errors were counted and published every day, like those of a baseball player.

by 149 on May 4, 2008 3:50 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

but do the Woofing Gods

believe in Monkeyball?

by OaklandSi on May 5, 2008 8:57 AM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

In former Soviet Union...

oh, never mind.

Your 2008 Athletics: It's Nothing Personal.

by PaulThomas on May 5, 2008 9:34 AM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Agreed. Those Uni's are incredible. Wish I could have gotten

a hat and jersey. Ebay I guess.
Yeah, A’s.

"RIP: UserID: 517"

by Masaryk on May 4, 2008 3:46 PM PDT reply reply 0 recs

April IS the cruelest month.

Who knew TS was talking about Jack Cust.

pam5981: Patience is a virtue that I do not possess.
ohtobe21likehuston: But you're good at drinking and cussing. Two out of three ain't bad.

by pam5981 on May 4, 2008 3:47 PM PDT reply reply 0 recs

wow I am impressed with that comment!

by butler19 on May 4, 2008 5:49 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

The A's have measured out their offense with coffee spoons.

by MrIncognito on May 4, 2008 6:54 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

I grow old... I grow old...

I shall wear high socks with stirrups!

formerly known as mdl

by iglew on May 4, 2008 9:28 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

I grow old....I grow old...

I shall wear the tops of my stirrups rolled.

Putting the "N" in "NRAF" from Leipzig, Germany!

by GreenNGoldSooner on May 4, 2008 10:18 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

and we are bold..we are bold...

and the liqour we can hold is a story that’s never been told.
My Dad used to say that. :-)

by IM4Oakgal on May 4, 2008 10:49 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

That is not it at all.

That is not what I meant, at all.

formerly known as mdl

by iglew on May 5, 2008 12:18 AM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

In the room the women come and go

Talking of F.P. Santangelo.

formerly known as mdl

by iglew on May 5, 2008 12:19 AM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Winner!

The candy and the baseball all night long :)

by Englishmajor on May 5, 2008 9:11 AM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

1. Second best A’s starter outing of the year imo, after Harden’s first start. Maybe the best. He was amazing.

2. Am I the only one who despises “Gerg”? It’s terrible.

3. Cust leads the team in OPS. The h8rs tears of frustration are like wine.

The A's colors are green and gold.

by mikeA on May 4, 2008 3:48 PM PDT reply reply 0 recs

I love "Gerg"

but I’ll agree to stop using it if everyone else agrees to stop using “LS”.

formerly known as mdl

by iglew on May 4, 2008 3:49 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

I hate "Gerg" and "LS"

if wishing made it so.

pam5981: Patience is a virtue that I do not possess.
ohtobe21likehuston: But you're good at drinking and cussing. Two out of three ain't bad.

by pam5981 on May 4, 2008 3:50 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

another +1

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 4, 2008 3:50 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Gerg isn't as bad as LS.

"Hasn’t the foggiest inclination toward winning ‘tall. Hates to win. Likes to be buggered."

by Jennifer on May 4, 2008 3:51 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Agreed. Yet you push the LS button at every chance. Instigator!

pam5981: Patience is a virtue that I do not possess.
ohtobe21likehuston: But you're good at drinking and cussing. Two out of three ain't bad.

by pam5981 on May 4, 2008 3:55 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

What about "Dale"???

It’s so “March 2008”...

"I never predict anything, and I never will." Paul Gascoigne, English footballer

by One won lost won on May 4, 2008 4:00 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Oh, I loooove "Dale".

pam5981: Patience is a virtue that I do not possess.
ohtobe21likehuston: But you're good at drinking and cussing. Two out of three ain't bad.

by pam5981 on May 4, 2008 4:01 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Also a Dale fan

Dale is just a good name.

The A's colors are green and gold.

by mikeA on May 4, 2008 4:01 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

And

We didn’t make up “Dale” – it makes it so much better.

pam5981: Patience is a virtue that I do not possess.
ohtobe21likehuston: But you're good at drinking and cussing. Two out of three ain't bad.

by pam5981 on May 4, 2008 4:03 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Please not Dale,

whilst I’m an admirer of his pitching that is as far as it goes!

Any similarity between my spelling and that deemed correct, is pureley accidental.

by Dalesman on May 4, 2008 4:28 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Via text, Poppy and I were discussing what LS could stand for...

Limp Swing
Lost in Sun
Lazy Spouse-beater
Lurking Syphilis
Lacking Something… probably Sex Appeal or Sizzle

"Hasn’t the foggiest inclination toward winning ‘tall. Hates to win. Likes to be buggered."

by Jennifer on May 4, 2008 4:18 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Lousy Second baseman

Lamp Stealer
Likes Seven-year-olds

"Hasn’t the foggiest inclination toward winning ‘tall. Hates to win. Likes to be buggered."

by Jennifer on May 4, 2008 4:21 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

LOL.

pam5981: Patience is a virtue that I do not possess.
ohtobe21likehuston: But you're good at drinking and cussing. Two out of three ain't bad.

by pam5981 on May 4, 2008 4:22 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Lacking Sizzle is the obvious favorite.

pam5981: Patience is a virtue that I do not possess.
ohtobe21likehuston: But you're good at drinking and cussing. Two out of three ain't bad.

by pam5981 on May 4, 2008 4:21 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

lousy sumbitch

stat-addled alien overlord

by salb918 on May 4, 2008 4:50 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Me or him?!?!

pam5981: Patience is a virtue that I do not possess.
ohtobe21likehuston: But you're good at drinking and cussing. Two out of three ain't bad.

by pam5981 on May 4, 2008 5:24 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Low standards

"Hasn’t the foggiest inclination toward winning ‘tall. Hates to win. Likes to be buggered."

by Jennifer on May 4, 2008 5:43 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

lysergic sparkles

And what did we do once we discovered a rift in the fourth dimension? We launched a monkey into it. @('.')@

by monkeyball on May 4, 2008 6:33 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

little stick

by drink409 on May 4, 2008 6:38 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

lightly salted

Florida ain't no place for a self-respecting A's fan.

by Leopold Bloom on May 4, 2008 7:14 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

likely stoned

by drink409 on May 4, 2008 7:43 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Who doesn't love some LS D?

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 4, 2008 7:45 PM PDT up reply reply 1 recs

Like Spiezio?

"And Julio Franco is batting right-handed!" -- Wayne Hagin, A's radio play-by-play, mid-80s

by Nick on May 4, 2008 5:31 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Loathe Spezio

HE gave those fags in Anaheim some bragging rights a couple years ago

witty remark

by dtownmbrown on May 5, 2008 1:57 AM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Fags in Anaheim

Chiba Lotte lost simultaneously in the fighter plane of the Japanese ham.

by JediLeroy on May 5, 2008 9:43 AM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Loves sex

Licks swizzlesticks
Laughs saucily
Lusts smartly

Light sausage
Low-fat saurkraut

by cagrrrl on May 6, 2008 5:09 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

"Gerg" makes me think of LOLcats

I haz your Gerg

iz teh awesome

formerly known as mdl

by iglew on May 4, 2008 4:01 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

How'd LS start? Was it "Los Smith" or something?f

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

by The Dogfather on May 5, 2008 5:39 AM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Is that for Smith or for Ellis? Ellis = LS

Chiba Lotte lost simultaneously in the fighter plane of the Japanese ham.

by JediLeroy on May 5, 2008 9:44 AM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

I prefer

“Smove” and “MaEl”... just takes longer to type each than “Gerg” and “LS.” Laziness.

Things could be worse. Suppose your errors were counted and published every day, like those of a baseball player.

by 149 on May 4, 2008 3:52 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Well, I don't know about others

but I really don’t think anyone can accuse me of unwillingness to type extra keystrokes.

formerly known as mdl

by iglew on May 4, 2008 3:54 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

LOL

pam5981: Patience is a virtue that I do not possess.
ohtobe21likehuston: But you're good at drinking and cussing. Two out of three ain't bad.

by pam5981 on May 4, 2008 3:54 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

I think I'm second only to 74mk

on average post length.

formerly known as mdl

by iglew on May 4, 2008 3:59 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

hahahaha

my heart is willing; but my fingers have their own agenda.

Things could be worse. Suppose your errors were counted and published every day, like those of a baseball player.

by 149 on May 4, 2008 3:55 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

Last time I said that

I got slapped.

"God doesn't pay attention to your cute little hypotheticals." -- Jeff from LL

by oblique on May 4, 2008 5:14 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

More realistic offer

(since it’s impossible to get “everyone else” to agree on anything)

I’ll agree to stop saying “Gerg” if 0akFoSho agrees to stop saying “LS”.

Seriously.

formerly known as mdl

by iglew on May 4, 2008 3:52 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

I believe this offer is also going to be impossible.

It seems to be a reflex for 0akFoSho.

pam5981: Patience is a virtue that I do not possess.
ohtobe21likehuston: But you're good at drinking and cussing. Two out of three ain't bad.

by pam5981 on May 4, 2008 5:14 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs

+1 on all three

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 4, 2008 3:50 PM PDT up reply reply 0 recs