It Wasn't Much of a Battle - Giants 11, A's 1

Start Gaudin. Trade Harden before he lands on the DL again. Get at least one major league ready pitcher back for Harden. Sign Duke to a 3 year extension.

Gaudin is probably a better bet at this point, but it’s close.

The only highlight of the day is having Banjo man come to your section.

is that watching Blanton it really doesn’t appear that there is anything physically wrong with him. His velocity is fine, there are times when he has great snap on his breaking pitches, and the first three innings today show he has the ability to dominate.

Given that historically Joe tends to have a short fuse and can lose his composure when things go wrong, it’s not such a stretch to imagine him having difficulties that relate to the mental aspect of the game. The question then becomes, what is the best thing for him/Oakland if it’s a purely mental problem that is preventing him from pitching better?

My best guess is that a “breather” that puts Gaudin in the rotation for two starts between now and the ASB could be, for Blanton, anything from a “chance to reset” to a “kick in the pants” – whichever it is he may actually need.

Ultimately, Blanton’s value is in the rotation and no way do you try to trade him when his value – already underappreciated when he was pitching well – is at its lowest. So I think that basically the A’s need to ride this out, but that giving Gaudin a couple starts in early July would be perfectly reasonable.

I’m not quite buying that the A’s are waiting to see “whether they’re really contenders or not,” because I think the A’s know that they just don’t know. This team could go 15-5 or 5-15 at any time. They just need to “stay the course” on “rebuilding and being as competitive as possible” in 2008 and figure in that Blanton is theirs for the near future and has a pretty darn good track record – and isn’t getting the job done right now.

“The Athletics are 5-13 when he (Blanton) starts and 39-24 when someone else does.” Coincidence/bad luck, or is Blanton really the weakest starter on the team?

I still hate him from 1990. And all the years in Seattle of course

i am still struggling with the idea that (i believe… please correct me if im wrong) Eveland, Smith, Duke and Harden are all on track to approach highs in IP faster than the A’s would like.

what are we going to do at that point? obviously Chad should be in the mix. but i cant see how we couldnt have Blanton in there as well- though maybe with some extra rest here or there.

Can someone who is knowledgeable about the rules set us straight on this?

On the game thread, Nico said he thinks a player automatically loses all options after three full seasons in the majors. I’ve never heard of that rule. My understanding is that options still apply until a player becomes eligible for free agency, which Blanton hasn’t yet.

As for the actual option years, assuming he was on the 40-man both years, he may have used up two in 2003 and 2004, but he’s been on the big-league team ever since, so he’s got at least one yet.

I’m not necessarily saying we should send him to Sacramento, but I believe we could, without putting him through waivers.

Can someone confirm if this is right or wrong?

Freakin white sox can hit

Right now. That doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll suck forever. Tom Glavine cruised to a 2.47 ERA in 1998. 1999? 4.12. Now, I’m not pushing Joe Blanton as the next Tom Glavine. He couldn’t hold Glavine’s jock, especially not right now. But: Performance can vary year to year. Is Joe F’ing sorry this season? Yeah. Does that mean he is forever lost and can never recover his value? Of course not. So the A’s lose out on the short term ramifications, but who knows what the future holds. I, for one, am optimistic.

The thing with Blanton is that you can’t trade him if he starts, because he pitches like crap, and you can’t trade him if he doesn’t start, because there is no trade value. If you accept that fact that we are going to be stuck with him, then why not start Gaudin. In the short term, if he pitches better thab Blanton (likely), the A’s get a few extra wins. Someone may be interested in Gaudin, and we can trade him for some value, and then we can let Blanton stink it up. In any case, we will be stuck with Blanton, but if Gaudin starts, we have a chance to get a few more wins and maybe get someone for Gaudin in trades.

Save some for the Angels. It seems every week we are crying about the lacck of offense, then we get one of those 13-2 blow outs. Our offense is inconsistent, but not punch less. As long as we take it out on the LAAAAA, I’m OK if we lose a game or 2 to the Giants, especially like today when our pitching is just giving it away.

Have fun treating your series win against us as a world series title, because you aren’t ever going to nab one.

Remember, the A’s one the season series against your team and we have a winning record. Also we have a team who consistently surprises in a positive way while you’re team does nothing but break your hearts year after year.

Have fun cheering at mediocrity, because apparently that’s what true gamers excel in.

(I had to get that off my chest after reading MCC)

of the season…but hey…

In a rebuilding year the A’s have definitely exceeded expectations. The pitching is mostly very good, the rookies often do very well and give much hope for the future, and several vets are playing very well. Thomas and MSweeney - two great hitters nearing the end of their careers - are hurt, but both are injury risks and didn’t cost much $$.

As for the Giants, they have some good young pitching, their vets are mostly playing well right now, they play in such a weak division that they can at least dream of contending—and they were likely fired up by that strange ad (really, if you want to promote an event, why say it’s not much of a battle? The opposite would seem to be more attractive) to avenge their humiliation by the A’s.

(By the way, my allusions to jinxes are simply an acknowledgement of the legendary superstitiousness of baseball players and their fans…but I’m sure most fans realize that.)