Ziegler is a Wizard

That was a hell of a throw to nail Bloomquist (and, finally, a great play by Zooks on the catch and tag), and a beautifully conceived and executed bunt.

although Vince might set up each question with a little too much detail.

Still, when an MLB interviewee uses “naive” in the conversation, it’s a good one.

that was a loooooong time ago!

after Kuroda’s almost-perfect 1-hitter. The Dbacks seem to be free falling

And I was really stoked that Street worked it out in the 9th people! Wow, I think the boys in GNG could cause some Van Damage if they pull a deal for another bat in the next week or two….

The wait and see game is on A’s fans…....

M-Rod

(07-07) 22:11 PDT – Justin Duchscherer is now a two-time All-Star and he has put up the best ERA among AL starters going into tonight’s game against the Mariners.
That makes him among the top bargains in the bigs. Duchscherer, who was arbitration-eligible for the first time last winter, is earning $1.2 million this year, and now that he’s a full-time starter, he’s looking at getting a major bump in salary this winter.
Duchscherer, however, would like to avoid the arbitration process altogether – both this year and next. Duchscherer said Monday that he hopes A’s general manager Billy Beane will be receptive to the idea of a multiyear deal.
“I mentioned to my agent (Dan Horwits) that I’d like him to talk to Billy,” Duchscherer said. “I like it in Oakland. I’d like to stay here. It’s not up to me, but I would like to get three years.”
Duchscherer, 30, has been playing professional baseball since he was 18 and he has not had a contract of more than one year. He noted that 16-year-old Dominican right-hander Michael Inoa, who got a $4.25 million bonus from Oakland last week, “has already made more than I have in my whole career. I’m not complaining, obviously, but the security (of a multiyear deal) would be nice.”
Asked about that possibility, Beane said, “The first step toward a long-term relation is doing exactly what Justin has done this year. The best thing to do is to continue on with the year he’s having and after a full, successful season, it’s probably something we could pursue.”

Alright A’s fans….......time to weigh in! I’m down to get Duke inked to at least a 3 year deal if not more! Billy, how can you not get this man signed to a multi year deal???!!!!

Sign the man now!!!!!!!

you guys and gals just have your little “doubter” party and we’ll see Duke in another uniform next year and beyond…........that will be nice, eh???

I guess we should just say “good bye ” to Duke now, then right?

going to bed now folks…...Go A’s!

Let’s hope the boys in GNG can pull out all the stops the rest of this series….....Yeehaw!!!!!

I think the difference often between a team that can hang close to a division leader and the last place team is easy. The Mariners made some very crucial mistakes tonight, possibly none bigger than Adrian Beltre not touching third base after a fly ball was caught by the A’s and he scrambled to get back to second.

Tonight was a pretty good example of the idea that relievers should be used situationally, which works best even if accidentally.

My guess as to went on is that once the A’s took the lead Geren was thinking “Ziggy-Embree-Street”, as the M’s don’t have any concentration of LHHs. If the thinking had been “Embree-Ziggy-Street” because Ziggy is better than Embree, which he is, disaster would have likely befallen. Ziggy is uniquely suited to be a “get-out-of-trouble-in-a-crucial-situation” reliever as he is as much of a DP machine as any pitcher.

Therefore: I like the role he’s been put into recently as “first pitcher out of the bullpen with a lead” a LOT, and I think it should continue. Getting out of the jam that a tired SP has created is often a turning point in games, and on top of that Ziggy is a great bet to get two outs for one relative to our other relievers, whereas (relatively) he is not as great a bet to pitch a scoreless 8th than our other guys (again, relative to the other role.)

to see that the A’s won.

MLB.com audio was not working last night. Hopefully that’s not an ongoing issue.

Long-Gon’s heave from CF was closer to a strike than some of Dana’s pitches, including some 3-0s. And that bunt was a thing of beauty—almost as pretty as Johjima’s throw in the general direction of San Leandro. Fortunately he didn’t have to extend his hammie to get to third on it.

Eveland did hang in there, but the destination of every pitch was a toss-up for all concerned.

Bump-ump Rungy (sp) was at first last night. Does that mean he’ll be calling balls and strikes tonight, or do they rotate the other way?

...to a 24-hour waiting period before new accounts can create new fanposts, and they should probably be restricted to no more than one a day for the first week or so.

Waking up to half a dozen spam posts from the same new user is enough.

Unbelievable play and throw/tag from Carlos. Nice hit by Bankston. Great use of the bullpen. Bill Kreuger on FSN said that the A’s are incredibly resourceful, and it’s as if Billy Beane rubs a magic lamp and players come out and help the A’s win! Too funny! Let’s go Duke! Make it 2 in a row!

Reminds me more of the Taminator (Jeff Tam) :-)
Hopefully Ziggy stays jiggy longer than Jeff did though.