seriously, everybody needs to calm down about 'the trade.'  how many people freaked out when hudson, mulder, swisher, and haren were traded?  how many of you were screaming bloody murder and calling billy beane an idiot when you heard about those trades?  i know i was a little shell-shocked after hudson and mulder, but then after i saw how (most of) the guys we got in those trades developed and performed, i learned to be patient with billy's moves.  i know it's tough because we're in a playoff race right now, but just take it down a notch.

remember that the Oakland A's are a players team with a players coach.  geren and the organization as a whole get the most (or more) out of their players.  other than milton bradley (and gaudin to a small extent earlier this year), can you recall a player ever trash-talking his time in oakland?  geren does a great job with young guys and he will continue to do so.  this guy gallagher is going to be fine.  he was excellent in the minors and he's starting his major league career with a little bit of a letdown, but he's 22.  take it easy on him.

aside from my rosy outlook on gallagher, i'd like to stick to my original feeling:  give it a few weeks, maybe months.  let's see how the season plays out.  if gallagher stinks up the joint, scream about billy after the season.  until you've seen gallagher perform (and i mean 10 starts, not his first inning) in the green and gold, get off his back.

and no knock on harden, because i loved him as much as all of you, but he really wasn't dependable.  do i have to reiterate any of his DL stats?  how many of you felt a sinking feeling when you read his recent quotes about 'dead arm' and you read about 4-5 mph missing from his fastball?  after 4 years (or whatever it has been) of rich, i have to say i think it would be better to have a guy with a 3.00-3.50 ERA for 30-35 starts than a guy with a 2.00-2.50 ERA for 15-20 starts, especially when you don't know when those 15-20 starts will occur.  what would you be screaming about if he had to hit the DL in the beginning of september???

over the years i've learned to trust billy beane and if you all really are fans of the A's, you should too.  he deserves the benefit of the doubt given his track record.

go A's!!!