I won't be breaking news here by saying it's been a rough year for the A's and their fans. Brutal.

But here's one positive thing you can do that will make a difference to kids in the East Bay. Send your pledge money to Ken Korach's Winning for the Community Fund.

At the beginning of the season A's radio god Ken Korach generously pledged $100 for every A's win, with the money going to support baseball in Oakland Schools. A lot of people here at AN jumped in and offered to make their own pledges, usually in the $1 -2 range per victory. Here's a link to the pledge thread. To date, we've raised $2,646.15!

On September 12, Ken will present a check to the Foundation at the A's game. And our our own Batgirl will present the check from AN. So even though the season isn't over, it's time to start collecting money for pledges. It's up to you to decide how much you want to pay. You could pay just for wins to date, and pay the rest later. Or you could pretend that the A's will will end up at .500 and write a check based on 81 wins. That's what I'll do.

And of course, if you didn't make a pledge and want to chip in--even for $5 or $10--every dollar is appreciated.

According to Ken, total pledges, including AN, should add up to about $24,000, which is $4,000 for each of the high schools that will get money. One of the coaches told Ken that this would be the perfect amount to really make a big difference with their budget.

Make the checks payable to "A's Communty Fund" and make a note at the bottom that says "Winning for the Community."

You can send the checks to me at the address below. (I'm asking people to send checks to me so that we can keep track of how much AN raises.) If you have any questions, you can email me at sbeck97@gmail.com.

Thanks to everyone who is contributing. Go A's!

Susan Beck

10510 Park Lane, Apt. 301

Cleveland, Ohio 44106