Commanding Performances Spur A's to Two Not-So-Easy Wins
by danmerqury on Mar 13, 2010 4:32 PM PST
103 comments
If baseball games lasted seven innings, we would have missed out on a lot of excitement. The A's won both halves of their split-squad simultaneous double header, beating the Giants and the Padres.
In the Giants game, Gio Gonzalez looked fantastic, shutting out the Giants and registering three strikeouts in as many innings, with only one walk. Matt Cain wasn't nearly as sharp, allowing eight hits and five runs in 2.2 innings of work. The A's offense scored early and often, with Mark Ellis, Daric Barton, and Gabe Gross garnering two RBIs apiece. Ellis, in particular, looked very good as he had two singles and one double. After leading 8-3 in the middle of the fifth inning, the A's bullpen allowed four runs over the rest of the game--enough to make it close. The A's held on to win it 8-7.
The other game was essentially a crazier version of the first. The A's jumped out to an early 3-0 lead, but A's starting pitcher Clay Mortensen had trouble facing the lineup the second time. It was a close game until the bottom of the 8th, when the A's offense tagged San Diego's top prospect Aaron Poreda for three runs, with the help of walks and wild pitches. Not to be outdone, A's propect Fautino de los Santos immediately put five San Diego runs on the board. Cedrick Bowers stopped the bleeding, but the damage was done--the Padres led 9-8. In the bottom of the 9th, Dallas McPherson smacked an opposite-field home run, tying the game. The A's loaded the bases in the bottom of the tenth, when Adrian Cardenas scampered home from third on an error.
Tomorrow the A's take on the Kansas City Royals in Phoenix Municipal Stadium at 1:05 PM.
EYEBALL UPDATE FROM NICO -
First of all, thank you, danmerqury, for providing an insta-recap! You da man.
Some of this has been said already, but what stood out at the A's-Giants game was that Barton looked terrific, both at the plate and defensively; IMO, there's just no reason 1B should be anything but his at this point. I expect Coco Crisp to be DLed to start the season, which could allow Barton and Chavez and Fox and Rosales all to make the initial roster (with Cust and/or Chavez-Fox serving as backup OFers). But one way or the other, Barton needs to be the everyday 1Bman until further notice.
Also, Gio really threw the ball well. He threw a lot of strikes (he got through the 1st inning on 6 pitches, 5 strikes) and his curve was a "half-swing and a miss" pitch. He also threw one pitch that Buster Posey missed, throwing his bat into the 3rd base coaches box, and I thought it was a changeup -- if so, that's a really good sign.
And Michael Taylor just doesn't look ready. He ran a ways and got to a fly ball into left-center, which he promptly dropped (it was charitably ruled a double), swung at 9 of the first 10 pitches he saw and missed most of them, and seemed to struggle with reaching down to his a fastball at the knees.
See you tomorrow! -Nico
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Considering that the A's were great when both team's starters were in
I’d say we performed pretty well today. Things didn’t get tense until non-roster players started coming in. That’s a good thing.
Taken down with hearts alive, our hearts alive.
thank you SO much!
You’re the best!
—baseballgirl & nico
"Bobby Crosby at third is a bit of an adventure. And not like, here’s some hidden treasure, what fun. More like, gah! poison ants!" --alea iacta est
by baseballgirl on Mar 13, 2010 4:38 PM PST via mobile reply actions
Gio looked great
Never sit in the seats down the lines in Scottsdale; they don’t even face home plate
Barton looked like a stud
Kilby needed GPS to find home plate
Taylor does NOT look ready for prime time
Ellis looked fantastic
Huff not so good at first base for the Giants
"Bobby Crosby at third is a bit of an adventure. And not like, here’s some hidden treasure, what fun. More like, gah! poison ants!" --alea iacta est
by baseballgirl on Mar 13, 2010 4:41 PM PST via mobile reply actions
Huff and Ishikawa
In short, they both suck.
The Ultimate Opportunist
by Rated-R Superstar on Mar 13, 2010 4:47 PM PST up reply actions
Huff
The Giants are just hoping his horrific 2009 season won’t repeat.
The Ultimate Opportunist
by Rated-R Superstar on Mar 13, 2010 4:58 PM PST up reply actions
Isn't he like 25 or 26. I mean i know thats young for the Giants but still.
"Since other people actually read these threads, though, probably best that your particular brand of wrongness not go completely unchallenged." - PT
There are differing opinions on me. According to Iglew "DFA is PT with a sense of humor. PT is DFA with introspective self-doubt. I like them both" but according to sirbed Im "The Stats Killer"
by designatedforassignment on Mar 13, 2010 5:52 PM PST up reply actions
I completely agree about Taylor
He looked completely out of place at the plate today. He had no clue how to catch up to a fastball, another couple months of AAA will do him a world of good.
Barton and Ellis looked to be in midseason form.
I thought Kouzmanoff looked very good today too, and I’m fairly confident in his first AB the “foul” ball opposite field was in fact fair and a bad call by the umpire (I was within 20 feet of it and it didn’t even hit chalk).
"Did you know you can comment on Athletics Nation from your phone or PDA? SB Nation has launched mobile commenting. Check it out next time you’re at the game or bar and have something to say."
by stranahanahan on Mar 13, 2010 5:44 PM PST up reply actions
He looked lost at the plate huh?
Fantastic news, considering he’s meant to be pretty much ready.
Some motherfcukers are always trying to ice skate uphill - Blade.
Dude its spring training.
and needs a couple of months of seasoning and keeping the service time clock from starting is hardly a bad thing.
"Since other people actually read these threads, though, probably best that your particular brand of wrongness not go completely unchallenged." - PT
There are differing opinions on me. According to Iglew "DFA is PT with a sense of humor. PT is DFA with introspective self-doubt. I like them both" but according to sirbed Im "The Stats Killer"
by designatedforassignment on Mar 14, 2010 12:02 PM PDT up reply actions
Also, it's one game in Spring Training
Even good hitters look lost at the plate sometimes.
"And Julio Franco is batting right-handed!" -- Wayne Hagin, A's radio play-by-play, mid-80s
I think he should be cut.
Right now. No questions asked.
Some motherfcukers are always trying to ice skate uphill - Blade.
Thats something I can get behind.
"Since other people actually read these threads, though, probably best that your particular brand of wrongness not go completely unchallenged." - PT
There are differing opinions on me. According to Iglew "DFA is PT with a sense of humor. PT is DFA with introspective self-doubt. I like them both" but according to sirbed Im "The Stats Killer"
by designatedforassignment on Mar 14, 2010 12:34 PM PDT up reply actions
Gio for 5th starter!
I know he is the favorite for the spot from AN users, but we should start a campaign or something. All the media outlets still say its Cahill’s job to lose and I am tired of hearing that. Cahill can’t control his secondary stuff yet so I think he already lost the spot. The onus is on him to win it back.
Is Fox at risk of not making the team? He needs to get it together. Hope we can trade him if it comes to that… Would be a waste of $1.7M.
I texted Chris Townsend with this question
he replied that if Chavvy is still healthy and hitting by the end of spring training, Fox is in trouble
I don't believe he knows anything more than us really
"The ego, the super-ego, and the Ed" - danmerqury
Barton's performance is very encouraging...
We all know that spring stats don’t mean much… but hopefully it makes his confidence sky-rocket.
That could be a good thing.
"I'm not going to buy my kids an encyclopedia. Let them walk to school like I did." -Yogi Berra
Didn't KTRB insist on Townsend in the first place? Why cut off his show?
"And Julio Franco is batting right-handed!" -- Wayne Hagin, A's radio play-by-play, mid-80s
and now KTRB is doing it again to the next show
which is from Valley Ho in Scottsdale.
Methinks there’s a big problem in the KTRB station…
Been a long winter
Is it safe to come out now? Go A’s!
A free society is one where it is safe to be unpopular.
OT - the Pac10 final is quite entertaining
UW leads Berkeley by 3 with 3 minutes left
BEER IS GOOD. BEER IS GOOD. BEER IS GOOD, AND STUFF.
Whatever
We don’t need it. We’re in the tournament to begin with.
The Ultimate Opportunist
by Rated-R Superstar on Mar 14, 2010 10:57 AM PDT up reply actions
Fun fact, basketball is the 2nd worst sport ever.
Just beaten out by Ice Hockey.
Some motherfcukers are always trying to ice skate uphill - Blade.
Fail
Soccer is worse. Yeah, I said it.
The Ultimate Opportunist
by Rated-R Superstar on Mar 14, 2010 10:58 AM PDT up reply actions
hmm...
I think lacrosse falls beneath soccer, hockey, and basketball.
Some people count auto racing as a sport. That’s worse than lacrosse.
If bullfighting is a sport, that’s pretty far down there too. And old-school boxing (please die already.)
"The rich people want what the poor peoples got, and the poor people want what the rich peoples got. You can never please anybody in this world"- The Shaggs, "Philosophy Of The World," 1968
by Gaijin_Suketto on Mar 14, 2010 11:31 AM PDT up reply actions
BTW, fun fact
After the game I headed to Tempe and got food with my a couple people at a Mongolian-Style BBQ place called Genghis Grill. Not 10 minutes into my meal but who walks in? Chris Carter.
My jaw dropped, it was awesome. That man is a beast, big guy, but you can tell he takes care of himself.
Being that it looked like he was on a date I decided not to disturb him, although my A’s gear and occasional glances were obvious enough.
"Did you know you can comment on Athletics Nation from your phone or PDA? SB Nation has launched mobile commenting. Check it out next time you’re at the game or bar and have something to say."
Very cool!
One thing about Carter — he was a 15th-round draft pick, and if he signed for some huge overslot bonus I’ve never heard about it. Despite the fact that everyone on AN has been psyched about him for a couple of years, and lots of serious fans have heard about him, he isn’t famous to the average person yet, and unlike top picks who get upwards of a million bucks just to sign, he’s still waiting for his big payday.
So my guess is that Carter is living a pretty normal life, all things considered. At this point, he really is just a normal guy grabbing a bite to eat at Genghis Grill.
"And Julio Franco is batting right-handed!" -- Wayne Hagin, A's radio play-by-play, mid-80s
I know
so it was kinda cool being the guy that recognized him too, seeing that no one else there was an A’s fan…
"Did you know you can comment on Athletics Nation from your phone or PDA? SB Nation has launched mobile commenting. Check it out next time you’re at the game or bar and have something to say."
by stranahanahan on Mar 13, 2010 6:06 PM PST up reply actions
I just wan to say two things:
1) I am happy the A’s won both games today.
2) I absolutely hate this new format on AN! The navigation is kind of a pain in the ass and the dark coloring makes reading the content almost impossible unless I am sitting two inches from the screen!
Blez, I implore you to reconsider changing the color format for the readers. This is a serious inconveinance…peace. MRod
"By the end of the year, I'll have Dallas throwing right-handed'' -Ben Sheets
Am I the only one who hasn't noticed a change?
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
I haven't noticed anything different either
"And Julio Franco is batting right-handed!" -- Wayne Hagin, A's radio play-by-play, mid-80s
go see your optometrist asap
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
or readjust the meds!
There is no "i" in Teamocil. At least not where you'd think.
by GreenNGoldSooner on Mar 14, 2010 8:40 AM PST up reply actions
You guys don't see the green screen with dark lettering?
Or the formatting being totally different?
"By the end of the year, I'll have Dallas throwing right-handed'' -Ben Sheets
Nope, sorry
Screen is the normal white, letters are black, rec’d comments are green.
Are any other sites looking weird? Have you switched or updated your browser?
"And Julio Franco is batting right-handed!" -- Wayne Hagin, A's radio play-by-play, mid-80s
Mozilla Firefox
I already uninstalled it and reinstalled it. It doesn’t change anything. The regular homepage is fine, but you can’t go to any blog without it looking bad.
The Ultimate Opportunist
by Rated-R Superstar on Mar 13, 2010 6:30 PM PST up reply actions
I wonder if it's a temporary bug on AN's part
Before panicking, I’d wait to see if it’s an issue tomorrow and if it is, then scream “WE’RE ALL GONNA DIE!!!!!!!!”
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
Fair Enough
It’s not just this blog, though. It’s every blog. I even checked the New York Islanders blog.
The Ultimate Opportunist
by Rated-R Superstar on Mar 13, 2010 6:32 PM PST up reply actions
Ah, that's interesting
I’ll report it to the SB Nation “techies” in case they aren’t aware.
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
Good Thinking
While you do that, I’ll call Scooby and the gang.
The Ultimate Opportunist
by Rated-R Superstar on Mar 13, 2010 6:37 PM PST up reply actions
Find out if they installed that "Break SBN for everyone except those whose screenname is four letters long and starts 'Nic'" feature
Also, I just noticed that the icons for “up” “reply” and “actions” seem to have disappeared.
"And Julio Franco is batting right-handed!" -- Wayne Hagin, A's radio play-by-play, mid-80s
Crap.
Imma hafta change my screenname to Nicp…
sock puppets have never successfully defended castles. -nm
by Leopold Bloom on Mar 13, 2010 6:41 PM PST up reply actions
Wait
When did you upgrade it?
The Ultimate Opportunist
by Rated-R Superstar on Mar 13, 2010 7:22 PM PST up reply actions
screen looks weird for me too, both in firefox and safari, on my computer
but on my iphone it looks like the normal mobile AN site
Ugh
I’m having the same problem. On Mozilla Firefox, it looks terrible. On AOL, it’s fine.
The Ultimate Opportunist
by Rated-R Superstar on Mar 13, 2010 6:27 PM PST up reply actions
I got word the bug was fixed
Thanks for your patience — your blogging is important to us.
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
Not at all Nick
That’s why I’m so freaked out….shit I better shut down my computer in case there is a virus floating around. I’ll check bak in with you guys later…..thanks for the feedback.
"By the end of the year, I'll have Dallas throwing right-handed'' -Ben Sheets
I don't think it's a virus
AN looks the same for me for about an hour, but it’s the only site doing this for me
Folks with the weird screen problem:
Are you using Adblocker? I use it. I used to have problems with AN hanging because of problems with 3rd-party ads. Could that be related to what’s happening here?
"And Julio Franco is batting right-handed!" -- Wayne Hagin, A's radio play-by-play, mid-80s
No, I don't use it
This is the first time I’ve seen this problem. It also appears if I access AN with safari, not just firefox. Every other website I’ve tried is fine. This just started happening a little over an hour ago.
by OaklandSi on Mar 13, 2010 6:35 PM PST via mobile up reply actions
AN site isn't hanging
But it’s practically unreadable
by OaklandSi on Mar 13, 2010 6:36 PM PST via mobile up reply actions
I use Adblocker...and haven't experienced this AN problem n/t
There is no "i" in Teamocil. At least not where you'd think.
by GreenNGoldSooner on Mar 14, 2010 8:41 AM PST up reply actions
Screen is funny for me, both in Firefox and IE
I never even use IE unless I"m trying to figure out something like this. I do have Adblock for FF, but I can’t imagine that affects IE in any way.
Stewart: "What really needs to be clear is it wouldn't have mattered if there was an earthquake or not. We were going to beat the Giants."
Only the new comment flags are being weird for me.
They’re white instead of their normal black. Running Firefox with AdBlocker.
The funny thing about baseball is that people will believe what they want to believe. -Joe Posnanski 8/29/09
I've reported it --
sounds like it’s a problem on SB Nation’s end that they need to fix, and not any sort of intentional change.
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
Athletics season preview on CSN CA right now
The funny thing about baseball is that people will believe what they want to believe. -Joe Posnanski 8/29/09
the screen is still jacked for me in Safari as of 7:50
I think sock puppets are loose in the server.
"The rich people want what the poor peoples got, and the poor people want what the rich peoples got. You can never please anybody in this world"- The Shaggs, "Philosophy Of The World," 1968
I'm at work and one computer's completely normal.
The other one is as the others have described.
Firefox just released a new version…
sock puppets have never successfully defended castles. -nm
by Leopold Bloom on Mar 13, 2010 8:00 PM PST up reply actions
Good News
All blogs are working for me now on Mozilla Firefox. I didn’t do anything, so apparently they’ve fixed the problem.
The Ultimate Opportunist
by Rated-R Superstar on Mar 13, 2010 8:25 PM PST reply actions
Guys, I saw the "broken AN" earlier.
Looks like it was just a page element not loading properly. The page was just straight HTML—black text, no fancy functionality, just text and background color. Nothing to worry about, since it’s fixed.
Taken down with hearts alive, our hearts alive.
Was at the game...ran into baseballgirl
Was a druken college party in the OF grass in scottsdale….
Gio looked really good
Lance "you sunk my" Blankenship
Gio always looks good when you're drunk
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
Finished my rounds of the Tempe/Scottsdale brewpubs tonight
I’d say the must visit is Papago Brewing, in the strip mall at the southwest corner of McDowell and Scottsdale Road. Has a neighborhood bar feel. In their own brews, they emphasize stouts; the Irish Coffee Stout was excellent, they also had a Coconut Stout that was too sweet. Guest brews on tap from several interesting microbreweries from places as diverse as San Diego, Colorado and Michigan. That’s the place I’ll return to tomorrow night.
Four Peaks has excellent beer, but it’s a freakin’ circus. Seems to be the place for every yuppie in the valley to be seen at. Too much of a crowd scene to recommend it.
I liked Sleepy Dog. Another neighborhood bar scene but with the neo-industrial decor. They emphasize high alcohol content. The 10.0% ABV IPA may have me falling face-first into my keyboard at any moment. I think the amber was 8.5% ABV. Take a designated driver. Also, take your own food, or call out for food and have it delivered there. All they have is hot dogs (with chili and cheese if desired) and nachos, plus the popcorn machine in the corner. Most of the folks there tonight either had pizza delivered or did what I did, stopped on the way over and picked up a pizza and brought it in.
Dave’s Electric Brewpub is just a long Jake Plummer intercepted pass from Sun Devil Stadium. The beer was abominable. The stout was watery, like Coors Light with some Nestle’s Quik mixed in. I went there on Friday night and very few people were there, so I was forewarned but wanted to give it a try anyway. Avoid.
When on vacation I like to try the local independents. I don’t visit Gordon Biersch, BJ’s, Rock Bottom or Oggi’s, each of which has a few locations in the Phoenix area.
You, sir, are amazing.
and this is very good, very funny:
like Coors Light with some Nestle’s Quik mixed in.
sock puppets have never successfully defended castles. -nm
by Leopold Bloom on Mar 13, 2010 9:32 PM PST up reply actions
10% ABV?
Damn. That Papago Brewing place looks awesome. Never had an Irish Coffee Stout, but that sounds fantastic.
Taken down with hearts alive, our hearts alive.
the soakmaster is on the case
working on his Zagat’s Guide to Spring Training… I love the beer review and I LOL’d at the Jake Plummer line, good times. Did you take any more pictures? Those are like being there, I love ’em.
Hey, I just bought the team from Lew Wolff... who wants to play third?
by emperor nobody on Mar 13, 2010 10:41 PM PST up reply actions
Good for you Soaker!
I just quit my job at BJ’s in California-Bay Area after seven years….fuck em’!
"By the end of the year, I'll have Dallas throwing right-handed'' -Ben Sheets
so that Papago mall isn't scary?
A couple years ago when I was at Spring Training some ASU player shot another one there, I’ve always avoided that area since
by stormtown on Mar 14, 2010 12:46 PM PDT via mobile up reply actions
my home computer now has the weird green page thingie.
I don’t like it.
sock puppets have never successfully defended castles. -nm
it was wacko for me for a while, now it's normal
Perhaps the SB Nation servers have gone on a good old fashioned Saturday Night crack binge and every 12 minutes the HTML goes all basehead while they beam the pipe?
Hey, I just bought the team from Lew Wolff... who wants to play third?
by emperor nobody on Mar 13, 2010 10:38 PM PST reply actions
My Firefox is still effed up.
I hate it.
I’m on shitty old IE to post now. This sucks.
sock puppets have never successfully defended castles. -nm
I had issues with AN
yesterday too.
"You may glory in a team triumphant, but you fall in love with a team in defeat."--The Boys of Summer
Still have the jacked up green screen in Safari as of 9:09am Sunday
"The rich people want what the poor peoples got, and the poor people want what the rich peoples got. You can never please anybody in this world"- The Shaggs, "Philosophy Of The World," 1968
not jacked as of 9:11am.
strange.
"The rich people want what the poor peoples got, and the poor people want what the rich peoples got. You can never please anybody in this world"- The Shaggs, "Philosophy Of The World," 1968
by Gaijin_Suketto on Mar 14, 2010 9:13 AM PST up reply actions
See, I knew it wasn't just me yesterday!
It was pretty disturbing to tell you the truth.
Go A’s!!
"By the end of the year, I'll have Dallas throwing right-handed'' -Ben Sheets
"I expect Coco Crisp to be DLed to start the season"
I thought he was out for just a week with a bad hammy…did I miss something or is Nico just speculating?
I think the longer-term issue is his shoulders and his ability to make to throw from CF
Plus I don’t think Crisp wants to play LF because it would affect the perception of his long-term value.
he also wants to lead off to increase his long term value
but if he can’t physically be productive at CF and in leadoff his lng term value ideclines…not to mention what it does to the A’s if they aren’t putting the players at leadoff and CF who are most likely to be productive.
Geren acknowledged it's a possibility
Crisp hasn’t even played the OF yet.
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
My AN at home is still messed up on Firefox
1:49pm Sunday
sock puppets have never successfully defended castles. -nm
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