In case you missed the news, the A's have signed Kurt Suzuki to a four year extension.
To gain any ground on the two teams above them in the AL West this weekend, Suzuki and the A's will have to go through one of MLB's hottest teams; the White Sox have been practically unbeatable in their last 35 games. Mark Buehrle and All-Star Trevor Cahill will battle on the mound tonight as the A's try to get back in the race. From Chicago's own example, it is possible; the White Sox have turned a 9 1/2 game division deficit into a two-game lead. The A's are 7 1/2 games behind the Rangers and only 1 1/2 behind the Angels. The two teams are playing right now, but it won't matter at all if the A's can't take care of business themselves. They need series wins, and with Cahill on the mound, they are putting one of their best shots out there tonight.
Buehrle hasn't pitched well at the Coliseum in his career (0-6, 4.66), but he has been dealing lately. Should the A's see an opportunity, they should probably get to him early.
I have to run out for a bit, so I have set an auto-thread for 7:45. I hope to be back to run it, but if not, make sure to get over to the new thread at the appropriate time, and leave no ANer behind.
The A's will send out the following lineup tonight:
Crisp CF
Barton 1B
Suzuki C
Kouzmanoff 3B
Rosales DH
Ellis 2B
Carson RF
Davis LF
Pennington SS
LET'S GO OAK-LAND!