A's Taken Up In Ezequiel's Wheel; Tribe Wins 2-1

Top of 8th: Scott & Jemile – OMG!
Coco – WTF?

had Matsui just watched a little less porn lately — or whatever sapped just enough of his strength to keep that high drive in the yard.

Silver lining to a bummer of a loss: Poochini is incredibly annoying again!!! Yes, it’s a good thing.

he started off hitting everything. Then they started pitching him on the inner half… which he adjusted to and punished. Now they are working him away; specializing in high fastballs on the outer half. How will you respond to that, Mr. Allen?

It always makes me a little bit sad towards the end of a baseball season. It’s time to review past hopes and recycle oneself towards dreaming about the next season. That’s probably why Nico now talks mostly about Poochini, and ElCroata is, possibly, evaluating basketball stats. It’s time to guess at the potential of September call-ups and hope for unexpected off-season trades or miraculous Taiwanese signups. Plus, in my case, I still have to hope for a return to the Bay Area, though the likelihood of my wife finding a job in S.F. is fairly dim – thanks God, I am retired!

As to the A’s, I keep trying to digest my memories of baseball past great teams and find there the magic formulas to apply to our reality in 2012. I wish ElCroata were my friend Nick, the Croatian atomic physicist – I could trust his calculations without reserve. Regrettably, I am not a computer – my love for baseball is based on emotion and my kinesthetic feeling, plus some intuition based on past experience. And that past experience keeps coming up with the same answers – a fielding-able team plus a couple of outstanding player-leaders, plus a manager capable of synergizing those factors and monitoring the team level of harmony and enthusiasm.

No team was ever 100%, all-around capable – excepting, maybe, the Big Red Machine of the mid-70’s. The great Yankee team of the early 60’s had a hole in its LF. The early 70’s A’s were unstable at 1B. The 80’s A’s had problems at 2B and LF. It is my belief that the newer World Series champion dynasties – Yankees and Blue Jays – should be outlawed; they have much less right to be baseball "stars" than players on steroids. Baseball is a team sport, not a showcase of assemblages of highest paid stars that money can buy – for that we have Hollywood blockbusters.

It seems that the indicators of great teams were,

1) One or two lead off high OBP hitters, preferably with base-stealing ability and smart on-base behavior.
2) Three high AVG with power middle-of-the-order hitters, to prevent pitching around any single batter.
3) All around high team fielding percentage, without glaring holes at any position.
4) An adequate depth chart, with truly capable replacement players for each position.
5) No fewer than two high winning percentage SP’s. Ideally, these should be intimidating pitchers, not afraid of throwing close-in balls, of the type of a Dave Stewart or a Nolan Ryan.
6) A good relief pitching corps, with two "stoppers" – one to stop any middle-inning rallies, the other a closer. Both should be able to go two innings, not just one; for that, they must have the conviction of "owning the plate", not to allow opposing batters to get comfortable in the batter’s box. These pitchers require superb pitch control, though they can be of two types – either a Rollie Fingers ice-in-the-veins type, or a Hoyt Wilhelm type – the classical knuckleballer, to throw batters off balance.

At this point of the year, what do the A’s have?

1) They probably have the first requirement above, the two capable lead-off hitters – as long as they develop smart on-base behavior.
2) The A’s have three iffy batters in the middle. Matsui would be great if he had a faster start as a batter during a regular season. Willingham would be great if he had a consistent higher batting average. Allen would be great if he would remain consistent both in AVG and HR, and were not to have "sophomore jinks" next year.
3) We know that the team fielding is shaky. Only Spring Training will be able to reveal the true roots of that failing.
4) The team depth chart is inadequate at most positions, regardless of fans’ personal preferences.
5) Starting pitching is also iffy at this point. There is not a single consistent pitcher on the roster, not a single intimidating presence on the mound. I strongly believe that the failure at consistency and the overuse of the DL, particularly after a brilliant season start, cannot be due to anything except a failure of the coaching and conditioning/medical care on the team.
6) The A’s do not have real "stoppers" in their bullpen, with all due respect to Bailey.

The A’s really have their work cutout for them at Spring Training. Also, changes need to be made in the organization. However, since a lot hinges on the stadium, Billy Beane’s plans, and the ownership long-term position, the future is highly uncertain. An added factor of disarray is the top-heavy administration, indicating poor Beane management practices. Since he has always been in a baseball organization, he probably lost the cynical view of management needed for a successful corporate executive role. That is probably the main reason he should be seeking another position with another organization, to renew himself.