Furious Phone Calls

Minnesota breaks up garcia's no-hitter and wins it in the 8th;

The Skanks rally in the 9th to win;

The Indians win a close one;

The Angels almost blow a game to Miguel Tejada and the Orioles but they hang on.

And our boys are moribund in Motown.

But.....

Daric barton and kevin Mellilo could be on the way.

If so, all I can say is that Billy Beane has the heart of a lion and he's as fierce.

No quit in him-- he knows all his current options are unsatisfactory so he's rolling the proverbial dice. Go get 'em, Billy!

Walks in his plate appearance, comes around to score. Still no sign of Barton....

Dude, Blez, normally your writing is some of the best available on the internet -- clear, incisive and just generally damn good. But tonight's piece smacks of frustration and being rushed:

"Needless to say, I've figured out why Barton isn't in the lineup tonight."

What exactly does this mean? Did you dream up the explanation yourself that he needs rest for a September call-up, or were you told this by one of your "contacts" (Urban, Slusser, BB himself)? So I wouldn't really call that "needless to say" seeing as how confused I am.

"Barton isn't a big fan of being a DH, but if it means he gets a shot, I'm sure he'd do it in a heartbeat."

Since when are we letting players decide which position their future is at? Barton may not like to DH, but he has no plus defensive position. As I noted in blee1134's diary, it could be that the A's intentionally put him at DH as it would keep his long-term cost down in arbitration and beyond -- just as we're currently doing with Justin Duchscherer (no starts, few saves = low cost).

Call up Barton right now and let him drive a couple Bonderman fastballs into the left-centerfield gap tomorrow.

Baseball Players take days off!!! They may and should move to sacramento soon, likely in time for the Playoffs just to get them some more AB's.
Oakland is not in the near future.

Sorry to be pissy I will no longer respond to these ridiculous rumors.

and i saw this one coming...detroit is very hot right now (especially since pena feels he has something to prove...again)  and oakland is struggling to score runs.  unfortunately for oakland, bondo is pitching tomorrow and we all know how he pitches against the A's.  then on thursday there will be what i think will be a great match up, harden and maroth (a lefty... and coming off a good outing against boston last wednesday).  i think harden is going to tame the tigers on thursday so tomorrow nights' game could decide the series...

at the game tonight tho... i was fortunate enough to meet Kotsay and Sarloos during BP and they were really nice!  and i almost caught pena's first homer in the 4th...

but the FUNNIEST part of the night was when swisher went to go visit one of his friends and his kid on the right field line and when people started running over to get his autograph he basically ran away and said to us all:

 "Sorry, I have to go take a drug test."

that might have been the funniest thing ive heard in a while, and even tho he didnt sign for us...it made me laugh and made the A's loss a little easier to take.

a whole different genre of posters--many of whom never or rarely post in diaries prior to or after games--engage in some of the most ludicrous commentary imaginable. The A's are in a teamwide batting slump and they apparently must find scapegoats upon whom to afix blame. The two most convenient suspects are Ken Macha and Jason Kendall.

Somehow, they must feel Macha either doesn't deserve credit for steering a young, once last place team back into contention. Or they can't appreciate the job Macha did to enable the team to go 40-50; correspondingly, Macha--in their cranium-challenged brains--must be strung up for this recent downturn.

And, of course, a position player must also be singled out. In May, it was Chavvy. Now it's Kendall. Pray tell, who--along with with Curt Young--took the two young starters Haren and Blanton, and guided them to remarkable achievements this early in their career? And who, along with Young, helped turn Barry Zito's career around? Who helped make Kirk Saarloos one of baseball's best 5th starter? Who turned 22 year old Huston Street into a possible Rookie of the Year and a possible premier closer? Etc., etc.

No, as in politics when people project their own sense of futility in life onto someone else, in baseball too scapegoats must be found. Alas, analysis and logic require too many neurons...  

for a pulse!!! Is he watching the same game the rest of us are?  Offense is sputtering, MIX UP THE LINEUP!!!!

are really interesting. I wonder why he wouldn't have mentioned Barton? It's not like it's necessary to hide their plans. If they were considering it, why not mention it?

Of course I could be reading entirely too much into this.

According to Macha, Daric Barton won't be called up from Double-A Midland when rosters expand. He's only 20 and there's too big a gap between Double-A pitching and the big leagues.

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/chronicle/archive/2005/08/24/ASREPORT.TMP&type=as

Carlos Pena... darn it all! Last I heard of him he was down in the minors -- I actually took a moment to feel bad for him -- and today I tune in to see him hitting homeruns against my favorite pitcher du jour, Danny Haren.

Did anyone else notice that huge chip on Pena's shoulder? Remember 2002 and the Carlos Pena Fan Club sign? I think it was in the right field bleachers? Was it 2002? Pena was roommates for all of 2 months with Chavy, Mulder, Ellis and Venafro in the fabled Lafayette house. Time flies...

There's something about players who get traded and play against the team that traded them -- they have Something To Prove. Pena with his 2 homers, mutter, mutter. What will Bonderman inflict on us tomorrow?

to Susan Slusser apparently:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/chronicle/archive/2005/08/24/ASREPORT.TMP&type=as

"According to Macha, Daric Barton won't be called up from Double-A Midland when rosters expand. He's only 20 and there's too big a gap between Double-A pitching and the big leagues."

Of course, since the mlb.com article says Macha hasn't even discussed callups with Beane, how can he be sure?

Until Macha gets definitive word from BB that Barton will be called up, it is appropriate that he act diplomatically and say the right things. Most managers and players deflect direct comments by saying the likes of "We have to play it one game at a time." Etc. Indeed, if Barton is not called up, it would doubtless be just for the reason Macha articulated...

To those who cite the return of Crosby and the call up of DJ for the A's going on their incredible run after the May debacle, sure those players and others should get credit. But many a young team, faced with early season loses, has run up the white flag and written off the season. It takes a patient and exceptional leadership of young men to keep their "daubers" up and Macha did an extraordinary job in doing just that...

Bleacher seats are actual seats. I believe they're cheaper because you can't see the last 10 feet or so of the field.

Why would we ever call up Charles Thomas? He's batting 249 at sacramento. Why not give Freddie Bynum a chance to prove himself. Thomas already had a chance and never filled his expectations. If we wanted speed, Freddie will bring it.

Macha just by mentioning Charles Thomas name as a September call up proves how detached this man is from reality. WAKE UP!

It's not fair to label Macha criticisms brainless or implusive.

-Mark Ellis has a .370 OBP and a .414 SLG. Kendall: .344 OBP and .310 (!!!) SLG.

-Swisher's OBP is only slightly higher than Kotsay's but he's slugging almost 70 points higher.

-DJ has a .393 OBP, .504 SLG and 4 more HR than Crosby.

What are Ellis, Swish, and DJ not doing hitting in front of our #1 offensive guy in a time we're struggling for runs?

Let's remember something about the lineup earlier in the year: Kendall and Kotsay had to slip a suggested lineup under Macha's door because he had steadfastly put out a lineup that almost everyone here was criticizing. Were the players being unfair to Macha or brainless when they suggested a different lineup to the one he designed?

Were the players wrong to assume a different lineup may change the offense a little? It seems illogical to assume it won't make any difference if you don't try it. Nobody is talking about benching anyone. Give Kendall or Crosby a day or two of rest if necessary. Of course Kendall/Kots/Croz should work through their slumps, but it would be nice if they weren't working through them 1-2-3 in front of Chavez.

It may not make a huge difference, but it's worth a try. I find it hard to believe it could make anything worse, and I think that criticism of Macha in this regard is legitimate.

Not sure if this was covered before but if Barton is called up doesnt that start his Major League service time clock? (Im not exactly sure the specifics of how service time works)
I think a promotion to Sacramento for the AAA playoffs is more likely.

plans for 2005. I think that the speculation about him being called up might show that BB could have been a little more aggressive at the deadline.
   The only problem with that was the A's were playing so good for quite some time, a trade didn't seem essential.  I wonder if the A's scuffled into the deadline (like we are now) if BB would have made a move for a solid hitter.
   I cannot imagine BB expecting the A's to play that well for the rest of season. He had to know we'd see some bumps along the way.  Although Payton has had some big hits for us, I for one would have liked to have picked up another right hand bat.
   And yes I felt that way when things were going great.
  Barton may or may not be called up. I will try my best to avoid speculation on this. Nothing wrong with speculation, but I can see that some of you consider a 20 year old from AA to be the man who will save the 05 A's.  While I would love to see it happen, we must try to set reasonable expectations for him.  
   He's NOT the man who will get us into the playoffs.  It rests on the shoulders of the guys who have been there all season long.

I have a few thoughts on callups (see earlier entry) and spent most of last night awake thinking about it. After watching our defence and pitching play last nights game (the offense was taking batting practice at the Colliseum) I finally convinced myself of what needed to be done!

First of all, I think Macha's comments on callups of Charles Thomas & Jermaine Clark are pointless and self-defensive. Thomas cannot contribute and Clark needs to show more production in Sacramento.

Secondly, I don't think our offence can get any worse, than what we have seen for the past couple of weeks. The slump has hit every player on the team, and if nothing is done, it will affect our pitching as well!! It is just a SLUMP, but even though the players are better than this, we need new vibes and a little fresh blod!!
This may come from the much disgussed Midland 2(or 3 or 4) but the problem is that we don't know if they're ready! It is time to take a chance!! It's a zero-solution bringing up Thomas & Clark, and the real ballsy move is to get Barton and Ethier/Melillo here now!!
BUT there is also another option: Lose Ginter now and get Matt Watson back here. Let him play every day in a 4 man outfield platoon with Swish, Kotsay & JayPay, and switch them around as DH (not Kotsay) We can also give Johnson a needed day off (at least in the field) and still have 3 capable outfielders.
I know that Watson hasn't been preforming, but I think that he - given a chance to play every day - is the best option we have right here and now... No pressure, but just go out and hit for power...Swisher style!

My 2 cents...

I miss Carlos Pena.  He was my favorite player when he was with us and now I remember why.

I track a small home run derby pool.  We track total homers, multiple-homer games (2, 3, & 4) and grand slams.  I've been using ESPN.com's Home Run Tracker but have noticed several errors.  Is there a more reliable site where I can get daily, easy-to-access stats for the numbers I track?  Thanks so much for the help.

Couldn't Hatteberg catch in an emergency?

In what has amounted to May redux, the A's are in a team slump and there probably is no real explanation other than the inexperience of so many of the position players.

But at least we may have some explanation for why the team had but two hits vs a mediocre pitcher on Tuesday. Yesterday was a "testing day" for the A's and Susan Slusser says, "Several players weren't able to produce urine samples after numerous bottles of water, and one needed five attempts before the testing was complete."

No wonder they couldn't hit--the A's were water-logged. It's understandable that Macha was said to be "pissed off."

Once again, we hear the hew and cry that the A's should play Melhuse over Kendall. That nonsense is particularly loud on the OAFC site, where Macha continues to be rapped unmercifully for batting Melhuse instead of Dye in the playoffs. And I have no doubt that some on AN feel the same way. I could use the word, "hypocrisy," but it is doubtful that those culpable could comprehend the meaning of that term...

aren't some of those posters who wish Kendall removed from the leadoff slot some of the same contributors who bellyached the first two months demanding Kendall be put there instead of Kotsay?

   I believe I saw this in this AM's SF Chronicle. If it happens, it WILL be a surprise. I think if fans are putting hope in Barton, it's a little too soon. Beane doesn't typically call up players that are highly touted too soon, he usually makes the move after AN typically bellyaches about a particlular player for a couple of months (see Dan Johnson). Once that call is made, it's usually b/c there's no intention of sending that player back down.

   September call-ups are slightly different, Crosby still had Tejada in fromt of him and Swisher was brought up partly b/c of Dye's injury.

   I agree with Macha, it's not the time for Barton.
   HIRE MACHA NOW!

He doesn't make roster decisions...Billy Beane and the rest of the front office does.  Macha doesn't decide who is called up and sent down, who stays on the roster, who is traded, etc.

Why Slusser asked him about whether Barton was "ready" to be called up is beyond me.  What authority does Macha have to give this type of evaluation? Is Macha now spending time evaluating our AA players instead of figuring out how to score some runs?

I am as sick about the A's slump as anyone, but it's still better than the sad months of November, December, January and February when there is no A's baseball......

Go A's - let's give the Tigers a spanking this afternoon!

RIGHT NOW!!!  im sporting my A's shirt and sitting in right field so i can speak with nick.... ;)  

go A's/tigers/A's/tigers/A's/tigers

... but I'd bet $10 that Barton is being rested because he's headed to Arizona for the Fall League, not to Oakland for a September call-up.

what a few losses can do to fans