Sad to think that if the A's had put exactly 3 runs on the board in regulation each day, the Lovable Muppets would be taking aim at a 4-game series sweep in Boston, instead of hoping for a split. But such is the fate of a team that leads the league in GIDP. No question about it, the DP has killed the A's; what to do about it is such a big question no one really knows the answer (though we all claim to have sure-fire solutions).
What we do know is this: Boston's #3 hitter saved the Red Sox yesterday with his game-tying HR in the 6th, while Boston's #4 hitter saved the Red Sox today with his tie-breaking HR in the 6th. For Chavez and Hatteberg, tonight's #3-#4 hitters, it has been a rough road trip (a combined 9/64, otherwise known as a .141 clip), not helped by surrounding futility from kids Johnson and Swisher (a combined 8/54, sometimes referred to as a .148 clip). To say there are a lot of holes in the A's lineup right now is inaccurate. Right now, there are hitters in the hole that is the lineup. Ouch.
In September, the cream rises to the top. Right now, unfortunately, the A's are getting creamed.
