Gee, Ma, Lookie--We're The Texas Rangers!

Once through the rotation, A's starters have now surrendered 29 ER in just over 26 innings, so it's not hard to see why they have gone 2-3 (and have been lucky to do so). Tonight's worst Loaiza start in 7 weeks was compounded by some puzzling decisions. Like:

• On the 4th inning pop fly that, after hanging up there forever somehow dropped between Payton and Scutaro, why on earth did Scutaro pick it up (while facing the center field fence), when Payton would have had a great shot at throwing out Ty Wigginton (who was chugging home all the way from first)?
  
  
• Right after Jason Kendall was hit by a Howell pitch to force in a run, why did Bobby Kielty decide it was a good time to hack at the first pitch?
  
  
• With Halsey up, and Loaiza pretty much at the tail end of three innings of running out of gas, why didn't Halsey get the call to face Crawford, since he was coming in to face Norton anyway? (I checked Crawford's splits, and he hits lefties and righties identically, so I'll give Macha that. I just thought that move made sense anyway.)
  
  

Probably because it just wasn't the A's night. They didn't play that well, the squibbing bounces and third-base-line-hugging rollers didn't go their way, and the game wound up being kind of like a freeway accident--it turns your stomach but you're still compelled to watch.

The "Ranger-rotation" phenomenon started with Zito on Monday. Hopefully, it will end with Zito on Sunday. And go Blue Jays!