Yes, the team that we've been lamenting their inability to score runs has actually averaged 6.1 runs a game since the team left Shea Stadium. The problem is that the team that was once so good about pitching is giving up more than five runs a game.
Lenny DiNardo showed signs of coming unglued for a little while and it all unraveled tonight. The A's kept battling back to try and make a game of it and part of me thought the team actually had a chance, but alas it wasn't meant to be.
And in case you didn't read things, it's not going to get any better any time soon, at least where the bullpen is concerned. Justin Duchscherer has finally decided to go under the knife and is gone for the year. So while it looked like he might be coming back soon, you know that where the A's are concerned it's always more than meets the eye (gratuitous Transformers plug). Marco Scutaro may also be joining the injury brigade after taking a pitch off the hand too, so we're going to see a lot of Bobby Crosby whether we like it or not.
I'd offer up something here to make you feel better about Rich Harden possibly joining the rotation soon and taking the chance that DiNardo or Lewis might take the next start, but it doesn't appear likely, not when you read things like this:
On the other hand, the A's offense appears to have finally come alive a bit. Dan Johnson has now homered in three straight games. Shannon Stewart is now batting over .300. Eric Chavez's OPS is slowly climbing. If the A's can survive outings by their revolving fifth chair of a starter, then they can still compete. The problem is that the bullpen still remains such an issue right now and it now looks like this is the hand they're going to be dealt for quite a while.
Oh and it was good to see Frank Thomas tonight, even if he did smack the A's pitching around the yard. It reminded me of the good times he provided us with last year. It's just too bad that those times wound up being so short lived.
