TGIF! and welcome to a whole lot of no-DH-ing, pitchers-"hitting", Cust-fielding, Giambi-scooping, pinch-hitting, different-ballpark-viewing, NL-West-playing baseball! Starting tonight, the A's will be playing the Giants, Dodgers, and Padres in a nine-games-in-ten-days extravaganza, where the A's will try to get their record up to .500 as they continue to make a dent in the shrinking deficit in the AL West.
I will be your host tonight before leaving AN game threads for the next eight games, because I will be at the ballparks. But I leave you with a doozy; it's quite the match-up on the table for your viewing pleasure; it's the best that both teams have to offer at this point in the season. The A's will be throwing rookie two-start-phenom Vin Mazzaro; with his 2-0 record and shiny 0.00 ERA against Tim "Cy" Lincecum on the mound for the Giants. You know how we always joke that other pitchers look like Cy Young against the A's? This is not one of these nights; Lince is for real.
Only time will tell if Mazzaro is for real as well, and what better way to test him in his third start? I would expect little to no run support for Vin, and if I'm managing tonight, I pull out all the stops if there is even a chance to move some runners around. Losing the DH will not help the A's already struggling offense, and if you are wondering if Mazzaro can hit, MLB.com tells us:
Mazzaro said he played shortstop when he wasn't pitching in high school, adding that he batted cleanup and was a strong hitter. Asked about his bunting prowess, he said, "Horrendous." ...
So I'm guessing Vin hits a homerun tonight to help his own cause when given the bunt sign. That would be wacky enough for Mazzaro-world, would it not?
So grab your favorite drink; settle down in front of the TV....it's time for some A's baseball!
Hopefully the A's are just resting Suzuki tonight against a tough pitcher, but I worry about him after getting hit yesterday.
The lineups are as follows (try not to laugh; it hurts the players' feelings):
Let's go Oak-land!
