DISCLAIMER: Personal anecdote alert. If you want to skip to the baseball stuff, scroll past the next paragraph.
[It is with the heaviest of hearts that I bring you today's ballgame. My companion and friend of 15 years, my dog Abua, has gone away. She died this morning. I have already looked towards the backyard five or six times today, expecting to see a glimpse of her, but only in my memories will she now exist. No female has lasted longer with me, and perhaps none ever will. I love you so very much, Abua.]
***
Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to another day of A's baseball. With the Texas Rangers threatening to make the sweltering heat of August a moot point- not to mention September and October- the only race the A's may find themselves in is the one for second place, a spot currently occupied by the Angels; unfamiliar territory indeed for the three-time defending AL West champions. As of this writing the clubs are tied in the loss column, with the Angels having played- and won- three more games than Oakland.
Today's opponent is the white-hot White Sox from Chicago, who send veteran Freddy Garcia to the mound, ten years Vin Mazzaro's senior. Here's hoping youth wins out today. Here's hoping the A's win their next 77 games.
If you happen to be at the Oakland Coliseum this fine day, I'm envious. If you're stuck here with me, well there are worse things in life, I suppose.
Below are the lineups that managers Ozzie Guillen and Bob Geren will be presenting to the men in blue this afternoon: