Note: This was actually written by Nico. We are clarifying this because baseballgirl does not wish to be associated with this kind of drivel.
I prefer to think of today's game not as "Game 52 in the 2011 season," but rather as "Game 1 in the Scott Sizemore era". Yes, the A's have slowly upgraded the Rajai Davis trade, from Danny Farquhar to David Purcey to Scott Sizemore, who could wind up being the best inconsequential player of the three. Color me excited: The A's appear to have won a trade that doesn't much matter.
Somehow, the team with the best starting pitching in the major leagues has managed to be 3 games under .500 and part of the reason is that unless they sweep the Orioles this weekend, Oakland will finish the first 1/3 of the season without having swept a 3-game series. This is not good, and as a result I am highly recommending that the A's win today, tomorrow, and Sunday.
Tonight, Gio Gonzalez takes the mound against RHP Chris Tillman. The A's lineup is sans Coco Crisp, and interestingly features three true lefties at the top of the order, and four out of five. We'll see how that plays out in the later innings...Likely it plays out with Conor Jackson pinch hitting against Clay Rapata...Stay tuned...