Happy 12th Birthday Athletics Nation!

Hi everybody! It's I, your friendly neighborhood blog founder, popping in for an annual birthday wish to best little blog that could. I largely avoid making appearances here because Alex and company are way smarter than I am and much like Billy Beane, I simply let the smart people do their thing.

Yes, it was 12 years ago today that I started a typepad blog (remember typepad? it was like myspace whereas wordpress became Facebook) called Athletics Nation: Baseball Country. It was a terrible name but the typepad system seemed to require a subhead for some reason. Ah well, nice trivia for AN gatherings in the future.

For those of you who don't follow the larger picture outside of the A's and AN universe, this blog was the first of a series of more than 300 others formed in its likeness. I'm not quite sure if that makes AN God and the other original five SB Nation blogs Adam and Eve or if something else is God and AN is Adam. Regardless, AN was probably wearing a fig leaf at some point. And trapped in Mom's basement because #bloglife.

AN brought about a much bigger company eventually which has been an amazing adventure. I'm not really involved in all those other brands as I remain, at my core, a team sports blog guy but this has been one really incredible story. Think about it. Without me feeling ignored by KNBR and ESPN as an Athletics fan, perhaps this modern media company never comes to fruition. BECAUSE I was basically like Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction ("I will NOT be ignored KNBR), this whole thing came to be. I suppose that being slighted has led to a lot of motivation throughout human history. It's just fitting an A's fan did it in the sports universe, right?

This has been a remarkable adventure with the one major thing missing from it all being a World Series title celebrated here. But hey, it's always darkest, right? And I still see a lot of great foundational pieces for the green and gold moving forward. And even though it's 12 years later and the A's front office had its worst offseason since the conception of the blog last year, I can confidently say that I still trust Billy. See? You don't really want me writing any more with that kind of blind loyalty.

Any way, this blog has gotten better and better in its 12 years of existence. Alex, Jeremy, Nico, baseballgirl and all of the additions this past season brought such a beautiful depth of coverage that it's never been greater. I just wish there was a better team for these talented people to cover. Again, that's coming.

The coolest thing about this site still to this day is the real life connections it has created. This December, there will be a baby born to a couple that met through this esteemed blog. Yeah, that's right, somehow a slighted A's fan led to a life being created. It's what has always been in the DNA of what AN created and that's impactful, long-lasting life connections. Like 12 years plus and more...here's to another 12. Happy birthday, AN and thank you for being you. I'll Jerry Maguire you guys and say, simply, you complete me.