Athletics Nation - 2014 Athletics Nation Series PreviewsAn SB Nation blog for Oakland Athletics fanshttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/47025/an-fave.png2014-09-25T15:49:22-07:00http://www.athleticsnation.com/rss/stream/53298752014-09-25T15:49:22-07:002014-09-25T15:49:22-07:00Rangers series preview -- regular season finale
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<img alt="Don't mind me, I'm just a goofy No. 9 hitter who would never dream of hitting a walk-off homer against you this weekend." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/jrYsYmwbX2Zji3TbAk-IPaPoyPE=/0x0:2660x1773/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/40060174/454733400.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Don't mind me, I'm just a goofy No. 9 hitter who would never dream of hitting a walk-off homer against you this weekend. | Tom Pennington</figcaption>
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<p>The Athletics are squaring off against the Rangers for four games in Texas to finish the regular season.</p> <p>This is it, folks. The regular season concludes at the end of this week, and all that we have left is four road games against the Texas Rangers. The magic number to reach the Wild Card play-in game is two, meaning that even if the A's get swept in this one the Mariners would still need to win three of their final four against the Blue Jays and Angels just to force a tie. It's still physically possible to complete the collapse by missing the playoffs, but it is exceedingly unlikely. (Note: The Mariners would likely have to burn Felix Hernandez in Game 162 just to make it to the Wild Card play-in, or even to a tiebreaker against the A's, so there is virtually no scenario in which we have to see him again in 2014.)</p>
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<p>These are the expected pitching matchups for the series:</p>
<p><b>Thu:</b> Jason Hammel vs. Colby Lewis<br><b>Fri:</b> Scott Kazmir vs. Nick Tepesch<br><b>Sat:</b> Jeff Samardzija vs. Derek Holland<br><b>Sun:</b> Sonny Gray vs. Nick Martinez</p>
<p>Rather than forcing Adam J Morris of Lone Star Ball to spend any extra time dwelling on his team's absolute nightmare of a season, let's just have our own look at the pitching matchups as well as the key hitters we may see this weekend.</p>
<p>Lewis is in the decline phase of his career, at age 35 and in his first season back from Tommy John surgery. He has a 5.34 ERA on the year, and while a lot of that is due to an inflated hit rate there is no guarantee that regression can be counted on to balance that stat back to his career norm given his overall situation. He's always given up lots of homers and he is still doing so, but now his strikeout rate is down by a full strikeout per nine innings. He got lit up by the first-half A's in June, but that doesn't seem particularly relevant anymore. He reached back to throw a shutout against the White Sox in August, and he threw another complete game at the end of that month. He strung together four solid (if not technically quality) starts before getting burned by the Angels in his last game for eight runs in five innings -- again, that hardly seems relevant given how much better the Angels' offense is than Oakland's at the moment. Hammel, on the other hand, hasn't started since Sept. 12, but he did make a relief appearance against Texas on Sept. 18 and tossed three scoreless innings with four strikeouts. He has a 2.81 ERA in his last seven starts, four of which have registered as quality outings, and has racked up three strikeouts for every walk during that time. <b>Advantage: Oakland</b></p>
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<p>Tepesch threw six innings and allowed only one earned run (three runs total) against Oakland on Sept. 16, and then followed that up with seven sparkling innings against the Angels. He's not overpowering -- only around four strikeouts per nine innings -- but he only needs to be mediocre to beat second-half Kazmir. The lefty has an 8.58 ERA in his last six games, with four disaster starts against only two quality outings. He failed to make it out of the fifth inning against Texas on Sept. 16 while being tagged for six runs, and then wasn't much better against the Phillies in his last appearance. He might be auditioning for his chance to pitch in the ALDS, if the A's even make it there -- another bad day on Friday would make it tough to count on him in the playoffs next week. <b>Advantage: Texas</b></p>
<p>There may not be any runs scored on Saturday. Holland has allowed only five earned runs in his five starts since returning from offseason knee surgery, and he kept the A's in check on Sept. 17. At this point, all you need is a dominant left hand and a pulse in order to shut down Oakland's lineup, and Holland has both in addition to actually being good at pitching. It's hard to see the green and gold making much noise against the southpaw, but it helps that they'll have the Shark matching zeroes against him. Samardzija is on such a tear that he might even be pitching better than Jon Lester right now -- in his last six starts, he's got a 1.40 ERA in 45 innings (that's over seven innings per game on average), 47 strikeouts to three walks, and three games in which he's completed eight frames. He's pitching like an ace, and he's doing so at the perfect time. It's tempting to pick the lefty against the A's, but Shark threw eight shutout innings when he faced Texas last week so this one may as well be a coin flip. <b>Advantage: Even</b></p>
<p>Martinez was "meh" in his last start against Oakland, but then he followed that up by pitching into the seventh against Houston (who is a decent team now) without allowing a run or a walk. Like Tepesch, he doesn't strike anyone out (five per nine innings), but it's almost irrelevant what he does in this game. All that matters is which Sonny shows up -- the one who was disastrous on Sept. 2 and 18 (11 runs in 10 innings), or the one who was nails on Sept. 8, 13, and 23 (22 innings, 2.05 ERA, 23 K's). If Sonny is on, like he was when he fanned 12 Angels (equivalent to about 16 Rangers) on Tuesday, he's a good bet to win. If he serves up five runs, you can't count on the lineup to make up that difference against even the worst opponent. <b>Advantage: Oakland</b></p>
<p>The Rangers have a few hot hitters to look out for. There's Adrian Beltre, of course, who is always dangerous in any game. Ryan Rua has two homers in his last four games, and Jake Smolinski has two in his last nine, and those are only the guys you've never heard of. J.P Arencibia drew a walk on Tuesday, which is astonishing. Rougned Odor and Robinson Chirinos are each hitting well over the last couple weeks. In fact, Texas has six hitters batting at least .300 over the last 14 days. So, while the Rangers' record is only 65-93, they have two potentially favorable pitching matchups and a lineup full of guys who are quietly hot. We already knew that this wouldn't be a cakewalk based on the fact that the Rangers swept the A's in Oakland last week, but upgrade it from "not easy" to "legitimately challenging." Good thing the Wild Card is all but wrapped up.</p>
<p><i>The series starts tonight. First pitch is scheduled for 5:05 p.m., Hammel vs. Lewis. Brandon Moss is in the lineup batting fifth, and Geo Soto draws the start behind the plate. Adam Rosales is lurking in Texas' order, batting ninth, just waiting to hit a backbreaking homer and complete the Curse of the Former A's. But that totally won't happen ... right?</i></p>
https://www.athleticsnation.com/2014/9/25/6847089/athletics-rangers-series-preview-derek-holland-adam-rosalesAlex Hall2014-09-22T18:31:16-07:002014-09-22T18:31:16-07:00Angels series preview
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<figcaption>Eww. | Jeff Gross</figcaption>
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<p>The Athletics are squaring off against the Angels for three games in Oakland.</p> <p>There are seven Oakland Athletics games left in the regular season, and three of them are at home against the Angels. The A's enter with a one-game lead over the Royals in the Wild Card race, and a two-game cushion over the Mariners (with Seattle trailing 13-2 as I write this). Oakland won its series against the Phillies over the weekend, so at least they're coming into this one on a positive note.</p>
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<p>These are the expected pitching matchups for the series:</p>
<p><b>Mon:</b> Jeff Samardzija vs. C.J. Wilson<br><b>Tue:</b> Sonny Gray vs. Wade LeBlanc<br><b>Wed:</b> Jon Lester vs. Hector Santiago</p>
<p>If I had to pick the high-scoring game, I'd guess Tuesday.</p>
<p>Shark comes into this one with a 1.66 ERA in his last five starts, and Wilson is usually tough on the A's. If you weren't already pumped up enough for tonight's opener, then remember how much you loathe C.J. Wilson and that should give you that extra kick. If you need inspiration, here's a link to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFq8ilQvb1s" target="_blank">Wilson in a shampoo ad</a>. Oh man, don't you just want to score 10 runs off that guy? He's having an off-year, and his two previous outings against the A's have only been decent, but in his last start he allowed only one hit to the Mariners in seven innings. And he's left-handed, which is Oakland's biggest kryptonite right now (their second-biggest is right-handers).</p>
<p>There's something symbolic about LeBlanc starting in this series. He was a possibility to go in that four-game set in Anaheim, the one in which Oakland got swept. Instead, the Angels outrighted him to the minors and let their bullpen pitch the whole game (which, embarrassingly for us, worked beautifully). LeBlanc was so out-of-favor that they literally chose to just not have a starter instead of calling on him.</p>
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<p>"Hey guys, we really need someone to start tonight. Absolutely have to have a starter. Anyone will do, really. No one? Oh, LeBlanc? Yeah, actually, never mind, we're good. We'll figure something else out."</p>
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<p>Now that the Angels have clinched the division, though, LeBlanc can simply eat some innings and give everyone else some rest in a meaningless game. And he's left-handed, so hey, maybe he'll accidentally throw a shutout. He hasn't allowed a run in his last five appearances, spanning 10⅓ innings. He's faced the A's twice this year, and hasn't been effective either time. Meanwhile, Sonny's last four outings have gone bad, good, good, bad, ranging from 5ip/6er to 8ip/2er. Even with the (relatively) weakest of Oakland's three starters in this series taking the hill, this is easily the most winnable game (on paper).</p>
<p>The final showdown will feature Lester's final start of the regular season. He's been everything he was supposed to be so far in Oakland, as he's put up a quality start every single time he's taken the mound. The A's will hope for one more, and he'll hope that the offense scores enough off of the lefty Santiago to actually win the game. Santiago hasn't completed the sixth inning since Aug. 17, and in his last start he got lit up by the Rangers for seven runs while recording only three outs. He's allowed three total runs to the A's in three starts this year, spanning 18 innings.</p>
<p>Three left-handed opponents means lots of right-handed batters in Oakland's lineup. Expect to see a lot of Jonny Gomes, Nate Freiman, Nick Punto, Derek Norris, and Geovany Soto this week. Expect to see not as much of Adam Dunn, Josh Reddick, Stephen Vogt, and Brandon Moss, except for as mid-game replacements (so, actually every day).</p>
<p><i>The series is about to start. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m., Shark vs. Wilson. Jed Lowrie is back in the lineup after taking a ball off the foot the other day. Josh Hamilton is out, and may miss the rest of the regular season.</i></p>
https://www.athleticsnation.com/2014/9/22/6830951/athletics-angels-series-preview-cj-wilson-wade-leblanc-hector-santiagoAlex Hall2014-09-19T17:06:58-07:002014-09-19T17:06:58-07:00Phillies Series Preview: Q&A with The Good Phight
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<img alt="Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins were an all-time great middle infield, but they're getting older and they're stuck on a terrible team." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Q0zUnoIfHSK1ECV5t_bfZlBoQ4Y=/0x80:2672x1861/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/39102620/20140616_ajl_av3_407.JPG.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins were an all-time great middle infield, but they're getting older and they're stuck on a terrible team. | Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>With the A's and Phillies squaring off for three games, I asked Liz Roscher a few questions about her favorite team. Here's what she had to say!</p> <p>Hey look, a bad team is coming to town. Maybe the Oakland Athletics can beat them. I mean, probably not, but <i>maybe</i>. You can at least imagine what it would look like in your head. If you ever wanted to know what it feels like to have two All-Star pitchers going in a three-game series but still feel no confidence in actually winning that series, well, now you know. Prepare for a guy you've never heard of to come up with an inexplicable game-winning hit, which in fairness is probably how other fans felt about playing the A's in the first half. I'll go with Darin Ruf, because it looks like he had financial trouble as a young adult and had to hawk some of the letters in his name to afford room and board.</p>
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<p>These are the expected pitching matchups for the series:</p>
<p><b>Fri:</b> Jon Lester vs. David Buchanan<br><b>Sat:</b> Drew Pomeranz vs. Jerome Williams<br><b>Sun:</b> Scott Kazmir vs. A.J. Burnett</p>
<p>Let's play mAd libs. The matchup in the first game is all A's, so I expect eight shutout innings from Lester and a 1-0 lead followed by a blown save by (insert reliever) via (insert bizarre, painful circumstance you'd never seen nor even considered possible). In the second game, in which the Phillies are <i>literally starting the literal Jerome Williams</i>, Pomeranz will serve up a pair of homers to (insert aging former All-Star Philly here) while Williams throws (insert number from five through nine) shutout innings in a (insert lopsided score) victory. In the final game, Kazmir will get lit up for (insert number, five or higher) runs in only three innings, but the lineup will come back against Burnett and tie the score. However, the Phillies will receive a thrilling two-run (insert batting outcome) by (insert Philly you've never heard of <a target="_blank" href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/PHI/2014.shtml" style="background-color: #ffffff;">from this list</a>) and Ken Giles will finish the game by striking out the final (insert number from three through six) batters of the game in relief for a one-run victory.</p>
<p>That's what it feels like to be inside my head right now. I'm sure you can all relate.</p>
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<p>My mAd lib answers:</p>
<p>1. Sean Doolittle<br>2. routine double play ball swallowed by a possum but ruled still in play, causing fielders to attempt to induce marsupial vomiting while two runners scamper home to take the lead<br>3. Jimmy Rollins<br>4. 7<br>5. 6-1<br>6. 6<br>7. suicide squeeze bunt<br>8. Darin Ruf<br>9. threeve (which means I stopped paying attention after the first three but it could have been as high as five in the end)</p>
<p>Oh yeah, and in case you hadn't heard, closer Jonathan Papelbon is currently suspended for grabbing his Appalachian Mountain oysters in a rude gesture to his own home fans. So, it does get worse than being an A's fan.</p>
<p><b>1. Which of the following players do you EXPECT to see on the 2015 Phillies: Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins, Ryan Howard, Cole Hamels, Cliff Lee, and Jonathan Papelbon? And, slightly different, which ones would you LIKE to see back? What if you could only pick one of them to keep?</b></p>
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<p>LR: Next season, I EXPECT to see Utley, Rollins, Howard, Lee, and Papelbon. (I really think they're going to trade Hamels in the offseason in a deal that will make me want to become a fan of a different team.) Who I'd like to see is different. I'd like to see Utley, Rollins, Hamels, and maybe Lee. In my ideal world, the Phillies have traded Papelbon and released (or somehow traded) Howard. If I had to pick one player to keep, that's easy. It's Cole Hamels. His talent is the kind you build a team around. His talent is the type you don't trade for anything less than a team's top two (or even three) prospects. There is one player on the Phillies I don't ever want to see traded, and that's Cole Hamels.</p>
<p><b>2. Grady Sizemore has continued his comeback in Philadelphia. What have been your impressions of him, and what is his ceiling at this point in his career?</b></p>
<p>LR: Oh, Grady Sizemore. Forever tempting us with flashes of who you used to be. (Fun fact: did you know that he is Grady Sizemore III? There are two elder Sizemores named Grady, for some reason.)</p>
<p>In his first full month with the Phillies (July 11 to Aug. 11), he hit .311/.354/.423. Since Aug. 12, he's hit .203/.266/.407. Woof. I mean, he's a decent outfield fill-in, and in aggregate he hasn't been earth-shatteringly terrible, but I think if this year has shown me anything it's that Grady Sizemore just isn't an everyday player anymore. I want nothing more than for him to find his stroke again and become who he once was, or was promised to be. But I think that ship has sailed. I don't object to him being on the Phillies, but Ryne Sandberg is the type of manager who will (and has) fall in love with a veteran fill-in and play him constantly. (Example: Terry Collins and Eric Young Jr. of the Mets.) When Sizemore starts to take serious at-bats away from younger players, that's when I object.</p>
<p><b>3. The current Phillies squad is notorious for being loaded with aging veterans, but there are a few young-ish players on the roster -- reliever Ken Giles, shortstop Freddy Galvis, third basemen Cody Asche and Maikel Franco, outfielders Domonic Brown and Ben Revere, and starter David Buchanan, among others. Which ones are keepers? Which one is your favorite to emerge into a legitimate star?</b></p>
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<p>LR: Of all the players you named, the 100% keeper (and future star) is Ken Giles. He throws fire, strikes everyone out, and already has that closer's swagger. He traversed three levels in two years, and started 2014 at Double-A. He's unstoppable, and in case you couldn't tell, I'm pretty much in love with him.</p>
<p>But there are other players besides Ken Giles. Probably. Freddy Galvis is smooth as can be in the infield, but the guy can't hit, so he'll never be more than a bench player. But that's OK. The world needs bench players! Cody Asche and Maikel Franco are going to make the Phillies' decision at third base very interesting in spring training, since Franco isn't great on defense, but he has incredible potential as a hitter. Asche doesn't have the ceiling as a hitter that Franco does, and his defense isn't super, but he's had some timely hits this season and at least appears to be improving incrementally on defense. We wouldn't be having this conversation if the Phillies would ditch Howard and put Franco at first base where he truly belongs, but that is never, never, never going to happen, so here we are.</p>
<p>Domonic Brown has had a disappointing season, but he's been league average-ish since July, so that's at least a tiny bright spot in his crappy season. I have no idea if they'll keep him or not. It's a coin flip at this point, since he could be a great fix-up project for an enterprising hitting coach, which the Phillies do not currently employ.</p>
<p>Ben Revere is a delightful weirdo who can steal a good base and get infield hits with the best of 'em, but he is a mess in the outfield. I don't see him sticking around for a long time, but since the Phillies' future All-Star center fielder is currently in the Arizona Fall League, we've got a few more years of Revere left to go. As for David Buchanan, no one could have predicted that he'd do so decently this year. The Phillies are in desperate need of starting pitching, so if he can keep it up, I'd wager that he's got a place in the 2015 rotation.</p>
<p><img width="100%" src="http://cdn1.vox-cdn.com/assets/5038114/ken_giles.jpg" class="photo" alt="Ken_giles_medium"> <font size="1"><i>... and that's what he looks like when he's </i>happy<i>. You don't want to see Ken Giles when he's angry. -- Photo credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports</i></font></p>
<p><b>4. Can you please write us a haiku or a limerick about general manager Ruben Amaro Jr?</b></p>
<p>LR: I'm terrible at poetry, so I'll ask my gaggle of writers if one of them can come up with a haiku or limerick for you.</p>
<p><i>(Editor's Note: They did, and then some. Next time you want to complain about Billy Beane over-tinkering with his roster, remember what it's like to have an </i>actual<i> bad GM.)</i></p>
<p><i></i>Ruben Amaro<br>has nude pictures of all in<br>Phils' ownership group<br>(By David S. Cohen)</p>
<p>Amaro, he sure likes his vets.<br>With vesting options all hedging his bets.<br>But now they're just bad,<br>And we are all sad,<br>Because this is as awful as it gets.<br>(By John Stolnis)</p>
<p>The GM named Ruben in Philly<br>Is often accused of being silly<br>With the options that vest<br>You could say that, at best<br>He should be the assistant to Billy<br>(By Peter Lyons)</p>
<p>Ruben used to be<br>The Phillies batboy, can he<br>Have his old job back?<br>(By Peter Lyons)</p>
<p>Analyze numbers?<br>Ruben counts on his fingers <br>only from <a target="_blank" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aleph_number">aleph null</a><br>(By LTG8)</p>
<p>The players are old and expensive<br>The blight in the minors, extensive<br>'Cause he traded for aces<br>Who used to break faces<br>The rebuild has made us all pensive<br>(By Peter Lyons)</p>
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<p style="font-style: italic;">***</p>
<p>Thank you, Liz, for participating in the Q&A!</p>
<p><i>The series starts tonight. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m., Lester vs. Buchanan. If you go to the stadium, at least you'll get fireworks at the end ... unless the pyro guy is also in a slump and shoots them all in the wrong direction by accident so that they're invisible from the field.</i></p>
https://www.athleticsnation.com/2014/9/19/6568423/athletics-phillies-series-preview-liz-roscher-the-good-phight-ken-giles-cole-hamelsAlex Hall2014-09-16T15:20:43-07:002014-09-16T15:20:43-07:00Rangers Series Preview: Q&A with Lone Star Ball
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<figcaption>He's baaaaack. | Ed Zurga</figcaption>
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<p>With the A's and Rangers squaring off for three games, I asked Adam J Morris of Lone Star Ball a few questions about his favorite team. Here's what he had to say!</p> <p>The Oakland Athletics exorcised a couple of enormous demons last weekend -- they beat Felix Hernandez for the first time in 2014, and Brandon Moss homered for the first time since July 24. After teetering on the brink of full-on collapse, the A's won the series in Seattle and retained their spot atop the Wild Card standings, one game ahead of the Kansas City Royals and three games ahead of the Mariners. Now they return to Oakland for their final homestand of the regular season.</p>
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<p>These are the expected pitching matchups for the series:</p>
<p><b>Tue:</b> Scott Kazmir vs. Nick Tepesch<br><b>Wed:</b> Jeff Samardzija vs. Derek Holland<br><b>Thu:</b> Sonny Gray vs. Nick Martinez</p>
<p>So here's the thing about the Rangers. We've seen some weak opponents come through lately and have their way with the A's. The Astros played tough and won some contests, and the White Sox took three out of four. But Texas is on another level of bad. In a world that includes the Astros and the Cubs and the Rockies, the Rangers have the worst record in MLB at 57-92 (.383). Although they just swept the struggling Atlanta Braves in three games, they lost 11 of 12 heading into that series. Of course, the reason for that poor record is obvious. Here is a list of Texas' 60-day disabled list:</p>
<p>Yu Darvish<br>Martin Perez<br>Matt Harrison<br>Alexi Ogando<br>Tanner Scheppers<br>Prince Fielder<br>Shin-Soo Choo<br>Jurickson Profar<br>Mitch Moreland<br>(Also, Pedro Figueroa and KOOOOOOUZ)</p>
<p>That's an entire top-of-the-line starting rotation and half of a powerful lineup. If you gave a general manager those players as a starting point, it would be really tough to end up with a bad team. And those are the guys the Rangers <i>lost</i>, with only Harrison and Ogando seeming like particular injury risks heading into the season. Geovany Soto was hurt for most of the year, and when he got healthy he was traded <i>to Oakland</i>. Alex Rios also hasn't played since Sept. 4, due to what Baseball Prospectus lists as a "thumb infection." I just ... what? The baseball gods are just making up injuries for the Rangers now. Oh, and manager Ron Washington resigned, for private reasons that I hope/assume can be summed up as "Nope nope nope screw this team I'm out before I break a bone myself."</p>
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<p>The loss of their entire team has left the Rangers with a downright depressing lineup. Let me paint you a picture. At first base, nearly every day, they have Adam Rosales. Yes, that Adam Rosales. At first base. With that position taken care of, they're free to plug J.P. Arencibia into the No. 3 spot as the designated hitter. Rosales and Arencibia are the first baseman and DH. Pretend you're a Rangers fan, and see if you can roll that around in your mouth for a while without vomiting. Arencibia has a line of .172/.233/.354 (62 OPS+) in 210 plate appearances -- there are enough PA's available that, even with that line, he's gotten over 200 of them. Michael Choice is playing every day again, and he's batting .182/.250/.320 with nine home runs in 280 PA's. Oh, a kitten, a kitten, my kingdom for a kitten. (Wait, no, Choice is out for the year with a strained hamstring. Sheesh.)</p>
<p>On the bright side, Adrian Beltre is raking and Leonys Martin is working on a five-win season thanks to stellar defense in center and league-average hitting. Elvis Andrus and Rougned Odor are both healthy, even though neither is doing anything of value. Baby steps, people. At least they're on the field. Robinson Chirinos is still providing some production from behind the plate. But perhaps most importantly, starter Derek Holland is back, and he's dealing. The lefty has allowed just two runs over 21 innings in his three starts since returning from offseason knee surgery. Neftali Feliz is back closing games after the trade of Joakim Soria, though Feliz has lost a significant amount of velocity and has seen his strikeouts fall accordingly. So, it's not <i>all</i> bad news for the Rangers. Just mostly bad.</p>
<p><b>1. With all the injuries on the Rangers this year, there are some new names in the lineup. Can you give us a quick intro to Ryan Rua, Luis Sardinas, and Tomas Telis, all of whom are 24 or younger?</b></p>
<p>AJM: A quick report on each guy:</p>
<p><b>Ryan Rua</b> -- Rua is a bat-first utility-type who had a breakout season at Low-A Hickory last year. I've suggested that he is someone who could end up profiling like Jeff Baker, a right-handed bench bat who can play several positions without embarrassing himself, and his upside is probably something along the lines of Dan Uggla (the Marlins days, not the Braves days). He's getting regular playing time at several spots right now, and will likely be fighting for a bench job next year.</p>
<p><b>Luis Sardinas</b> -- Sardinas is a shortstop who was signed in the same J-2 class as Jurickson Profar, with some people at the time liking Sardinas more than Profar. Sardinas' career hit a speed bump when he missed much of a two-year span with shoulder issues, but he's back now and healthy. He's a glove-first shortstop who might be a starting SS if his bat develops, but at a minimum he should have a career as a utility infielder.</p>
<p><b>Tomas Telis</b> -- Telis is a catcher who took a big step forward this season, and has gotten a look as a backup this year. He's a guy who was a fringe prospect, at best, before the season, but who took a step forward both offensively and defensively. He's a switch hitter with some bat-to-ball ability, though he won't walk much or hit many home runs, and he profiles as a potential backup catcher down the road.</p>
<p><b>2. Which pitcher instills more confidence in you, both now and in the future: Nick Tepesch (Tue starter), or Nick Martinez (Thu starter)?</b></p>
<p>AJM: I feel better about Nick Tepesch right now ... he's simply more developed and has more time in the major leagues. However, I think Nick Martinez has more of an upside -- he didn't start pitching regularly until he was drafted in 2011, and there is more room for growth with him. They are both similar pitchers, and probably back-end starters if they pan out.</p>
<p><b>3. Can you please write us a haiku or a limerick about Adam Rosales, who is playing a lot of first base in Texas?</b></p>
<p>AJM: No. We try not to think about the fact that Adam Rosales is hitting third and playing first base for us right now.</p>
<p><i>(Editor's note: That's fair enough. Instead, I have prepared a haiku with some important life advice for Rosey.)</i></p>
<p>Run, Rosey, run fast.<br>Get out before you get hurt.<br>Don't mess with Texas.</p>
<p>***</p>
<p>Thank you, Adam, for participating in the Q&A!</p>
<p><i>The series starts tonight. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m., Kazmir vs. Tepesch. Forget the Wild Card for a moment, A's. Win this series for simple self-respect.</i></p>
https://www.athleticsnation.com/2014/9/16/6257763/athletics-rangers-series-preview-adam-j-morris-lone-star-ball-ryan-rua-luis-sardinasAlex Hall2014-09-12T12:24:21-07:002014-09-12T12:24:21-07:00Mariners Series Preview: Q&A with Lookout Landing
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<figcaption>Lloyd McClendon, MLB manager and quote machine | Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>With the A's and Mariners squaring off for three games, I asked Logan Davis of Lookout Landing a few questions about his favorite team. Here's what he had to say!</p> <p>This is it. The Oakland Athletics have three games against the Seattle Mariners and they need to win two of them. The A's currently hold the first Wild Card, one game ahead of the Detroit Tigers and 1½ games ahead of the Mariners. Get swept, and they're out of the Wild Card. Lose two, and they likely get passed by the Tigers and fall behind the Mariners in the loss column. There will be 11 games left in the regular season after this series. There is no more time for patience and no more time to wait for upward regression. It's do or die for the next two weeks.</p>
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<p>These are the expected pitching matchups for the series:</p>
<p><b>Fri:</b> Jason Hammel vs. James Paxton<br><b>Sat:</b> Sonny Gray vs. Felix Hernandez<br><b>Sun:</b> Jon Lester vs. Chris Young</p>
<p>I find it annoying that the A's are facing the same three pitchers who they saw a little over a week ago. I wish MLB would stop scheduling like this, with the same team showing up 10 days after the previous series opener, because it leads to this situation and it's happened several times this year. The Mariners have two more starters (Hisashi Iwakuma and Roenis Elias), but we last saw Iwakuma in July and Elias in May. This will be the sixth time we've seen Felix and the fifth time Young has started against Oakland. Just seems like a sub-optimal scheduling quirk, even considering that one of those Felix matchups was set up intentionally by the Mariners.</p>
<p>That, and playing your entire season series against another team in a two-week span, as Oakland did with the Royals and Yankees this year (and as the Angels got to do with the Red Sox, after they'd already dismantled their team at the trade deadline, whereas the A's had to face them earlier in the year with their star rotation intact). (Note: I'm not blaming anything on these schedules, just saying it would be nice to find a way to improve what I see as a weakness in what I understand is a terrifying complex scheduling process. I'd rather see as many different players as possible just for entertainment value, and if I'm going to see a team only twice then spread them out so I see them at two different points in their season.)</p>
<p>Mostly, complaining about the schedule meant that I didn't have to write another paragraph about the A's in this space. We all win.</p>
<p><b>1. The Mariners are 79-66, a half-game out of the second Wild Card. If current trends continue, they should pass the A's in the standings by the end of the weekend. Given the additions that Seattle made in the last year, is a playoff berth a requirement for you to consider this season a success? Or has this year already exceeded your expectations just based on the fact that the team is legitimately contending?</b></p>
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<p>LD: There's something interesting in there about the difference between exceeding expectations and actually succeeding. I thought the Mariners were a .500 team before the season began, so they've absolutely exceeded my expectations. Whether or not they've succeeded, is ... a lot more arguable. It's hard to blow $240M on a superstar second baseman, miss the playoffs, and then say "we achieved all of our goals for the year," y'know? Imagine your kid is a D student in high school, and over the summer you work really hard with her and get her to the point where you expect her to have the study skills for straight C's. Then she comes home with her report card at the end of the year and it's got B's top to bottom. Awesome, right? But it's not like she's making the Headmaster's list all of a sudden. So it depends on your definition of success. If the Mariners are still playing after Game 162, that's a success for me, but every fan is entitled to set their own definition of "success."</p>
<p><b>2. You probably knew that Robinson Cano and Kyle Seager would hit well. Who is one other hitter who has pleasantly surprised you this year? Who did you have high hopes for that left you disappointed?</b></p>
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<p>LD: Actually, I'm gonna challenge the prompt a bit here. I knew Seager was an above-average hitter, but I always thought he was more of a solid all-around guy than a legitimate offensive force. A No. 2 hitter, not a cleanup man, you know? But here we are, and it's September, and his neighbors on the ISO leaderboards are Adrian Gonzalez and Michael Morse. Their neighbors on the ISO leaderboards are Ryan Braun and Yoenis Cespedes. His ISO is up thirty points from his previous career average, and that's put him in the top thirty major league hitters by wRC+, and now suddenly he's top-10 by WAR. Kyle Seager used to be great for a Mariner. This year, Kyle Seager's been legitimately great.</p>
<p>I had to cheat a little there, because the rest of the team's offensive performance has been thoroughly depressing. Dustin Ackley was on fire from the All-Star break until his ankle injury a few days ago, but his first half was so putrid that his season line is still just .250/.300/.400. Brad Miller has alternated between "amazing" (143 wRC+ June, 141 wRC+ August, 200 wRC+ September) and "amazingly terrible" (49 wRC+ April, 28 wRC+ May, 38 wRC+ July). Michael Saunders was better than usual until he got hurt like five times. Mike Zunino is closing in on a full season with more HBPs than walks, which is hilarious and you should all totally root for it to happen. None of those guys have been awful disappointments, but it's hard to call any of them breakout stars.</p>
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<p>On the flip side of the coin, the Mariners' 1B/DHs have been total busts. Corey Hart's signing was praised as a good buy-low when it happened, but his knees still haven't recovered from their 2013 injuries and he's been either DL'ed or ineffective all year long. Kendrys Morales is seriously regretting sitting out the first half of the season. Justin Smoak and Logan Morrison are having the worst years of their already crappy careers. The Seattle DH with the highest WAR is Jesus Montero, who was suspended when he charged into the stands with a bat after a team cross-checker had an ice cream sandwich delivered to him in the dugout. That was not a joke. In a surprising year, it's been the Mariners' continued inability to find anyone who can produce offense from the typical power positions that has held them back.</p>
<p><b>3. Same thing, but with pitchers. We all knew about Felix and Iwakuma. Who else made the biggest mark in the rotation, and who made you feel let down? Was there a particular reliever who unexpectedly stepped up?</b></p>
<p>LD: Literally everyone. If you want to know why this team, which I thought would be around .500, is right there in the wild card race, just look at the pitching staff. If you rank every starter in the last hundred years by their ERA in their first 10 starts, James Paxton is No. 2. Roenis Elias went from a Double-A nobody to a respectable back-end guy. Chris Young is going to win Comeback Player of the Year. The rotation's biggest disappointment has been Taijuan Walker, who has a 2.82 ERA. The bullpen has the second-lowest team ERA- of the DH era, after only the 2003 Eric Gagne Dodgers. It's absurd. The Mariners made a horrible mistake in the offseason when they failed to invest in a respectable starter for rotation depth, and they were bailed out by a bunch of incredible performances from nowhere.</p>
<p>Brandon Maurer was disappointing, I guess. Then they moved him to the bullpen. Now he has a FIP between Greg Holland's and Kenley Jansen's. It's been that kind of year.</p>
<p><img width="100%" src="http://cdn3.vox-cdn.com/assets/5007270/james_paxton.jpg" class="photo" alt="James_paxton_medium"> <font size="1"><i>James Paxton is only one of the best rookie pitchers in baseball history. No big deal. -- Photo credit: Joy R. Absalon-USA TODAY Sports</i></font></p>
<p><b>4. Now that you've seen a full season of Lloyd McClendon as the team's manager, what are your thoughts on him? What are his strengths and weaknesses? Do you feel like he made the team better or worse, or was he a neutral presence?</b></p>
<div class="pullquote">[McClendon] told reporters who'd questioned his decision to give Felix extra rest that he hoped to be buried upside down, so they could kiss his ass.</div>
<p>LD: I'll begin by disclaiming that I don't have any idea how to properly evaluate a manager. So much of their job is behind the scenes that I can't fairly say I have any idea whether McClendon is good at his job on the whole. He's been pretty good at the in-game stuff; the management of the pitching staff in particular has been excellent. He has a quick hook for starting pitchers, which has really helped the team's ERA (though it helps to have a terrific eight-man bullpen). Fans have been occasionally frustrated by his rather old-school lineups -- there was a while where the Mariners were hitting James Jones and Endy Chavez first and second -- and his spring training favorites almost all face-planted, but he also didn't make a point of sticking with any of the failed experiments for too long.</p>
<p>Mostly I love Lloyd because he gives great quotes. After Felix's last outing against the A's, he told reporters who'd questioned his decision to give Felix extra rest that he hoped to be buried upside down, so they could kiss his ass. Given that I lack the information necessary to evaluate managers, and given that their impact seems to be generally negligible, I'm comfortable rating them based solely on how much they entertain me. So I guess that makes Lloyd a winner.</p>
<p><b>5. Do the Mariners have any intriguing September call-ups for A's fans to keep an eye on?</b></p>
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<p>LD: Taijuan Walker and James Jones are the big ones. Walker's the new emergency starter in case any of the big SPs have terrible first innings; the A's saw him in the last series and didn't have very much fun. That's understandable. It must be pretty freaking hard for a hitter to shift timing midgame from Chris Young slopballs to Taijuan Walker flaming death. If Young continues to struggle, he'll be replaced by Walker before the end of the season. As for Jones, he's being used exclusively as a late-inning pinch runner and defensive replacement, and he's excelled in that role. JJ the Jet Plane can't hit a lick, but he sure can fly: he has 25 steals and has been caught only once so far this year. He's not afraid to steal third, or swipe bags late in games, and against Oakland's substandard defensive catchers I'd expect him to be used aggressively. Between the best bullpen in baseball shutting down opponents and James Jones making leadoff walks functionally equivalent to leadoff triples, the Mariners should have a big advantage in late-and-close situations.</p>
<p><b>6. Can you please write us a haiku or a limerick about general manager Jack Z?</b></p>
<p>LD:</p>
<p>GMZ's job was in trouble:<br>he needed to win on the double.<br>So he signed R. Cano,<br>but went cheap with LoMo...<br>and now his team's stuck on the bubble.</p>
<p>***</p>
<p>Thank you, Logan, for participating in the Q&A!</p>
<p><i>The series starts tonight. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10, Hammel vs. Paxton. Both pitchers won their last starts in the previous A's/M's series, though Hammel's line was slightly better. He has allowed a total of four runs in his last three starts combined.</i></p>
https://www.athleticsnation.com/2014/9/12/6141289/athletics-mariners-series-preview-logan-davis-lookout-landing-kyle-seager-james-paxtonAlex Hall2014-09-08T14:44:09-07:002014-09-08T14:44:09-07:00White Sox Series Preview: Q&A with South Side Sox
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<figcaption>Farewell to Paul Konerko, who will not play in this series and will retire at the end of the season. | Ed Zurga</figcaption>
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<p>With the A's and White Sox squaring off for four games, I asked Jim Margalus and Steve Peters of South Side Sox a few questions about their favorite team. Here's what they had to say!</p> <p>The Oakland Athletics lost on the road, so they tried playing at home instead. Then they lost at home, so ... I guess they'll try the road again. I'm about as optimistic as it comes, so when I'm starting to get frustrated you know things are getting serious. Fortunately, "frustrated" isn't the same as "lost hope" and the A's now have four game against the rebuilding Chicago White Sox with which to right the ship. Even better, one of Chicago's best hitters (Adam Dunn) is now on the Athletics.</p>
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<p>These are the expected pitching matchups for the series:</p>
<p><b>Mon:</b> Sonny Gray vs. Hector Noesi<br><b>Tue:</b> Jon Lester vs. John Danks<br><b>Wed:</b> Jeff Samardzija vs. Chris Bassitt<br><b>Thu:</b> Scott Kazmir vs. Chris Sale</p>
<p>Sonny has been cloudy lately. Lester and Danks will face off in a battle of left-handed Jo(h)ns. More on Bassitt and Noesi in the Q&A. The final test comes on Thursday, when the A's face Chris Sale, who is likely one of the five best pitchers in baseball. The good news is that the A's beat Sale twice last year. The bad news is that both times it was Jarrod Parker who out-dueled him. But the <i>other </i>good news is that every single Oakland RBI in those two games was recorded by Josh Donaldson, who is still on the team and is still good at hitting! The A's have not faced Sale yes this year, which is totally fine with me. Also, according to Baseball Reference, Sale's nickname is "Condor," which I've never heard before. It makes sense, though, since his wingspan is approximately 25 feet.</p>
<p>This series sneaked up on me a bit so I didn't give Jim much time to write up his answers, but on short notice he was able to give us a quick look at the issues I asked about. BUT WAIT, there's more! I also heard back from Steve Peters, who also writes for South Side Sox, so I'm including both sets of answers to give us a more varied look at things.</p>
<p><b>1. Athletics fans are already enamored with their new slugger, Adam Dunn. What did White Sox fans think of the Big Donkey during his up-and-down tenure in Chicago? What should A's fans know about him (good or bad) that they may not have already figured out from his homers and strikeouts?</b></p>
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<p><b>JM:</b> His White Sox career was basically over as soon as it began. He had an appendectomy in the first week of his first season and came back too soon. That screwed up his swing, he ended up having one of the worst seasons in history, and his rebound never made up for it. Likeable guy, but the WAR figures say it all.</p>
<p><b>SP:</b> Dunn frustrated most fans with his first season. His fWAR was negative-3.0 that season. He's been roughly OK since, but he was never what anyone hoped for with the four-year deal. The average fan is probably much more negative.</p>
<p><b>2. In addition to Dunn, the White Sox also traded infielder Gordon Beckham and outfielder Alejandro De Aza. What did Chicago get in return in these deals, and do you think GM Rick Hahn did a good job of cashing in on his veterans? Is there anyone else you wish had been traded, or think will be dealt during the offseason?</b></p>
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<p><b>JM:</b> The best thing the White Sox got in return was playing time for prospects. None of the players dealt were in the team's future, and in the case of Beckham the Sox had a choice of three potential replacements. Carlos Sanchez is getting the first crack at it.</p>
<p><b>SP:</b> The Angels claimed Beckham on waivers and the Sox said OK, so they got nothing in return. De Aza was traded for two organizational arms. Beckham was a non-tender candidate this offseason so the Sox saved a little money and got to see a couple extra weeks of Carlos Sanchez. De Aza had some value as a platoon or fourth outfielder. He might have stuck around during the offseason if another option wasn't found.</p>
<p>Dayan Viciedo is likely gone after the offseason. There was talk he'd be traded to the Mariners. I think a deal similar to Beckham's was the most any of us hoped for. Unfortunately, we're being tortured by getting to see him almost every day lately. Wait ... not tortured ... hey, do you want a new Cuban left fielder? It sounds like the A's need one.</p>
<p>John Danks was rumored in trades to the Yankees. With two years and over $20 million left, that was going to make the Sox very happy.</p>
<p><a target="_blank" href="http://grantland.com/the-triangle/mlb-the-30-giants-angels-yankees-white-sox/">Jonah Keri has a nice article</a> on Grantland today that talks about what the 2015 Sox could look like. It probably sounds like what a lot of us would say.</p>
<p><b>3. Jose Abreu (4.9 bWAR) and outfielder Adam Eaton (4.8 bWAR) have enjoyed breakout seasons in Chicago this year. What other position players have impressed you during what has been a rebuilding year? Which members of the current lineup do you think could be on the next good White Sox team?</b></p>
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<p><b>JM:</b> Avisail Garcia was supposed to be right alongside Abreu and Eaton as part of the new core, but he crushed his shoulder in April and ended up missing four months with labrum surgery. He was supposed to miss the whole season, though, so the fact that he's getting reps in September is a major positive, even if he's not producing much right now.</p>
<p>Conor Gillaspie has had a surprising season at third base, although optimally he's probably a platoon/bench bat at corner spots.</p>
<p><b>SP:</b> Of the position players last season, only Avi Garcia was guaranteed a job. The signing of Jose Abreu likely caused the Sox to keep Alexei Ramirez and Dayan Viciedo. Everyone else was expendable. Other than Abreu, Eaton, and Adrian Nieto as the backup catcher, the Sox position players were essentially the same as 2013.</p>
<p>While Gordon Beckham was on the DL, Marcus Semien was on the Sox for two months. He looked like a guy who had played less than a full season at Double-AA. Whether he's able to be much more than a utility player is still a question. I'm leaning towards yes, but I'm in the minority. Carlos Sanchez came up after Beckham was traded and is the slap hitter that he was advertised as. His 1.6 BB% and 23.8 K% are bad, but not unexpected for an initial callup.</p>
<p><img width="100%" src="http://cdn2.vox-cdn.com/assets/4987908/eaton_garcia.jpg" class="photo" alt="Eaton_garcia_medium"> <font size="1"><i>Adam Eaton and Avisail Garcia hugging it out after a victory is something the White Sox hope to see a lot of for years to come. -- Photo credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports</i></font></p>
<p><b>4. Are there any exciting September call-ups in Chicago who A's fans might see this week?</b></p>
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<p><b>JM:</b> Nobody's really "exciting" to outsiders, I imagine, but Sanchez and Marcus Semien pique our interest the most. <i>(Editor's note: Semien is a local boy who went to high school at St. Mary's in Berkeley and went to college at Cal.)</i></p>
<p><b>SP:</b> Much of the excitement is at home. Carlos Rodon, Tim Anderson, Micah Johnson, Tyler Danish, and Frank Montas are the top prospects and none were called up. The guys who <i>were</i> called up we all know pretty well or are not top-of-the-line prospects. There's also Michael Taylor, who you probably know a lot better than we do.</p>
<p><b>5. Hector Noesi (Mon starter) has actually been decent this year. What has changed for him, and are you surprised that he's been as competent as he has been?</b></p>
<p><b>JM:</b> Very surprised. He's found a way to improve his changeup while working on it at the MLB level, and he can be ridiculously efficient. The downside to throwing strikes is that he's a flyball pitcher in a small park, so he's susceptible to quick crooked numbers.</p>
<p><b>SP:</b> What changed for Hector Noesi is he got Don Cooper as a pitching coach. We're surprised he's been OK* since his last appearance for the Rangers was against the Sox and in that game he gave up seven runs in an inning. Ten days later he's the starter for the Sox.</p>
<p>His problem has been early innings.</p>
<p>*As OK as you can be with a 4.70 FIP.</p>
<p><b>6. What's the scouting report on Chris Bassitt (Wed starter), who will be making his second career MLB start?</b></p>
<p><b>JM:</b> Kind of a late bloomer, throws in the low-90s, has good stuff against righties, but doesn't (yet?) have the traditional changeup to neutralize left-handed bats. His future is likely in the bullpen.</p>
<p><b>SP:</b> His first start didn't go well, but there were a lot of BABIP inflicted wounds.</p>
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<p><b>7. Jake Petricka leads the team with 11 saves, but I've never heard of him. Is he the team's current closer, and if not then who is? What should A's fans know about him?</b></p>
<p><b>JM:</b> He is, but only because everybody else has failed harder. He throws 95-98 mph with a heavy sinker, but he is also vulnerable against lefties. Zach Putnam might be called upon if the ninth is lefty-loaded. Both of these scenarios assume the White Sox will ever have an occasion to save another game.</p>
<p><b>SP:</b> The Sox really haven't had a real closer for most of the season. I hadn't noticed he was at 11. I was kind of surprised to see someone in double-digits.</p>
<p><b>8. Can you please write us a haiku or a limerick about White Sox legend Paul Konerko, who is retiring at the end of the season?</b></p>
<p><b>JM:</b></p>
<p>Steady as a rock.<br>A remarkable career,<br>If a year too long.</p>
<p>***</p>
<p>Thank you, Jim and Steve, for participating in the Q&A!</p>
<p><i>The series starts this afternoon. First pitch is scheduled for 5:10 p.m., Gray vs. Noesi. Brandon Moss is in the lineup batting eighth. Konerko has a broken hand and will miss at least a week, so it's likely that we've already seen his last game against the Athletics. Much respect to a Chicago fan favorite for a long, successful career, that included 439 homers and a World Series ring in 2005 (and an ALCS MVP award along the way to that title).</i></p>
https://www.athleticsnation.com/2014/9/8/6123461/athletics-white-sox-series-preview-jim-margalus-south-side-sox-adam-dunn-paul-konerkoAlex Hall2014-09-05T15:30:25-07:002014-09-05T15:30:25-07:00Astros Series Preview: Q&A with The Crawfish Boxes
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<img alt="Scotty doesn't know? He should be now -- this is Feldman's fourth start against the A's in the last five weeks." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/BL6CyGUR8hokG6K9ACUinsxoNqo=/0x0:2791x1861/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/38068914/20140825_ajw_at5_096.JPG.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Scotty doesn't know? He should be now -- this is Feldman's fourth start against the A's in the last five weeks. | Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>With the A's and Astros squaring off for three games, I asked Ryan Dunsmore of The Crawfish Boxes a few questions about his favorite team. Here's what he had to say!</p> <p>September didn't get off to the resurgent start that Oakland Athletics fans were hoping for, but perhaps a few games at home against the Houston Astros can change that. The Astros are no longer pushovers, as they've taken four of the nine games that these two teams have played in the second half. Oakland really needs to take at least two of these three contests in order to begin the club's push to hold onto a Wild Card spot.</p>
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<p><b>Fri:</b> Jeff Samardzija vs. Brett Oberholtzer<br><b>Sat:</b> Scott Kazmir vs. Scott Feldman<br><b>Sun:</b> Jason Hammel vs. Dallas Keuchel</p>
<p>Shark and Hammel are both on fire, in the good way -- Shark is coming off back-to-back eight-inning masterpieces, and Hammel has allowed only one run in each of his last two starts. Kazmir is on fire in the way where his pants are ablaze and everyone says to him, "Man, you're on <i>fire</i>" and he responds with something like "Yeah, I know, I'm hot, right?" and then everyone says "NO MAN YOU'RE LITERALLY ON FIRE WE NEED TO DUMP WATER ON YOU." In other words, the tragic kind of on fire. He'll be ecstatic to be facing someone other than the Angels, who tagged him for 13 total runs in his last two games.</p>
<p>Oberholtzer was good in his last outing against the A's in late July -- seven innings, two runs. Feldman got smoked by Oakland (six runs) in that late-July series, but rebounded to turn in a pair of quality starts in his next two tries (seven innings each, four total runs). Keuchel threw a four-hit complete game in late July, and then followed that up with seven innings and only two runs (one earned) in a victory in late August. The Astros have some pitching, y'all. Chris Carter is still en fuego, and Jose Altuve hasn't slowed down at all either. The rest of the lineup hasn't done much over the last couple weeks, though, except for Marwin Gonzalez and Carlos Corporan in limited playing time. These could be a few low-scoring games.</p>
<p><b>1. Houston (61-79, .436) is on pace to finish in fourth place (i.e., not last) with a 70-92 record. Given the last three seasons, each with well over 100 losses, does this feel like progress or just another wasted year? And if the latter, does it take some of the sting out to know that you'll likely finish ahead of the Rangers?</b></p>
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<p>RD: Progress has been made this season for sure, the foundation has been set. The pre-Luhnow prospects have made to the big leagues and the farm system has gone from the bottom to the top in the rankings. 2013 was an evaluation of the talent in Triple-A, and 2014 is the year the prospects get experience.</p>
<p>The Astros have moved from three straight years of 100 losses to possibly 70 wins in a season. A 70-win season with a stable of inconsistent rookies, and a revolving door on the disabled list for the bullpen and outfield. A full season with the current roster with a free agent or two sprinkled in, this team could push for a .500 record next season.</p>
<p><b>2. You probably knew that Jose Altuve would be good and that George Springer would make a splashy debut. Who is one hitter who has pleasantly surprised you this year? Who did you have high hopes for that left you disappointed?</b></p>
<p>RD: I don't know how I couldn't pick Chris Carter for the hitter that surprised me this season. Carter goes from an all-or-nothing, home-run-or-strikeout hitter to hitting 13 home runs in 26 games. Chris has been less picky with pitches in the zone and had tremendous success simply trying to put the ball in play.</p>
<p>On the flip side, Matt Dominguez has been disappointing. Dominguez looked like a steal after the Carlos Lee trade with the Marlins. He hasn't moved in a positive direction all season long and is at the bottom or near the bottom in every metric for third baseman in Major League Baseball. Dominguez is a 25-year old player who has started for two seasons, he still has time to turn things around.</p>
<p><b>3. Same thing, but with pitchers. Who made the biggest mark in the rotation this year, and who made you feel let down? Was there a particular reliever who unexpectedly stepped up?</b></p>
<p>RD: I could go with Dallas Keuchel, Brett Oberholtzer, or Brad Peacock. All three have surprised me with their reliance this season. Each pitcher has had a stretch of rough starts and bounced back to pitch even better. My real choice is Collin McHugh. McHugh came to Houston from Colorado this off-season touting an 0-8 record and 8.39 ERA in his career as a starter. Now he has a 2.89 ERA in 22 starts. The mix of his curveball and two-seam fastball have been deadly.</p>
<p>As for a disappointment, can I have a tie? I'm going to go with Jesse Crain and Matt Albers. Both have missed the majority if not all of this season with injury. I'm disappointed because this team could have used two more veteran arms in the bullpen -- Houston has the second-worst bullpen ERA in baseball at 4.91.</p>
<p><img alt="Collin_mchugh_medium" class="photo" src="http://cdn3.vox-cdn.com/assets/4977032/collin_mchugh.jpg" width="100%"> <font size="1"><i>From "McWho?" to "McWOOOO!"</i></font></p>
<p><b>4. Bo Porter was recently fired as the Astros manager. Good move, bad move, or irrelevant? Why?</b></p>
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<p>RD: I personally say it's good move, but overall it's a negative for the organization's image. The reason for Porter's departure was a growing void between he and general manager Jeff Luhnow. The example repeatedly given was an instance where Luhnow brought in (first-overall pick in the 2013 draft) Mark Appel to pitch in front of Astros pitching coach Brent Strom. Luhnow didn't inform Porter or the players that Appel would be pitching in the major league bullpen at 9am -- well before the other players were scheduled to be on the field. Porter is the hands-on kind of guy who would take offense to this lack of communication, and it appears discontent only grew from there.</p>
<p>Not to put this all on Porter. Luhnow stated when he first hired the former third-base coach for the Nationals, he wanted a manager who could grow with the team and stay past the losing seasons. Luhnow must have a manager on the same page with his plan for the team, and it's his right to go a different direction. But, this is just another move that's building the growing trend of second guessing Jeff Luhnow.</p>
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<p><b>5. Do the Astros have any intriguing September call-ups for A's fans to keep an eye on?</b></p>
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<p>RD: For starters, there is a former A's farmhand. Catcher Max Stassi is back with the big club after a season with Triple-A Oklahoma City. Right-handed pitcher Nick Tropeano is a top-20 prospect for the Astros -- sporting a low-90s fastball, plus changeup, and quality slider. 'Nitro' looks to have a future as a back-of-the-rotation starter.</p>
<p><i>(Editor's note: Houston also called up shortstop Jonathan Villar, who A's fans saw earlier in the year, and right-handed pitcher Jorge De Leon, who you've probably never heard of and who has more walks than strikeouts in 10 career MLB innings despite solid Triple-A numbers.)</i></p>
<p><b>6. Can you please write us a haiku or a limerick about Chris Carter and his suddenly legendary power stroke (13 homers in last 26 games)?</b></p>
<p>RD: Why change what is already perfect?</p>
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<p>***</p>
<p>Thank you, Ryan, for participating in the Q&A! And for giving us so many great answers all season long!</p>
<p><i>The series starts tonight. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m., Shark vs. Oberhockey. Dunn is in the lineup against the lefty! But so is Callaspo. D'oh. #FreeAndyParrino</i></p>
https://www.athleticsnation.com/2014/9/5/6112019/athletics-astros-series-preview-ryan-dunsmore-the-crawfish-boxes-chris-carter-bo-porterAlex Hall2014-09-01T10:50:44-07:002014-09-01T10:50:44-07:00Mariners Series Preview: Q&A with Lookout Landing
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<figcaption>The Mariners used some AJax to clean up their sloppy outfield | Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>With the A's and Mariners squaring off for three games, I asked Patrick Dubuque of Lookout Landing a few questions about his favorite team. Here's what he had to say!</p> <p>It's a new month for the Oakland Athletics, and I don't want to talk about the one we just finished. All that matters is that it didn't go well and the team is now five games out of first place after spending most of the season as the best team in baseball. It's time for some comeback magic.</p>
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<p>These are the expected pitching matchups for the series:</p>
<p><b>Mon:</b> Jason Hammel vs. Chris Young<br><b>Tue:</b> Sonny Gray vs. James Paxton<br><b>Wed:</b> Jon Lester vs. Felix Hernandez</p>
<p>Chris Young was a running joke to start the season, but the 35-year-old has a 3.17 ERA (117 ERA+) in a couple dozen starts. Based on the last couple months, Young is a good bet for six innings and two runs on any given day. On the other side of the age spectrum, 25-year-old rookie James Paxton is finally healthy and boasts a 1.65 ERA in five August starts. And then there's Felix. It's never good to see him, but at least a Lester vs. Felix matchup is can't-miss baseball and serves as a possible preview for the AL Wild Card game. In Seattle's last four series, the team dropped two of three to each of the Phillies, Rangers, and Nationals (and swept Boston), so the Mariners aren't exactly red-hot right now either. They also have a lot of new players since we last saw them in early July, so check out the Q&A to learn more about them.</p>
<p><b>1. Seattle's big deadline acquisition was outfielder Austin Jackson, acquired from Detroit for spare infielder Nick Franklin. The Mariners also added Chris Denorfia from the Padres. Do you agree that the outfield was an area that needed to be addressed? Either way, has it improved with Jackson and Denorfia on board? How would you rate each trade, both in "wisdom at the time" and "how it's turned out since"?</b></p>
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<p>PD: The outfield was definitely Seattle's most glaring weakness, and has been since spring. This is a team that started Corey Hart in right field on Opening Day, and expected that fact to continue somehow. Then Michael Saunders strained an oblique, and the M's were left with an outfield featuring both Endy Chavez and James Jones. Chavez is one of those players casual fans love because he always seems to get a hit every night they watch; they don't think about what the triple-slash of a perpetual one-single-in-four-at-bats looks like. Jones looked like a poor man's Juan Pierre, which would actually be pretty useful, but he wound up as a poor man's 37-year-old Juan Pierre.</p>
<p>Jackson and Denorfia have somehow managed to limbo under this low bar in their brief tenure, and both are probably pressing. The Denorfia trade is impossible to lament, given that he was basically free. It's impossible to properly criticize the Jackson trade because it's impossible to know what it would have taken, if indeed it were even tried, to forgo Jackson and Detroit and just acquire David Price instead. But if we ignore what we can't know, Jackson is extremely useful for the M's not only this year but next -- they don't have any outfielders, especially in center, near the top end of their system. He's not this bad!</p>
<p><b>2. The Mariners also re-acquired DH Kendrys Morales, but he wasn't hitting well before his arrival (63 OPS+) and still hasn't been since (80 OPS+). Was he a smart addition at the time, or did you see this coming? Do you have hope that he might turn it on and return to glory before the end of the season?</b></p>
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<p>PD: It's hard to equate Kendrys Morales with glory at all at this point. For all the goodwill Jack Zduriencik has engendered this season (read: some), Morales is the purest example of his biggest flaw: an unquenchable thirst for fence-swingers. Again, the price was cheap, but the Mariners already have a Kendrys Morales in Tacoma by the name of Justin Smoak. The trade was fun just from the standpoint of the sheer hubris -- Morales lost a lot of money by refusing to take the team's qualifying offer last fall, and reportedly rebuffed them several times in the offseason -- but in the end he's just another part of the team's pile of 1B/DH types.</p>
<p><b>3. Dustin Ackley is good again -- .892 OPS in July, .823 OPS in August. What's the deal with that? Is he for real this time?</b></p>
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<p>PD: This is the single hardest question to answer. The Mariners community had basically given up on Ackley, who didn't help himself with a perpetually blank, lost expression. One of the surprising aspects of his turnaround is that even before he started hitting, the converted second baseman (and first baseman, and center fielder in college) turned out to be a fairly capable defender in left field, despite all appearances. The most noticeable change in his approach is that he's started swinging more at everything, taking his chances early in the at-bat rather than getting himself into two-strike counts.</p>
<p>Is it real? It's always real, and it never is. Ackley has had a reputation for struggling with confidence, something that imbues hope and fragility into every hot streak of his career. Maybe this time he's figured it out. Regardless, there are bigger holes on this roster, so he'll keep getting chances. It's been fun for now.</p>
<p><b>4. Logan Morrison is also heating up, with a .728 OPS in August. Is first base finally not a weakness anymore?</b></p>
<p>PD: It's still a weakness. While he's finally getting some singles, Morrison still has plenty of flaws -- like all new Mariners, he saw a precipitous drop in his walk rate, and he simply doesn't have the power to compensate. He's also no Keith Hernandez around the bag. If he rediscovered both the power and the batting eye, he'd be Lyle Overbay, and when a player is looking up at Lyle Overbay you probably can tell where he stands (or drowns). It's possible that we're still not seeing Morrison at 100 percent, but it's even more likely that we're just never going to see that Morrison ever again.</p>
<p><img width="100%" src="http://cdn2.vox-cdn.com/assets/4960536/logan_morrison.jpg" class="photo" alt="Logan_morrison_medium"> <font size="1"><i>LoMo doesn't look like much, but he's better than the team's previous plan of "Smoak if you got him." -- Photo credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports</i></font></p>
<p><b>5. Chris Taylor is a 24-year-old shortstop who is hitting .310 in 98 plate appearances. Who is he, and should we be afraid of him?</b></p>
<p>PD: Do you scare easily? The most natural comparison for Chris Taylor is the guy he replaced, Brad Miller. Taylor's a little more consistent with the leather, and perhaps a little more fleet of foot, but without that sexy double-digit home run potential. It's easy to look at the fast start and the .409 BABIP and summon a chortle, but that's the kind of hitter he is -- at every level, his BABIP has hovered somewhere in the high-.300s. Taylor knows how to make good contact.</p>
<p>A few weeks ago, <a href="http://www.fangraphs.com/fantasy/picking-up-chris-taylor/" target="_blank">Ben Duronio at RotoGraphs</a> described his ceiling as Chris Johnson with speed and the ability to play shortstop. So far, that's exactly what he's done. If this keeps up, Taylor profiles as a guy who's never going to kill you, but he'll probably be on base when somebody else kills you.</p>
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<p><b>6. A's fans will get their first look at James Paxton (Tue starter), a 25-year-old top prospect who has been phenomenal this year when he hasn't been injured. What is his scouting report? Do you think he'll be more durable in future seasons?</b></p>
<p>PD: Paxton was a first-round talent who fell to the fourth because of signability, and climbed the ladder fairly quickly. He throws four pitches, with a fine fastball for a lefty (95 mph), a nasty curve, and an iffy changeup in a glass case. Despite his ascendancy, control has always been his bugbear, which makes his career major league rate of 2.56 walks per nine innings (in eleven starts) so surprising. Watching him pitch, you wonder if he's ever heard the word "mechanics" before. The man has limbs.</p>
<p>The funny thing about Paxton is something you mention in your question: "25-year-old top prospect." Paxton is less than three years younger than Felix, and while pitchers (especially ones with injury problems) bloom at different times, what he's doing really shouldn't be beyond expectations of a player of his pedigree. Shoulder injuries for hard-throwing pitchers should never be underestimated, and there's certainly no reason to think he'll be particularly durable. But it looks as though he'll be good when he goes.</p>
<p><b>7. General manager Jack Zduriencik just got a multi-year extension, despite the fact that he's received a lot of criticism over a mostly unsuccessful six-year tenure. What are your thoughts on this deal? Are you happy or sad to have Trader Jack around for the long haul? And can you provide a proper pronunciation of his name?</b></p>
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<p>PD: The news of Jack's extension was met by the community with mixed emotions, and it's not hard to understand why. His regime has drafted generally quite well, and yet has shown little ability to develop that talent, especially when it reaches the majors. His trades are littered with gold (like Franklin Gutierrez and Cliff Lee) and pyrite (like Mike Morse and Cliff Lee). He developed an intriguing statistically-minded staff and then dismantled it because of Chone Figgins (well, almost). According to reporter Geoff Baker last offseason, he dumped his charisma stat during character creation. It's a little surprising he even lasted to see 2014.</p>
<p>Personally, I'm not one of Zduriencik's biggest fans. That said, it's hard to get upset over his extension because it's little more than a token gesture. No baseball team today is going to keep around a general manager they don't want just because they'd have to pay him an extra year; it's a drop in the bucket compared to player salaries. If the team felt like moving on, they would. They won't, of course, but regardless of each fan's individual pessimism or optimism, last week will not have altered it.</p>
<p>Note: the correct way to pronounce Zduriencik's name is "Jack Zee."</p>
<p><b>8. Can you please write us a haiku or a limerick about Kyle Seager?</b></p>
<p>PD:</p>
<p>There once was a fellow named Seager<br>Whose skills as a prospect were meager.<br>You often would hear<br>"He might stick, for a year,"<br>Now the experts are slightly more eager.</p>
<p>***</p>
<p>Thank you, Patrick, for participating in the Q&A!</p>
<p><i>The series starts this afternoon, with a Monday day game for Labor Day. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m., Hammel vs. Young. Adam Dunn and Geo Soto are both in the lineup for Oakland, which is great because things almost literally could not have gotten worse than they were in Anaheim (four runs in four games). Jed Lowrie is also back in the lineup.</i></p>
https://www.athleticsnation.com/2014/9/1/6093663/athletics-mariners-series-preview-patrick-dubuque-lookout-landing-austin-jacksonAlex Hall