It's hard to root heart and soul for a team the way that we root for the A's and have to let go of our favorite players. It's bad enough that they no longer play for the A's, but watching them have success with another team, especially on a national stage, is a tough pill to swallow. And due to the nature of the turnovers on this team, there are a lot of ex-A's players out there, and this year's playoffs are no exception.

We all miss favorite players, for varying reasons. Some of us miss the personalities; some of us miss the bats in the lineup, but most of us can think of at least one ex-A's player that they want back on the team.

I miss players like Giambi and Tejada, not because I necessarily want them back on the team now, but because they had great years in Oakland. I will always love Ramon Hernandez for his walk-off bunt, and Scutaro for his series-clinching double. I miss a healthy Mark Mulder, and I felt for Nick Swisher as he struggled this year. Watching Danny Haren start games brings back great memories; it's fun to watch Blanton's success, and I'll even admit to pangs of nostalgia watching Tim Hudson. And I know for sure that despite Zito's obvious decline and ridiculous contract, plenty of ANers have been rooting for him to pitch well, even if only because his first years with the Giants have been like kicking a puppy.

And then there are players like Kendall, who was a safe-bet .300 hitter until he joined the A's,and Johnny Damon, who had easily the worst season of his career during his year here. But do you want them back for a second shot at the numbers that they should have put up for the A's?

And those were performance issues. What about injuries? Is it hard to watch Jermaine Dye's success with the White Sox when he was so unlucky with the A's? And don't even bring up Rich Harden. Irrational as it well may be, after rooting for Rich to complete even three starts in a row with the A's for many years--much less the playoffs--watching him this year was painful. Yet do I want him back to try again?

If you had asked me this same question at the beginning of this season, my answer was obvious: I missed Frank Thomas, and I wish that had turned out better for everyone concerned. I don't have an answer for this off-season, but I bet AN does.

If you could pick one ex-A's player (must be still playing--Rickey doesn't count) to rejoin the team next year with the full guarantee that they would start the year healthy, who would it be, and why?

For the record, this day was as close to being my dream come true as is possible without the A’s being in the playoffs. After watching the team I really do like (the Rays) jump all over the White Sox, and go up 2-0 in the series with their 6-2 win today, tonight’s game was not only awesome, but everything we’ve ever wanted in a playoff game.

And indeed, the late game had a little bit of everything, including a bunch of temper tantrums. After the Red Sox jumped out to an early lead, 5-1 (helped by 4 runs in the first off Santana, who did settle down, but not before another Bay homerun), the Angels chipped back in just about every inning as they entered the bottom of the eighth down 5-4, before handing Papelbon a blown save. Paps came in after a lead-off triple and retired three batters in less than ten pitches. But he allowed the run to come home, tying the game at 5, and giving hope to the Angles, who had fought long and hard to play on. Although Vlad, Teixeira and Hunter combined for eight hits, Howie Kendrick did nothing but add to his LOB total, bringing it to 11 in the series, as he has gone 0-9 and barely even touched the ball. 

It seemed as if the Angels were just one big hit away from breaking open the game in every inning, but they could not (they recorded eleven hits, only one of them went for extra bases) and as the Battle of the Closers roared on in the 8th and 9th, K-rod (are we surprised?) was the one who failed to live up to his “Best. Closer. Ever.” moniker. In one of two sweet swings for A’s fans, Ortiz almost homered to open the ninth, settling instead for a double. After a temper tantrum by Aybar at second on a very close call on the runner getting back, J.D. Drew made it a moot point by absolutely BLASTING a homerun off K-rod to hand the Red Sox a 7-5 lead that Paps would hang onto in the ninth. Kendrick (surprise, surprise) made the last out on a weak swing for yet another K.

It was like Christmas and puppies all rolled up into one. That's now 11 straight loses to the Red Sox, and nine playoff games lost in a row.

So every series is at 2-0; both NL teams play tomorrow; both AL teams on Sunday.

FUN PLAYOFFS.

Well, after a less-then-auspicious start to the game, this one has turned good. Boston once held a 5-1 lead, but the Angels have chipped away a little each inning. They closed the gap to 5-3, and had the bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh, but thank goodness for Howie Kendrick, who struck out on a pitch that wasn't in the same zip code as the plate, but then Justin Masterson decided to play Wild Thing and walk a run in. But he struck Ayber out and we now head to the 8th, 5-4 Boston.

Comments at AN have worked out perfectly. 400 comments on the Rays' game, just in time to open a new thread for the Angels' game, after the Rays put another satisfying win on the board, and are now one game away from advancing to the ALCS.

Red Sox at Angels - 6:37PM
D. Matsuzaka v. E. Santana
Red Sox lead series 1-0
Over the Monster
Halos Heaven

If you aren't a fan of the Angels (and hello, this is AN!), the only way Game One could have been more satisfying would have been to see K-rod giving up a slam to lose the game. But errors in the field and on the bases are almost just as fun, as the Angels are poised to lose their eleventh straight post-season game against the Red Sox, and ninth overall. With a straight series loss, I think we may be able to shed the "Choke-land" moniker over at Halos Heaven; at least we won a lot of playoff games before losing the clinchers. But there is a long way to go; I would say that the despite how good Dice-K has been this year, the pitching matchup favors Santana and the Angels tonight. They are a good team; and they haven't owned the Red Sox this year only to be dispatched so easily in the playoffs...have they?

White Sox at Rays - 3:07PM
M. Buehrle v. S. Kazmir
Rays lead series 1-0
South Side Sox
DRays Bay

Most of AN is pulling for the Rays in the race; and despite its lousy TV schedule, I think Game One yesterday was far and away the most interesting of the playoffs so far. Between Longoria's rookie postseason performance and Balfour's amazing back-to-back strikeouts, highlighted by ordering O-Cab back to the dugout after answering his challenge, that game kept me entertained from first to last pitch. I look for more of the same today, but any way the Rays want to win is fine by me. Lineups have just been posted; looks like Pena is back and will be starting at first, and there is a reported Swisher sighting.

Red Sox at Angels - 6:37PM
D. Matsuzaka v. E. Santana
Red Sox lead series 1-0
Over the Monster
Halos Heaven

If you aren't a fan of the Angels (and hello, this is AN!), the only way Game One could have been more satisfying would have been to see K-rod giving up a slam to lose the game. But errors in the field and on the bases are almost just as fun, as the Angels are poised to lose their eleventh straight post-season game against the Red Sox, and ninth overall. With a straight series loss, I think we may be able to shed the "Choke-land" moniker over at Halos Heaven; at least we won a lot of playoff games before losing the clinchers. But there is a long way to go; I would say that the despite how good Dice-K has been this year, the pitching matchup favors Santana and the Angels tonight. They are a good team; and they haven't owned the Red Sox this year only to be dispatched so easily in the playoffs...have they?

Almost all of AN in agreement now: GO RAYS GO!

Final Score: Rays 6, White Sox 4
Series: Rays lead 1-0
Next Game: Tomorrow at 3:00 PM
South Side Sox
DRays Bay

Longoria sewed this game up nicely with an incredible rookie performance, boasting two homeruns and three RBI's, as the Rays hang on to beat the White Sox to take the first game of the series.

Brewers vs. Phillies - 3:00PM
C.C. Sabathia v. B. Meyers

Dodgers vs. Cubs - 6:30PM
Billingsley v. Zambrano

Go baseball! And I think it's safe to say, GO RAYS!!!!

Well, that was fun!

Brewers vs. Phillies
Gallardo v. Hamels
Final Score: Phillies 3, Brewers 1
Series: Phillies lead 1-0
Next Game: Tomorrow (10/2) at 3:00PM
Brew Crew Ball
The Good Phight

Aside from one sloppy inning that decided the game, this game was a great pitcher's duel pretty much the whole way through. Hamels got the win in his awesome eight innings, and Lidge the scary save, throwing a lot of pitches, as he saw the Brewers storm back to make a game out of it, scoring one run and leaving the tying runs on base.

Dodgers vs. Cubs
Lowe v. Dempster
Final Score: Dodgers 7, Cubs 2
Series: Dodgers lead 1-0
Next Game: Tomorrow (10/2) at 6:30PM
True Blue LA
Bleed Cubbie Blue

Despite the early homerun and the 2-run lead that the Cubs staked him to, Dempster danced with fire for most of the early innings, finally setting the table for a Loney grand slam. Manny being Manny put the icing on the cake with a homerun of his own, leading the Dodgers to the early series win.

Red Sox vs. Angels
Lester v. Lackey
Final Score: Boston 4, Angels 1
Series: Boston leads 1-0
Next Game: Friday (10/3) at 7:00PM
Over the Monster
Halos Heaven

I won't lie; watching the Angels lose their tenth straight postseason game to the Red Sox was fun, especially if you are sick of hearing about "Angels' Brand Baseball", which apparently is running into outs in key situations. Jason Bay being Manny erased a 1-0 deficit with an absolute bomb to stake the Sox to a 2-1 lead, which would have been enough for the win. They added two more runs, just for fun.

And if you would like photo evidence, thank Paul Thomas:

Three more games tomorrow for your viewing pleasure; including the Tampa Bay/White Sox game, which kicks off the day at 11:30AM.

Hang on...with no baseball break, we go right into the playoffs with three incredible series today, starting at noon.

First up:

Brewers vs. Phillies - 12:00 PM
Gallardo v. Hamels
Final Score: Phillies 3, Brewers 1
Series: Phillies lead 1-0
Next Game: Tomorrow (10/2) at 3:00PM

(Note that the 9:30-10AM start that they gave the A's/Minnesota in 2006 wasn't good enough for this year's teams - /bitter rant, onto playoff fun!)

The Brewers

It took until the very last day of the season, but the Brewers won the wild card and found themselves in the playoffs for the first time since many of our AN crowd was even born. (The rest were wearing really, really bad clothes.) Highlights of the Brewers include Ryan Braun with his 37 homeruns, Price Fielder with his 34 homeruns, and Mike Cameron (25) and J.J. Hardy (24). Jealous yet? Did the A's even have 37 homeruns all year? As for the starting pitching for the Brewers, things look rather thin. As of the latest report, Sheets will not be throwing in this series, and is out most likely the rest of the season, and C.C. Sabathia has already been taxed to get to this point, so expect more work from him, Bush, and Suppan. I would certainly expect Sabathia to throw on three days' rest again, and I would expect the success or failure of the series to be directly linked to the starting rotation.

The Phillies

 The Phillies bring Ryan Howard to play in the series with his MLB-leading 48 homeruns and 146 RBI's (again, did we have 48 homeruns and 146 RBI's all year?), but he isn't the only one that can hit. The Phillies lead the NL in HR's, and are second in runs scored. They also sport Brad Lidge, who is lights-out coming in from the 'pen, which is certainly an advantage up against the battle-torn bullpen of the Brewers.

baseballgirl note:

It looks like a battle between a well-prepared, well-rehearsed Phillies team, and an exhausted, spent, but absolutely on fire and hungry Brewers crew, and it should make for a great series right out of the gate. I'm rooting for the Brewers.

Dodgers vs. Cubs- 3:30 PM
Lowe v. Dempster

The Dodgers

Adding Joe Torre as a weapon this season didn't yield immediate results, as many thought the skipper was only highlighted with the Yankees behind him, but with the addtion of Manny Ramirez, the Dodgers have turned it up; plowing over Arizona and securing the top spot in the NL West, and looking at another chance to make their mark in the playoffs. Derek Lowe, who has backed up his number one slot with an amazing year, will take the mound for the Dodgers in Game One facing off against Ryan Dempster. The Dodgers led the league in ERA, but Zambrano and (healthy) Harden loom in the second and third game. However, the Dodgers, and their late-season revamping of the team, look to neutralize the great pitching and storm the gates of the NLCS.

The Cubs

The Cubs haven't won a World Series in 100 years. None of their current players can own that, and it would take three or four generations to even remember it, but it's there all the time; the Stomper-size elephant in the room during every pitch, every game, every time it looks like the Cubs will be somebody and go somewhere. This year, they have a great team, but you can't help but wonder; what will happen to derail the postseason train this time? Most pressing to A's fans, I would think, is how Rich Harden, who could barely string two starts together for the A's in five seasons, will hold up under the playoff pressure.

baseballgirl note:

For me, this is THE series. I love all the possible story-lines here; the all-SoCal playoff option; the all-Chicago one on the other end, Manny; the closest stadium to me, Torre back in the playoffs, and two of the most historic and well-known NL teams facing off for all the glory. I think this one will be fun. My hunch says Dodgers, but this one is a free-for-all, and I hope it's great.

Red Sox vs. Angels- 7:00 PM
Lester v. Lackey

The Red Sox

Neither the Red Sox nor the Angels are a stranger to October, and there's not much to say that hasn't been rehashed over and over during the last few years. But this Red Sox team is a little bit different; despite the pitching, the lineup, the manager, the experience, Manny being Manny will be Manny for another playoff team this year. And I think that's going to hurt the Red Sox.

The Angels

Man, this is one scary team. As if their beefed-up lineup wasn't doing all the right things anyway, they had to go out and bring Teixeira on board, my former favorite player, who is dead to me now. They are a scary offensive team, but more scary is their starting pitching, who by and large, has been incredible this year. We could talk about their closer's year, as well, but I want to file that away in 'more lucky than good; I'd save sixty games too if I was hand-picked a hundred save opps', and I would like nothing more than K-Rod's numbers outside his save total to be exploited in the late innings.

baseballgirl note:

Don't kid yourself. Despite the 10PM East Coast start, there won't be a baseball fan there (except perhaps fans in New York, who have all moved on to the Giants and the Jets), who won't be bleary-eyed at work on Thursday morning because they watched baseball all night. I despise both teams; both have caused the A's a tremendous amount of heartache over the years, and no one will cheer louder than I if the Rays manage to hang onto their own series and bounce one from the playoffs. I have to go Red Sox here; I will never root for the Angels.

Ready? Go.

After emerging victorious after last night's should-have-been-a-meaningless-game-but-played-like-a-playoff-game contest, the White Sox have extended their season at least one more day, as they have given themselves yet one more chance to play in October.

Tied with a regular-season record of 88-74, the two unlikely competitors in the AL Central will meet this afternoon in the ultimate baseball game; one will advance to the ALDS against Tampa Bay, and one will go home to start the off-season. Even in the playoffs themselves, teams get to play at least three games. But this is one--and only one--to decide an 162-game season.

And bonus stats for fantasy players!

Of course, any fan of the White Sox will tell you that they shouldn't be here at all; that the Sox should have wrapped up the division during the last series with Minnesota. And it's true; all they needed was one win, and the division crown was theirs. But the Twins, with other ideas, completed a three-game sweep of the White Sox, to the delight of the home crowd, earning the right to play tonight.

For the fourth straight game, the White Sox will be starting a pitcher on 3 days rest, as John Danks takes the mound against Nick Blackburn for what will be the last game before the playoffs. Those start tomorrow, and they're gonna be good!

And hey...no dome tonight! (Can you imagine an all-domed ALDS; what has happened to baseball?)

Lineups:

Minnesota Twins

Span, RF
Casilla, 2B
Mauer, C
Morneau, 1B
Cuddyer, DH
Young, LF
Harris, 3B
Punto, SS
Gomez, CF

Chicago White Sox

Cabrera, SS
Wise, LF
Dye, RF
Thome, DH
Konerko, 1B
Griffey Jr. CF
Ramirez, 2B
Pierzynski, C
Uribe, 3B

Let's go whatever-team-you're-rooting-for!!!!

Were you wondering why the game threads seemed so empty last weekend?

Despite the rough season for both the A's and the Mariners, a few of the girls from AN decided on a Seattle road trip because a) hey, girls trip! b) hey, baseball players! and c) Safeco is AWESOME!

As if to prove this point, the Mariners' fan appreciation team took and printed photos for all the Safeco guests with the Moose, who really should have a better name than "Moose". I kept calling him Stomper, because every mascot should be named Stomper, right? But Stomper is definitely lacking in both customer service, and a cool place to live, like the Moose Cave below.

 
We saw a few of our players during the trip, including Dan Meyer, who made fun of Pam's "I Hella Heart Oakland Shirt", which everyone else (A's fan and Mariners' fan alike) seemed to love. We told Pam that she should have responded, "I hella heart your fastball", but I have a feeling that would have been the last picture we took with Dan Meyer.

And what would any good baseball trip be without a picture of our very own Ziggy on the last day of his storybook season? Congratulations Zig, on an amazing season, and we hope there are many more years of Oakland pictures ahead of you!

 
Really, Safeco is awesome. One of the coolest ballparks around for sure; a tribute to Gotham City, mixed with just enough cool elements to make it one-of-a-kind. From the really cool and functional roof, to the real grass (and it is no small feat to keep that alive), to the roomy levels, to the full bars and countless restaurants, Safeco is a must for any baseball fan.

Plus, don't we love Lookout Landing?

Stay tuned for today's playoff game at 4:30pm, between Minnesota and Chicago (someone will open a front-page game thread). Winner goes to Tampa Bay for the ALDS. Loser goes home. Who are we rooting for? Oddly for me, I'm going Chicago. I hate their announcers, their manager, and their catcher, but I think they'd make a great playoff story (right up until they get crushed by Tampa Bay, hopefully). I don't do the dome.