let's all laugh at the A's this morning

[963BUSC]

G'damn right! We'll leave that to the Angels fans.

* The Oakland Athletics had an attendance of 2,003,628 in 2014, surpassing the two-million mark for the first time since 2005 (2,109,118).

Winners And Losers: MLB Attendance In 2014, Nearly 74 Million Through The Gate [UPDATED] - Forbes

looks like quite a few bandwagon fans jumped on that A's express.

 

[bksballer89]

Oh I see yankeses, saints and heat huh? Bet you arent a heat fan too much longer.

been a heat fan for close to 15 years.....

 

[Chewbaccer]

As a Braves fan, it's hard to laugh at any team that got to play more than 162 games.

 

[Robotech]

Yeah sabermetrics! Stolen bases are over rated and don't bunt, you only get 27 outs and you shouldn't waste any. Wait.....

I didn't watch the whole game, but I did see the A's execute a sacrifice bunt late in the game.

 

[navamind]

There are so many factors that go into the game that you can't simply pin wins and losses based on one player in the lineup to draw a causation effect. For example, the gave up more runs in August than any other month prior. ...how much of that do we attribute to losing Cespedes?

If you're going to claim Donaldson lost his protection, explain this:
-Donaldson before Aug 1 - .247 AVG, .797 OPS
-Donaldson Aug/Sept - .271 AVG, .800 OPS

So you could make the case he hit better the last two months of the season without Cespedes...not to mention, his worst month of the season was May, when Cespedes was still with the team. That doesn't jive with what your claiming about the benefit of Cespedes' protection.

This. It's like saying replacing A-Rod with Carlos Guillen (a good player, but not even in the same stratosphere as A-Rod) is what made the Mariners go from 91 wins in 2000 to 116 in 2011.

 

[ChicagoIrish]

So how long does Lester now have to wait before he can resign with Boston? Hoping the A's offer him a contract and he takes less to go back to Boston, just to rub it in.

Boston? Lester is going to be a Cub

 

[ColinCoby]

This was championship or bust for them and that poor franchise couldn't even get to the ALDS lol

You rented samardzija & Lester for this?

How did Tanaka work out for ya?

 

[da55bums]

This was championship or bust for them and that poor franchise couldn't even get to the ALDS lol

You rented samardzija & Lester for this?

and Hammel, the guy who gave up the game winning hit.

 

[bksballer89]

How did Tanaka work out for ya?

Not bad. Pretty dominant until he got hurt.

Thanks for asking

 

[broncosmitty]

and Hammel, the guy who gave up the game winning hit.

And Johnny Gomes, the guy who let Hosmer get a triple to left field.

 

[broncosmitty]

Billy traded his cleanup hitter, during a pennant race. Rank Cespedes however you want, doesn't matter to me. But a precedent has now been set.

Trading your cleanup hitter, during a pennant race, is a bad idea.

 

[bksballer89]

Billy traded his cleanup hitter, during a pennant race. Rank Cespedes however you want, doesn't matter to me. But a precedent has now been set.

Trading your cleanup hitter, during a pennant race, is a bad idea.

Unless you're getting another cleanup hitter in return.

 

[navamind]

Not bad. Pretty dominant until he got hurt.

Thanks for asking

Now let's see how he holds up. Pitchers are volatile.

 

[bksballer89]

Now let's see how he holds up. Pitchers are volatile.

I agree....I think eventually he will need TJ surgery

 

[broncosmitty]

Unless you're getting another cleanup hitter in return.

Well, yeah. And Johnny Gomes doesn't count.

 

[navamind]

Well, yeah. And Johnny Gomes doesn't count.

At least Gomes makes up for it with his defensive prowess.

 

[BSUSeahawk]

Billy traded his cleanup hitter, during a pennant race. Rank Cespedes however you want, doesn't matter to me. But a precedent has now been set.

Trading your cleanup hitter, during a pennant race, is a bad idea.

Valuing players based on where they bat in a lineup doesn't mean anything, but for what it's worth, I went through a bunch of box scores and the cleanup hitter was usually Brandon Moss.

As it has been said, Cespedes was around the 3rd to 5th best hitter on the team. He also stunk in the 2nd half.

 

[johnson]

The A's truly pulled a Yankees this year (well, minus a few tens of millions, but same idea and usual result)

 

[steveringo]

Boston? Lester is going to be a Cub

That would actually be fun to see... How close are they to contending?

I like how Epstein has handled their farm system. I can't imagine what would happen if he puts together a championship Cubs team....

 

[SeattleCoug]

A's could still have a good team next year, even if they don't resign Lester. Problem is, the AL West could be a lot tougher.

All 4 teams should be better including the Astros. Be interesting to see what they do with Samardzija, as I highly doubt they extend him beyond next year. Wouldn't shock me if they dealt him this winter