Jeff M

I don't have a problem with Melvin calling out his players to the press. It's risky but sometimes it pays off. What I don't like is the use of the term "they".
Any good manager would use the term "we". He is part of the team. A good manager would throw himself I with his players in being embarrassed.

Heaven knows they're miserable now.

William Beane it was really nothing.

Speaking badly of The Smiths is a banable offense.

Lend me your bullpen.  The one that you dream of.

Some clubs are better than others...

Big mouth strikes again

There is a halo that will never go out

Oakland in a coma I know, I know it's serious.

Oakland in a coma I know, I know it's serious.

Nope. I'm just fine with things the way they are.

Deboner.
 
LeBlanc gives me a deboner

This is the kind of thing that either destroys a team, or brings them closer together. So far tonight it's looking like the latter. Hopefully they carry it through the rest of the season bury the A's.

Cause this team keeps showing people they have it...
 
Talk about rising to the occasion on a bleak day.   F people who don't appreciate this team.

RANDY WOLF time!

KNOCK KNOCK

 
 
WHO'S THERE?
 

 
 
JUANITA!

 
 
JUANITA WHO

 
 
JUANITA HALF GAME LEAD

I have a better idea; how about Weaver and Wilson grow a sack and carry this team into the playoffs while Wolf/Leblanc fill in as the number 5?

Truer words have never been spoken.

Considering:
 
- Pujols is a shell of his former self.  A pull-happy, former All Star Slugger who will wait until bases loaded and the pitcher is on the ropes to hit into an inning-ending double play
- Hamilton is a complete basket-case mentally with zero confidence at the plate...who will soon be batting clean-up
- Trout starts almost every at bat 0-1 and seems to have forgotten you can hit balls to right field. 
- Kendrick has lost any semblance of power and puckers at the plate at the slightest hint of a crucial situation.  I think he and Pujols takes turns branding  a big "DP" on the dugout bench whenever they kill a rally.
- Aybar is still a knucklehead and the fact he's considered "elite" at his position tells you a lot about the state of the SS position in the MLB.
- Conger tries his best to establish height records on pop-ups to the infield.
- CJ Wilson tries his best every game to cram 120 pitches into 5 innings
- Weaver is pretty much a 4-5 starter outside of Anaheim
- Scioscia is in love with the contact play, the 5-man infield and leading Aybar off against LHP starters
 
it makes you realize how tough this game is to play and how flawed other teams are not named the Angels.
 
We see their weaknesses on a daily basis so they are magnified and stand out to us but from an outsider perspective they would see Calhoun/Trout/Pujols as a pretty potent 1-3, Aybar an All Star shortstop, Kendrick as a solid vet hitting in the .280's, a solid rotation 1-5 and a kick-ass BP. 
 
The Angels have the best record in baseball.  Imagine how frustrating following the other 29 teams must be.
 
Remember '09 - '13 and try your best to enjoy now...despite the flaws, errors, and seeming ineptness.  There is a lot of failing in this game and remember that:
 
- Pujols and Hamilton have the realistic ability to improve and get hot
- Despite his recent struggles, Trout is still the best in practically every important offensive category
- With each start, history tells us Wilson gets closer to getting his shizz together
- Kendrick and Aybar are better than 95%+ of the alternatives out there...no, really
- Conger is still young and makes a very good catching duo with Ianetta, complementing the latters defensive shortcomings
- Weaver is playoff tested and will dominate at home during SEPT/OCT
 
Its easy to see the negatives because, with the having the best record in baseball, its all there is left to talk about after they've added another "W".
 
 

My friend lives in the Bay Area and when this trade happened, he said then it was a bad idea for the A's. He said Cespedes is a huge favorite up there and everyone likes him. We can debate all day on how we feel chemistry is overrated, but the A's have been terrible without him. So I don't know, maybe there is something to it even if his numbers say otherwise.

One thing nobody has pointed out when talking about Cespedes and his pedestrian AVG, OBP, and OPS is how he hits with RISP:
 
Career:  .297/.364/.869
2014:  .293/.347/.888
 
Cespedes comes through when it matters.  He was the main catalyst to the A's offense and has been a huge catalyst on the Red Sox as well, which we got to see first hand when the Angels played them last week.

C'mon...2 more outs till Kimbrel.

No but I do wonder why you don't see what McDonald brings to the team. I also wonder why you don't acknowledge what Boesch did today.

2014 Josh Hamilton = 2002 Sal Fasano

Isn't "demoralizing loss" a little much? I don't see it that way and I'm sure the team doesn't see it that way either. If anything, after putting up 3 runs on Kershaw early, this team believes they can score on any pitcher in a one game playoff. Hardly demoralizing.