Kuzul

The San Francisco Giants did three significant things during their humongous four-game series against the San Diego Padres. Call it a pleasant coincidence that the team also won three of the weekend contests.

By taking three of four in Petco Park, the good guys exorcised some serious demons in a personal house of horrors. Since the start of the 2009 campaign, the Giants had only won three of the last 14 contests played in the Friars’ home. You have to imagine the lads enjoyed doubling a two-year win total in four days.

More importantly, the trio of triumphs moved the Orange and Black into a virtual tie with the Fathers atop the National League West—one up in the win column, one back in the loss column, and only percentage points behind the technical front-runners.

Finally and most importantly, San Francisco showed that it was strapped in for the 2010 stretch and ready to make a hard charge at the playoffs. By pennant or by Wild Card, SF seems intent on reaching Major League Baseball’s second season.

And that development has to disturb the other contenders from the Senior Circuit.

Though we’re not yet sure who will be vying for the NL’s ticket to the World Series, any team hoping to be one of those fortunate four can’t be relishing the prospect of a date with the City’s nine.

Here are the top 10 reasons nobody wants to see the San Francisco Giants in the postseason.

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Regardless of whether the San Francisco Giants make the postseason, the 2010 campaign has already been a success.

The team is contending into September as it did in 2009, but the lads’ chances look much better this time around the bend.

Even if they ultimately fall short of the second season, the squad will improve upon the ’09 version’s 88-74 record as long as they don’t finish in a 10-12 skid.

Anything is possible, but such a thud down the stretch seems very unlikely from a San Francisco side that’s played .557 baseball through 140 contests.

Especially because the Gents are giving the distinct impression of being on their collective way to a peak at just the right time.

At various times in ’10, the Orange and Black pitchers have done the heavy lifting or the lumber has had to shoulder the disproportionate load. At no point have both sides of the baseball been clicking along in unison.

It hasn’t quite happened yet, but the arms and bats are hinting at a nice rhythm.

Rotation Finding Its Spring Stride

Ace-in-hiding Tim Lincecum is looking like his old self again. Giant fans are beginning to feel cautiously comfortable with the September version after the diminutive fireballer tossed 14 spectacular innings before tiring in his last frame of work against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday.

So far in Autumn’s first month, “The Freak” has twirled every bit like the pitcher who’s won two consecutive National League Cy Young Awards—2-0, 14.2 IP, 2.45 ERA, 0.75 WHIP, 20:1 K:BB, .195 BAA, .196 OBPA, and .364 SLGA.

With “The Franchise” in his rightful spot, leading the rotation’s charge, a major concern would be eliminated not a moment too soon. It would also help set a dominant tone that’s been missing from Los Gigantes‘ starters recently.

If the early returns are any indication, that’s precisely what’s happening after Lincecum took the pearl on Sept. 1. The staff as a whole had a 1.96 ERA, 0.84 WHIP, 5.55 K:BB, and opponents’ slash line of .179/.231/.282 in 55 IP entering play on Wednesday.

Of course, the Bay Area has seen a resplendent rotation getting the job done.

Lumber Continues to Bring the Wood

The new development is an offense that’s keeping pace…well, almost.

While the Giants batting order will never remind anyone of “Murderer’s Row,” it’s been doing its part with timely hitting and resiliency.

Although it’s only scored 21 runs in seven September games, the club has managed to win five of the contests behind the aforementioned pitching and an offense that’s saved its runs for when they’re most needed.

In so doing, the sticks have seen contributions from a whole host of deckhands.

Second-half acquisition Mike Fontenot contributed a game-tying single to back Lincecum’s first gem while Jose Guillen (himself a post-All-Star break pick-up) scored that run after breaking up Ubaldo Jimenez’ no-hitter.

Darren Ford, a September call-up, crossed with the winning run after being inserted by manager Bruce Bochy as a pinch-runner.

Freddy Sanchez, a trade-deadline acquisition in 2009 by general manager Brian Sabean, sealed the victory with a sprawling catch (OK, that one wasn’t offensive, but still…).

Three days later, the Gents used the long ball to come back against the hated Los Angeles Dodgers in Dodger Stadium—three of the four big flies came from Pat Burrell (a first-half acquisition), Edgar Renteria, and Juan Uribe.

Uribe’s two-run blast provided the game-winning margin off of closer Jonathan Broxton in the ninth.

The super utilityman, one of the keys to keeping an anemic first-half offense afloat, connected for another two-run dinger in support of a Jonathan Sanchez blinder the next day.

It was all the backing “Dirty Sanchez” needed as San Francisco took two of three from the Bums in their own house.

Next up in the game of musical chairs was Nate Schierholtz in the desert.

“Nate the Great” went from goat to hero against the Snakes on Monday when his extra-inning triple provided the winning separation in a game he entered as a pinch-runner, only to get picked off by the freakin‘ catcher.

But that’s how it’s gone for the Giants of late—a different day, a different darling.

Sabean and Bochy Have Earned Their Fair Shares of Credit

Perhaps lost in all the good news are two men who have taken more lashes than they’ve deserved while guiding the City’s pride and joy.

Bruce Bochy, for all the criticism he’s endured about sticking too long with veterans and constantly shuffling the lineup, must have been grinning as he watched bemoaned piece after bemoaned piece contribute to victories this past week.

There was Renteria, who the faithful wanted designated for assignment eons ago, getting a big home run to help the comeback against the Dodgers and hitting over .300 in September.

There were Schierholtz, Burrell, Guillen, Uribe, Freddy Sanchez, Fontenot, and others answering the bell without signs of rust or debilitating fatigue.

None of that happens without consistent playing time to keep the skills sharp offset by appropriate rest (or at least the percentages go WAY down) and the right balance ain’t possible without an expert juggler.

Take a bow, Bruce…actually, let’s wait a month or so.

Nevertheless, as nicely as Boch’s season is rounding out, it can’t hold a candle to Sabean‘s campaign.

Freddy Sanchez? Yep, he’s been a huge asset both defensively and offensively as he’s caught fire since August (though, technically not a  move from ’10).

Aubrey Huff? Quite possibly the team’s MVP.

Burrell, Guillen, and Fontenot? Brought in to bolster a sagging offense, each has had his moments of contribution while “Pat the Bat” (14 HR and a slash line of .266/.370/.514 in 265 PA with SF) has arguably been the biggest midseason addition in Major League Baseball…non-Buster Posey Division.

And Sabes‘ biggest finds are perhaps the least discussed:

Javier Lopez—16 IP, 1.13 ERA, 0.56 WHIP, 5.50 K:BB, and an opponents’ slash line of .130/.161/.148

Ramon Ramirez—17.1 IP, 1.04 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 0.90 K:BB, and an opponents’ slash line of .172/.284/.234

Chris Ray—17 IP, 4.76 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, 1.57 K:BB, and an opponents’ slash line of .270/.343/.333 (these looked a lot better before Ray got Van Landingham’d for three hits, a walk, and three earnies without recording an out about three weeks ago)

Remember when Jeremy Affeldt and Dan Runzler—the resident southpaws in the ‘pen—were out with injuries?

The firemen had been roughed up a bit, now they had no specialist to handle left-handed boppers, and yet no elite lefty had been acquired.

Panic gripped the City as talk radio and the blogosphere demanded to know how such stupidity could be tolerated from the franchise’s brass.

The naysayers whined that the playoffs were going up in flames with the relievers’ weak, wild junk.

Ahem…

However, as pretty as all that looks, the real coup here is that the Giants’ general manager surrendered quite literally—in the baseball sense—nothing to grab these contributions.

The entire price tag amounts to some cash, a mentally/physically broken Bengie Molina, a badly fading blue-chip prospect (Tim Alderson in the ’09 deal for Sanchez), and major-league flotsam.

All in all, not too shabby from a couple of scoundrels the masses wanted on the first cable car out of town a few short months (weeks) ago.

But Keep the Cork in the Champagne and the Bottles on Ice

Again, nothing has been won yet.

The playoffs are still 20 games away and that’s a whole lotta baseball left to be played. The San Diego Padres have absolutely owned los Gigantes to date in ’10, so their recent tumble has only opened the door to the NL West pennant; no tickets have been punched.

Additionally, the Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies could be tough to catch for the NL Wild Card as they begin to sniff the NL East flag beyond the finish line. Oh yeah, let’s continue to pretend the Colorado Rockies are of no concern while we still can.

Clearly, the San Francisco Giants still have an uphill climb if they want to reach the postseason.

But they have the personnel and a little momentum, which means they have a chance.

It also means Brian Sabean and Bruce Bochy are having the last laugh.

And it might be a long one.

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Heading into the 2010 Major League Baseball season, there was one thing the Bay Area and everyone else knew for sure about the San Francisco Giants. Namely, that the squad would contend as long and as hard as the starting pitching would allow.

It was justifiably considered the organization’s backbone and primary weapon on the diamond.

Two-time defending National League Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum, as notorious for throwing smoke as he became for inhaling it, was the unquestioned leader of the staff.

His younger wingman, Matt Cain, was coming off his first All-Star team selection and best season of his steadily improving career. Jonathan Sanchez, who registered the first no-hitter by a Giant in over 30 years against the San Diego Padres in 2009 and was firmly entrenched in his prime, would be the No. 4 starter.

Completing the robust rotation were blue-chip phenom Madison Bumgarner, whose arrival was only a matter of time regardless of what the brass told place-holder Todd Wellemeyer, as well as veteran southpaw and local chew-toy Barry Zito.

Even with the can-of-kerosene-wearing Wellemeyer’s uniform torching the rotation every fifth day (in reluctant fairness to the right-hander, he was actually pretty good at AT&T Park), it looked like a ferocious group on paper.

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If the San Francisco Giants do make the 2010 postseason, it will be the result of an honest-to-baseball good team effort.

There have been (and will be) major and minor players in the drama, but the days of Barry Bonds clubbing the opposition into retreat with only minimal contribution from his lilliputian mates have been dead so long, there’s almost nothing left to decompose. We’re well into a new era of ball at AT&T Park and smacks of classical Marxism on cleats.

Of course, a pair of the Commies are probably too young to have any idea what that means.

The 23-year-old Buster Posey did go to college, so he might be familiar with Karl and his buddy Friedrich. But Madison Bumgarner is only 21 and his 22nd year of life still has that new-car smell so he’d probably be left scratching his head.

Hopefully, he’d use his right arm because the million-dollar left one needs all the rest it can get.  

Bumgarner Keeps Going and Going

A couple weeks ago, a buddy of mine offered me “MadBum” for Tampa Bay Ray rockstar and fellow first-year player, Jeremy Hellickson, in our fantasy league. I didn’t even hesitate before rejecting the suggestion for one simple reason—innings pitched.

In 2008, the smooth southpaw tossed 141 2/3 innings at Single-A. In 2009, he twirled 141 1/3 frames between High-A, Double-A (the vast majority), and the major-league squad (only 10).

So far in ’10, Bumgarner has thrown 161 2/3 innings with 79 coming in the big leagues (including the six against the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday).

Now, perhaps I should have paused despite these details since a little research might’ve revealed that Hellickson was destined to return to the minor leagues for a transition to the bullpen, but I digress.

The point is that I wanted no part of the San Francisco prospect-turned-reality because the Bay Area has been awaiting the inevitable operation: Shutdown Madison for some time now. Failing a removal to the bullpen, then certainly a sixth-inning cap on the youngster’s starts or some similar cautionary gesture.

Well, we’re still waiting.

Conservation Has Been Key

The native North Carolinian keeps taking the ball every fifth day and he’s showing no signs of relenting. His starts aren’t always gems, but his body of work is pretty fantastic when you remember the backdrop is your MLB-average No. 5 starter.

Madison’s authored the following line—5-4, a 3.76 ERA, a 1.39 WHIP, a .282 BAA, and a 2.45 K:BB in those 79 IP—all while toiling for a contender and too young to rent a car.

It’s no wonder the Giants‘ brass wants him out there, yet the brain-trust isn’t being reckless.

The lefty hasn’t thrown over 100 pitches since July 24th against the Arizona Diamondbacks. He hit the 100 mark on August 9th and got close (97) about 10 days later, but he’s been hooked before No. 95 in the five other starts since his “epic” in the desert.

“MadBum” has simply been able to be effective with those limited bullets. If he keeps it up, he’ll be contributing straight through September, which is dumbfounding. In normal years, he’d be the talk of the city as well as baseball.

But not this year.

Posey’s Hogging the Stage

If the pitching phenom is bummed out (I did) by the absence of limelight, he can blame Gerald Demp the Third.

It’s almost impossible to overstate how much of a revelation the young catcher has been.

Los Gigantes and their faithful are familiar with blue-chip pitching prospects being the Real McCoy, but the sensation is totally foreign when it’s a homegrown hitter. So you can forgive the region if it was a little skeptical in the face of Buster’s legendary prowess with the lumber.

And you can forget that skepticism because the city is full of true-believers now.

A slash line of .330/.372/.505 with 10 HR, 52 RBI, and 40 R in 303 AB tends to have that persuasive effect on diamond diehards. All the more so when the statistical goodness comes wrapped in a clutch-hitting bow (that sentence was brought to you by his eighth-inning double on Tuesday that plated two much-needed insurance runs).

Yeah, it’s safe to say Posey’s offense is the genuine article.

But Wait, There’s More

However, the biggest shocks have come while the former Florida State Seminole has been wearing the Tools of Ignorance.

Posey’s hitting has been incredible, but it’s also been a relief because it’s come as a partial realization of expectation. Insane expectation, but still within contemplation.

Contrarily, nobody told us he was this good behind the dish. Or maybe someone did, but the comparable whisper was lost in the chorus of voices going wackadoo over Buster’s bat.

Either way, the kid has done a good job with a brutal assignment in the Giants’ starting rotation. There’s nothing easy about handling guys like Tim Lincecum, Jonathan Sanchez, and Bumgarner. Even Matt Cain and Barry Zito are no picnic given the heat the former brings and the different breaks the latter can put on that big Uncle Charlie.

As an added little treat, the catcher of the present and future has given the Giant faithful a new favorite thing—the perfect laser from behind the dish that snipes a would-be thief who’s convinced the bag is already stolen.

I’m talking about Eric Young, Jr. on Monday at third base and Carlos Gonzalez on Tuesday at second.

You’ll notice that both men can fly and trust me when I tell you each had an obscene jump on the attempt in question (or watch Young’s for yourself). On both occasions, only an absolute cannon aimed with the aid of crosshairs would record an out and, on both occasions, that’s precisely what Buster did.

A lot of attention has been thrown Jaime Garcia’s way regarding the National League Rookie of the Year and for good reason; he’s been excellent.

But Gerald Demp has been the best rookie and there’s still time for the “experts” to realize it.

The Fat Lady Ain’t Singin’ Yet

With about 30 games left on the schedule, there’s plenty of baseball left to be played.

The lads haven’t won anything yet, but neither has anyone else. With the San Diego Padres suddenly throwing rods and belching smoke, it’s possible even the NL West is still up for grabs.

In other words, the race for the postseason should be a burner.

That means—one way or another—Madison Bumgarner and Buster Posey will continue their baptisms by fire; they’ll continue to mature in the heat of the pennant race.

And that can only mean good things for the San Francisco Giants’ horizon.

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With the calendar down to the last day of August, Major League Baseball is about to fire the starting gun on its stretch run.

Much to the surprise of everyone outside of the 619, the San Diego Padres have been maintaining a nice cushion in the National League West all year and are serving me large helpings of crow with each day in first place. Let’s not mention the Friars’ record against our San Francisco Giants—I’ll leave that bit of vengeance to a Padre poster, should one stumble into hostile territory.

Even more troubling for the City, the Fathers were threatening to run away with the pennant until getting swept over the weekend by the Philadelphia Phillies. That makes four losses in a row for SD (five including Monday night’s), but the club still has a six-game advantage in the loss column over the lads.

Until this little bump in the road turns into a sincere losing jag for the front-runners, San Francisco’s best shot at the postseason remains to slip through the Wild Card side door.

But the Orange and Black will need a few things to happen, first.

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If a rough patch in a Major League Baseball season can be analogized to a gathering tempest, then the San Francisco Giants are heading into a doozy.

The club is sailing into a bank of cumulonimbus that isn’t just dark; it’s that inky, purplish shade of black. The kind that means your best option is to find Toto, stick your head between your knees, and kiss your tokus goodbye.

As unhappy a metaphor as it might be, the Gents could very easily be the ill-fated Andrea Gail, futilely climbing that CGI wall of water. The weekend series at AT&T Park against the National League West-leading San Diego Padres would then be the first waves crashing over the forward deck.

Granted, that would cast Bruce Bochy as the team’s George Clooney—a parallel that only works if compare literal and figurative head sizes, respectively.

The point is, the going is about to get tough for the lads. Extremely tough.

And the last three days have been no picnic.

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In a lot of ways, the Oakland Athletics have already had a very successful 2010.

The campaign isn’t over by any means—with more than 50 games yet to be played, anything and everything can still happen.

However, the A’s sit nine and a half games off the American League West pace set by the division-leading Texas Rangers. With the Texas in town for the weekend, they have a chance to shave some of that margin and they’d better.

Because they’re even further behind in the AL Wild Card race.

Granted, with the juggernauts out in the AL East, the playoff side door was probably never a realistic option.

Nah–it’s the pennant or bust.

Since the Rangers look to have a pretty firm grasp on the flag, Oakland’s hopes for contention are dwindling with every nine innings.

Nevertheless, the Elephants have shown a lot of pluck and resiliency over the course of the season. They started behind the eight-ball due to a minuscule payroll and then had their plight compounded by Lady Luck, who gave them only two flavors—bad and rotten.

Even so, the Green and Gold are treading water and posted a respectable 14-10 record in July, which was fourth-best in the Junior Circuit.

More importantly, there are plenty of silver linings that should give the franchise and its fanbase hope for the immediate future.

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With the minutes ticking away toward the 2010 Major League Baseball non-waiver trade deadline, fans saw the typically violent flurry of activity as general mangers hustled to smooth out the rough edges. Some of the moves look brilliant while others seem to stink of acquisition for acquisition’s sake.

Take a gander at the maneuvering that started way back at the beginning of July and decide for yourself:

July 9th —Texas Rangers acquire RHP Cliff Lee from the Seattle Mariners for 1B Justin Smoak, RHP Blake Beavan, RHP Josh Leuke, and INF Matt Lawson.

July 14th —Atlanta Braves acquire SS Alex Gonzalez, LHP Tim Collins, and INF Tyler Pastronicky from the Toronto Blue Jays for SS Yunel Escobar and LHP Jo-Jo Reyes.

July 25th —Anaheim Angels (they can’t even see Los Angeles, let alone play there) acquire RHP Dan Haren from the Arizona Diamondbacks for LHP Joe Saunders, RHP Rafael Rodriguez, LHP Patrick Corbin, and a player to be named later.

July 28th —Detroit Tigers acquire INF Jhonny Peralta from the Cleveland Indians for LHP Giovanni Soto.

July 29th —Minnesota Twins acquire RHP Matt Capps and cash from the Washington Nationals for C Wilson Ramos and LHP Joe Testa.

July 29th —San Diego Padres acquire SS/3B Miguel Tejada and cash from the Baltimore Orioles for RHP Wynn Pelzer.

July 29th —Philadelphia Phillies acquire RHP Roy Oswalt and cash from the Houston Astros for LHP J.A. Happ, OF Anthony Gose, and SS Jonathan Villar

July 29th —Los Angeles Dodgers acquire Scott Podsednik from the Kansas City Royals for RHP Elisaul Pimentel and C Luke May.

July 30th —Chicago White Sox acquire RHP Edwin Jackson from the Diamondbacks for RHP Daniel Hudson and LHP David Holmberg.

July 30th —Rangers acquire INF Jorge Cantu from the Florida Marlins for RHP Evan Reed and RHP Omar Poveda.

July 30th —Rangers acquire INF Cristian Guzman from the Nationals for RHP Ryan Tatusko and RHP Tanner Roark.

July 31st —Tampa Bay Rays acquire RHP Chad Qualls from the Diamondbacks for a player to be named later.

July 31st —New York Yankees acquire 1B Lance Berkman and cash from the Astros for RHP Mark Melancon and INF Jimmy Paredes.

July 31st —Yankees acquire OF Austin Kearns from the Indians for a player to be named later or cash.

July 31st —three team trade in which the Padres acquire OF Ryan Ludwick from the St. Louis Cardinals and cash from the Indians, the Cardinals acquire RHP Jake Westbrook and cash from the Indians plus LHP Nick Greenwood from the Padres, and the Indians acquire RHP Corey Kluber, also from the Padres.

July 31st —Pittsburgh Pirates acquire C Chris Snyder, SS Pedro Ciriaco, and cash from the Diamondbacks for SS Bobby Crosby, OF Ryan Church, and RHP D.J. Carrasco.

July 31st —Los Angeles Dodgers acquire LHP Ted Lilly and INF Ryan Theriot from the Chicago Cubs for INF Blake DeWitt, RHP Brett Wallach, and RHP Kyle Smit.

July 31st—Dodgers acquire RHP Octavio Dotel from the Pirates for RHP James McDonald and OF Andrew Lambo.

July 31st—Yankees acquire RHP Kerry Wood from the Indians for a player to be named later or cash.

July 31st—San Francisco Giants acquire LHP Javier Lopez from the Pirates for RHP Joe Martinez and OF John Bowker.

July 31st—Braves acquire OF Rick Ankiel, RHP Kyle Farnsworth, and cash from the Royals for LHP Tim Collins, RHP Jesse Chavez, and OF Gregor Blanco.

Phew, that’s a lot of movement.

Yet noticeably absent from the list of substantial movers and shakers are our San Francisco Giants.

Despite an increasingly glaring need for help in the shaky bullpen—especially a capable southpaw—and another plus-piece of lumber, general manager Brian Sabean didn’t pull any major triggers.

He did grab a reliever who throws from the southside in the Bucs’ Lopez, but that’s not exactly the magical elixer for which some die-hards had hoped. Luckily, the Giant GM only cut bait on a couple of “prospects” who’d worn out their welcome in the City.

Nevertheless, there were constant rumors about the club sniffing around various primetime targets, but the prices were either too high or the players were ultimately deemed an unsavory fit.

Regardless of the specific reason, I commend Sabes on his willingness to let the deadline come and go while resisting the pressure—created by the activity of other squads—to make an ill-advised, big splash maneuver.

The man at the helm was clearly running (probably jogging) down leads, but his posture made it clear that any such decision would be made on Orange and Black terms.

And fans should applaud that.

Everyone loves for his or her contender to make a deal and bring in new blood as the calendar turns to August, but that doesn’t necessarily justify the decision.

There is something to be said for continuity and internal improvement; with Pablo Sandoval drastically under-performing and several injured pieces making their way back to the club, SF’s cupboard of assistance isn’t totally bare.

More importantly, as Giant fans will remember, the franchise was in a similar position last year and brought in the likes of Ryan Garko and Freddy Sanchez for a little extra playoff push.

Garko was incompetent and Sanchez was an injury disaster from the get-go; neither trade helped in 2009 and only the grace of the Baseball Gods has prevented the deals from going south badly.

Now, look back at that list of swaps.

The Lee, Haren, Oswalt, and Berkman developments are the only ones that appear to carry with them a significant power shift. The Ludwick trade gets honorable mention.

The rest are Garko deals—shots in the dark that could help, but seem more likely to be exercises in public relations while sacrificing potentially gifted prospects.

Guys like Jorge Cantu, Scott Podsednik, Miguel Tejada, etc. could rediscover their glory days (or keep them going in Pod’s case), but I’d say the chances of such renaissances are less appealing than the odds that the dearly departed blossom.

Furthermore, the most reliable pieces available were front-line starting pitchers.

That is the one place los Gigantes are set—they need a contingency plan for the eventual shutdown of No. 5 starter Madison Bumgarner, but that doesn’t merit leveraging the farm system for a guy like Haren/Lee/Oswalt.

Finally, dissect the action with an eye to San Francisco’s biggest vulnerabilities—the ‘pen and the big bat.

The thumper is easier to dispatch with because there simply weren’t any to be had unless a GM was willing to be a voluntary participant in highway robbery.

Don’t buy it?

Well, the only evidence anyone should need is the most neon name changing hands. Sir Lance-elot is still a threat, but check the splits .

Only a money-bloated franchise like the Bronx Bombers could part with two upper echelon prospects for what is essentially half of a platoon. No way San Francisco could do the same; not for a guy hitting below the Mendoza line against left-handers.

As for the relievers, only three major players changed hands.

Qualls had basically pitched himself out of any important innings for the Snakes, so forget him.

Dotel had been quite effective, but he cost the Bums two highly touted prospects. Neither McDonald nor Lambo have shown much at the Big League level (Lambo hasn’t gotten a shot yet), but you don’t have to search too hard to find glowing reviews of each.

Meanwhile, to grab Matt Capps—who can’t be considered one of the Show’s superstar closers—the Twinkies had to part with one of the most prized blue-chippers in all of baseball.

Granted, Joe Mauer made Ramos a redundant asset, but that doesn’t change the fact that Minnesota just shipped out a dangerously offensive catcher (perhaps the rarest of all baseball assets) to get a relatively unproven stopper. As the last man standing for the Pirates and then the Nats, Capps has never locked down a meaningful game yet he demanded a premium price on the market.

So, yes, it would’ve been ideal to soundly plug the gaps in the bullpen and the batting order.

But, as the saying goes, you’ve got to give to get.

In 2010, it would appear the giving was better than the getting.

Which means the San Francisco Giants’ relative inactivity could be very good news.

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Several times in 2010, I’ve used this space to lament the unfortunate trajectory on which the Oakland Athletics’ season seems to routinely find itself. If it’s not injuries derailing an otherwise smoothly steaming train, then it’s…well….

No, it’s pretty much been injuries every time, all the time.

The latest A to bite the dust has been Ryan Sweeney, who’s gone for the year. The right fielder had been a valuable splinter, posting a .294/.383/.725 line while making strong contributions with his glove and arm. With only a pair of big flies, the power Sweeney typically flashes in batting practice hadn’t translated, but the 20 doubles were a nice consolation prize.

Alas, the 25-year-old finally succumbed to right patella tendinitis and had surgery to relieve the issue at the cost of the ’10 campaign.

When Oakland officially placed Sweeney on the disabled list, it marked the 18th time the club had occasion to use the shelf. Only the Boston Red Sox have had their hand forced more times by Lady Luck and their payroll is more than triple that belonging to the Elephants, i.e. the Sawks have the depth of roster and pocket to withstand a whole lotta punishment.

The A’s do not.

Or so it would seem on paper.

Most of Oakland’s key pieces have missed significant time—Brian Anderson, Dallas Braden, Trevor Cahill, Coco Crisp, Justin Duchscherer, Mark Ellis, Conor Jackson, Kurt Suzuki, Sweeney, and Michael Wuertz.

Even Kevin Kouzmanoff and Andrew Bailey have needed a little extra pine time to stave of sincere boo-boos.

By my count, the only vertebrae of the team’s backbone to escape the injury bug completely have been Daric Barton and Gio Gonzalez.

Nevertheless, Major League Baseball’s little engine that could started play on Friday a game over .500 and in third place in the American League West. Better yet, the Green and Gold has ripped off five wins in six games since Sweeney’s last appearance, which coincided with the finale before the All-Star game.

The Athletics came out of the break with a sweep of the lowly Kansas City Royals in Missouri and then returned to the Bay Area to take two of three from those banged up Beantowners.

Now, the first-place Chicago White Sox come to town to kick off a stretch of 15 contests that will match los Atleticos against front-runners 12 times (six tete-a-tetes with both the Pale Hose, who lead the AL Central, and the Rangers).

Given the M*A*S*H unit Oakland is currently fielding and the elite competition that the schedule’s about to deliver, nobody would blame the squad if it slipped over the edge and into the abyss.

But, considering the long odds already bucked by the team, nobody should be surprised if it emerges from the other end of the nightmarish tunnel no worse for the wear.

It would be a surprise, however, if the MLB radar were to catch the Athletics’ ironic season on one of its sweeps of the Show.

Even in their home market, the A’s don’t exactly cast an enormous media shadow.

The lads are streaking, they’re facing a big money bully, it’s Doggie Day at the Oakland Coliseum, the temperature is just right for baseball by the Bay, and—as if that weren’t enough enticement—Bleacher Report’s own Matt King sang the National Anthem (quite well, I might add).

Yet the paid attendance was only 15,105 and I’d say at least a third of those decided on rosier plans for the evening. Such as the Aerosmith concert playing next door at the Oracle Arena.

That’s the local love.

So you know the national profile is substantially smaller.

Nope, ESPN ain’t gonna come calling unless the Oakland Athletics manage to wrestle first place out of the Texas Rangers death-grip. With the acquisition of Cliff Lee and Oakland’s disabled list only getting longer, those prospects are slim and none.

And slim’s plane is taxiing for takeoff.

Which means it’s very likely that the A’s impressive show of resolve will continue to go unnoticed.

What a shame.

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Yes, woeful.

The Chicago Cubs spent $146,859,000 on their 2010 payroll, which works out to an average of $5,439,222 per player and is good for third in all of Major League Baseball. Only the Evil Empires—the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox—shelled out more scratch for their squads.

Only the Bronx Bombers are paying more per victory.

They boast Marlon Byrd, Ryan Dempster, Kosuke Fukudome, Derrek Lee, Ted Lilly, Aramis Ramirez, Carlos Silva, Alfonso Soriano, Geovany Soto, and Carlos Zambrano. Each player mentioned is a current or former All-Star with the exception of Silva.

Each player on that list also makes eight figures with the exceptions of Byrd, who is the lone 2010 All-Star, and Soto.

Finally, they have one of the game’s best managers (allegedly) at the helm in Lou Piniella.

Nevertheless, the Cubbies are nine games under .500 (41-50), nine games behind the first-place Cincinnati Reds, 8.5 games behind the second-place St. Louis Cardinals, and struggling in the National League Central—not exactly a juggernaut division.

They’re also nine games off the NL Wild Card pace with a half-dozen teams jockeying for position better than Chicago’s.

It’s true that injuries and insanity have derailed the club, but similar concerns have befallen organizations with a lot less money/talent and they’ve managed to stay the course.

Shoot, the Sawks have seen their regular second baseman, catcher, center fielder, left fielder, Opening Day starter, and No. 3 hurler hit the shelf for extended periods. Boston did spend about $16 million extra on payroll, but don’t tell me that explains the competitive disparity. (The Red Sox own a 51-39 record in the Show’s toughest division.)

Especially since the Windy City’s Senior Circuit rep has gotten unexpected contributions from youngsters Starlin Castro and Tyler Colvin.

Given the mediocrity of the NL Central, there is still time for the Not-So-Lovable Losers to right the water-logged ship and they’ve come out of the All-Star break on a two-game winning streak, so there’s hope.

The Cubs’ 2010 epithet isn’t carved in stone yet.

That caveat notwithstanding, the North Siders have to be one of baseball’s biggest disappointments to date (along with the Seattle Mariners).

But don’t for one second blame the Cubbies’ closer, the scintillating Carlos Marmol.

In fact, the season Marmol is cobbling together is almost reason enough to root for his spend-and-burn franchise. After all, if he were saving truly meaningful games, his remarkable campaign would be far more celebrated.

Actually, if Chicago could simply climb to the fringe of contention, the 27-year-old would be getting his just deserts considering the national audience the organization commands.

At the moment, though, it’s flying criminally low on the radar.

As one of his supremely satisfied fantasy owners, I’ve been watching this absurdity unfurl itself and it’s been quite an eyeful. Check the numbers before play starts today—17 SV, 20 SVOpp, 81 K, 28 BB, a 2.11 ERA, a 1.20 WHIP, a .153 BAA, a .306 OBPA, a .207 SLGA, and a .513 OPSA in 42 2/3 IP covering 42 G.

The WHIP and on-base-percentage-against aren’t all that dazzling because of the Dominican’s propensity to get a wild hair up his nose, but the rest are outstanding. The low batting-average-against and minuscule slugging-percentage-against suggest Marmol is as unhittable as he looks.

As of Chicago’s 91st game, only the immortal Jeff Clement has taken the closer deep in 2010.

Sounds about right.

Of course, everything else pales when compared to those lovely, lovely strikeouts.

I’ll handle the math (or the navigation to his baseball-reference.com page)—81 whiffs in a shade over 42 frames equates to a 17.1 K/9.

Let that sink in.

If the filth merchant dusts a tenth of a batter more per three outs, he’ll be striking out opposing lumber at the rate of two hitters per inning.

The last human we saw do that was 14 and he was playing against 12-year-olds.

Carlos Marmol is doing it against professional hitters.

Yikes.

Like I said, the feat should make us all Chicago Cub fans if only to get Carlos some love.

Because in this Year of the Pitcher, he’s been one of the best.

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