Kuzul

Major League Baseball continues to live on the edge of insanity by only having a limited numbers of plays that can be reviewed. The instances where a play can be looked at is on a home run call, and that’s either did the ball go over the yellow line? Did a fan interfere and reach in to grab the ball? Finally, was the ball fair or foul? 

That’s it! Which, is tough to believe because there are so many close plays at any of the bases and with check swings. The two main arguments on why replay has not been expanded is because baseball is already a game that can go for three hours or more and stopping the game to review a play would add onto the time of the game, and the second argument is that baseball has had the human element involved. 

In the game of the Texas Rangers taking on the Tampa Bay Rays, Joe Maddon was ejected on a blown check swing call. It was obvious that Michael Young who was up with two men on wasn’t able to check his swing, and if the correct call had been made the Rays would have gotten out of the inning only trailing 2-0, instead Young was given a fresh life and on the next pitch from Chad Qualls, Young homered staking the Rangers out to an insurmountable 5-0 lead. 

Check swings should be part of the instant replay expansion. Why? Because the check swings happen so quickly that it’s nearly impossible for the umpire looking at the play to make the correct call, although there are times when it’s clear that a hitter went through the zone, but what happens when a player moves a lot of their body and not the bat, and the hitter is called for the swing even though he never went around? 

In the case of Maddon and the Rays, the argument was that a strikeout with two runners on and Qualls being able to keep the score close could have been a momentum changer for the Rays. Instead it was the Rangers who were the beneficiary of the blown call by Jerry Meals. 

If the call had been in the regular season, it may not have been as big of a deal, but in this case the call has helped the Rangers take control of the series with a 2-0 lead on the Rays. Also, this is the playoffs; this is where only the best umpires should be calling the game, and that big of a blown call reflects on the ignorance of Bud Selig. 

Replay should have been expanded, but again Selig refused. 

Check swings aren’t the only plays that should be eligible to be reviewed. Plays at any base should be reviewed especially the close plays making sure that the runner either beat the throw, the tag was missed, or didn’t leave the base too early when tagging up. Also, if a ball is hit down the right or left field line whether the ball was fair or foul. 

Those would be the most common plays, but others would be making sure a fielder has caught the ball, so if the ball was trapped, if the outfielder goes for a catch but the ball hits the wall before being caught, or if there are runners on base the outfielder makes the catch but on transfer drops the ball, that could be reviewed, in terms of on the bases the play that needs to be reviewed are attempted double plays did the fielder actually have their foot on the bag when the ball was caught or was it in the vicinity of the bag?

Balls and strikes are the only plays that should not be reviewed, but hit by pitches should be. 

Don’t know how many times there’d be a replay in the process of a double play and the second basemen or short stop were nowhere near having the foot on the bag, yet the runner sliding into second is called out because the fielder was close to the bag. 

One of the more interesting plays that happened this year that could have been reviewed was a double play turned by the Oakland Athletics against the Minnesota Twins in Minnesota. Jim Thome was at the plate, and Delmon Young was on first base. 

Thome hit a flyball into left center where Rajai Davis camped underneath the ball, Young went half way and watched Davis because if he dropped the ball he’d easily get to second and if he caught the ball he’d go back to first. 

Davis did catch the ball but in the process of transferring the ball out of his glove, the ball fell. Young went to second without tagging up and was tagged out because he had not tagged up from first base as the ball was caught. 

Confusing play for Young right? From his vantage point he believed that Davis had dropped the ball and therefore did not have to tag up. The replay showed that Davis did in fact catch the ball, but in the process of throwing the ball back is when Davis dropped the ball. 

Even worse was the original ruling on the field that the ball was dropped, so Young was safe at second and Thome as well at first. Of course if that call stood it would have meant an entirely different scenario for the A’s. 

Instead of being two outs with no one on base it would have been no outs and runners on first and second. Bob Geren immediately ran out of the dugout to plead his case with the umpires and after a few minutes checking in with each umpire, the play was finally ruled correct a catch by Davis making Thome out and with Young not tagging up and being tagged out, he was out as well. 

Double play for the A’s. An irate Ron Gardenhire went out to argue his case, but it was too no avail, and eventually he was thrown out of the game. 

Now, if there was replay in baseball all Geren would have had to do is asked the umpire to review the play. Now after watching the replay the umpires could go over to both managers explain what happened and that’s the end of that; Gardenhire would have had the same explanation, and the umpire would have had visual proof that Davis caught the ball. 

The Florida Marlins had a game taken away from them because Bob Davidson made the wrong call. Even worse is the fact that even after watching the replay after the game, Davidson still believed he made the right call. Instead of a game-ending double, the Marlins went into extra innings and lost. 

Derek Jeter showed his true colors a few weeks ago when he pretended like he was hit by a pitch, when the reality was that the ball hit off the handle of the bat. So, instead of a foul ball, he was allowed first base. A few days later Jorge Posada tried doing the same thing, but the umpire wasn’t fooled.

Quite possibly the best example of why baseball needs replay was the perfect game that was lost by Armando Galarraga. Jim Joyce incorrectly ruled that John McDonald was safe on a play where Galarraga had to race over and take the throw for the out. 

Galarraga beat McDonald to first base, caught the ball, and stepped on first for the final out of the ninth inning, but Joyce ruled McDonald safe instead. Jim Leyland came out immediately from the dugout and argued. Joyce patiently let Leyland blow off his steam and didn’t eject him even though there are managers and players that have done far less to be ejected. 

After Joyce saw the replay, he knew that he had missed the call and in one of the best displays of sportsmanship, Galarraga forgave him for his mistake. If replay was available, all Leyland would have had to ask for is the replay, and the call would have been overturned, and Galarraga gets his perfect game. 

Yet, the biggest question that is going to need to be addressed for baseball is how to implement replay without slowing down the game even more? Should time even be a concern since baseball isn’t a game that is played with a time limit so how does a few minutes that fans are waiting for the ruling truly effect the time of the game? Would it be better to have the call made correct and have the game go 10 minutes longer than have a game that lasts for 10 minutes shorter, but the call clearly changes the outcome or momentum of the game? 

What baseball needs to do is grant managers the ability to look at the replay of a close play. There should be no limit of how many replays are used because a manager should not be punished for wanting the correct call to be made, so it’s not like football where if a challenge is lost there’s no more that can be used. 

The only question would be is where to keep the replay personnel unlike football there’s no headsets to radio down the call. Another question that should be asked is should an umpire on the field be the one looking at the replay or should there be a separate umpire in the dugout of the home team who’s role is to be ruling on the replay?

If a call isn’t even that close the umpire has the right to decline looking at the replay, so managers don’t take advantage of the little break to either have a pitcher get loose in the bullpen or to calm the pitcher on the mound down. 

Finally, obvious calls that need to be reviewed should be looked at before a manager even asks, such as on a ball that is down the line or is close at any of the bases. 

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When Billy Beane made no moves at the All-Star break to improve the Oakland A’s lineup, it was only a matter of time before the overachieving A’s squad started to crumble, and now that time has come. 

Over the last 10 games the A’s have gone 4-6 and went from second place in the American League West division, to third place, with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim now one and a half games ahead of the A’s. 

In that span, the A’s offense has averaged 2.5 runs per game. Looking further at just how miserable the offense has been, the A’s have been shutout twice and have scored two or less runs three times. 

Meaning that in five of the 10 games, the A’s have either been shutout or scored two or less runs. Luckily for the A’s, and why the record in the last 10 games isn’t even worse, is because of the A’s pitching. 

When looking over the 10 game span, the A’s pitchers have allowed 28 runs. It’s not hard to see why the A’s have the best ERA in the American League, but it’s also easy to see why the A’s have struggled so much. 

Today the A’s nearly got no hit by the Minnesota Twins and yet when the dust settled and the game was over, all the A’s could manage was two hits and two runs, which nearly was enough to win, but a three-run home run by Jim Thome made it virtually impossible for the A’s to comeback from a 4-0 deficit. 

Yet, the score could have been different in the game. In fact, the A’s could have come out with a 2-1 victory over the Twins, but another fine example of the fine managing of Bob Geren came into play. 

Jerry Blevins relieved Vin Mazzaro in the bottom of the seventh inning after Chris Carter misplayed a flyball off the bat of Orlando Hudson. Blevins came in to face Joe Mauer who he proceeded to walk. Jason Kubel struck out on a nasty off-speed pitch from Blevins. 

Michael Cuddyer then was robbed of extra bases on a tremendous diving stop by Daric Barton at first base, a play that saved the A’s at least two runs at the time. So, it looked like the A’s were out of the woods right? 

As Thome strolled to the plate, Brad Ziegler began to get himself ready in the bullpen. The first three pitches from Blevins were not even close to the strike zone and with two outs there was no reason to give in to Thome with a base open and Danny Valencia coming to the plate. 

Instead of doing what most managers would have done in the situation and that is put Thome on base, the A’s chose to go after Thome. That was a bad move on the A’s part as Thome took Blevins’ next pitch out of the ballpark. 

At the time of the home run, the A’s were trailing 1-0, that home run brought the score to 4-0. That at-bat by Thome is just another example of why the A’s need to fire Geren. 

Another reason is what happened in the top of the ninth inning. With Kevin Kouzmanoff opening the inning off with a single, he wasn’t pinch run for. In that situation, with the way the A’s offense has been going, Kouzmanoff should have been ran for. 

A reason for that is to keep the A’s from hitting into a double play, which is exactly what happened. Rajai Davis ended the game by grounding out to shortstop. 

Further proof of just how bad the A’s offense has been can be seen by each hitter that’s been in the lineup.

1. Coco Crisp: .394 average, three doubles, 15 hits, a homer, and five RBI

2. Daric Barton: .267 average, two triples, a double, eight hits, no homers, and one RBI

3. Kurt Suzuki: .162 average, two doubles, six hits, no homers, and three RBI

4. Jack Cust: .178  average, a double, five hits, no homers, and one RBI

5. Kevin Kouzmanoff: .114 average, two doubles, four hits, no homers, and three RBI

6. Mark Ellis: .294 average, four doubles, 10 hits, no homers, and four RBI

7. Rajai Davis: .243 average, three doubles, nine hits, no homers, and two RBI

8. Chris Carter: .000 average, zero doubles, zero hits, zero homers, and zero RBI

9. Cliff Pennington: .333 average, two doubles, a triple, zero homers, and zero RBI

Totals: 18 doubles, three triples, one home run, and 19 RBI

That’s the lineup the A’s have put out a majority of the time in the last 10 games. The question is, will the A’s snap out of the offensive funk the team is in? Not very likely because of the upcoming games the A’s have. 

The next few series the A’s play are against the Toronto Blue Jays, Tampa Bay Rays, Cleveland Indians (only winnable series for the A’s), Texas Rangers, and New York Yankees. 

With the way the A’s offense has been playing it wouldn’t be a surprise to find the team hovering around 10 games under .500 rather than at or above .500, the reason being is there doesn’t seem to be an end in sight for the A’s offense. 

Conor Jackson is scheduled to come off the disabled list. It may mean that Chris Carter gets sent down or one of the relievers. Even with Jackson’s bat in the lineup, it still doesn’t give the A’s much more offensively. 

What is the light at the end of the tunnel for the A’s? The answer is when September begins and the rosters expand, the A’s have a few call ups to make. 

First will be Michael Taylor since Carter is already up. Since Taylor started the season so slowly he’s done a much better job. He’s now hitting a respectable .264 after being in the .220s at the beginning of the year. 

Jeff Larish who’s already up will get a look he can play first, third, or be the designated hitter. 

Dallas McPherson is another option as he can play third base, first base, or be the designated hitter as well.

Corey Brown, an outfielder, could be called up, he’s got excellent speed and a good eye at the plate. 

Displaying these hitters will show what the A’s can look forward to the 2011 season. The pitching staff has been great all year. If the A’s are to make a run at the playoffs, the A’s need hitters. 

Regardless of where the players are in their development either at Sacramento or Midland, something needs to be done to ignite the A’s offense and give A’s fans some hope for the 2011 season.

The pitching is already there but the hitting is nowhere close. 

Besides the offense the question becomes when does it stop being the players fault and instead becomes the coaches fault? If a managers not able to get the best effort out of his players game in and game out doesn’t that mean it’s time for a change as well? 

If a manager refuses to go 100 percent into a different offensive philosophy based on the team’s roster? Is it fair to say that the manager should be gone? 

The answer is yes and until the A’s replace Geren, bring up some bats either from the minor leagues or trades in the offseason, and buy 100 percent into the offensive philosophy the A’s are going to continue to struggle. 

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Back in March of this year, Oakland A’s speedster Rajai Davis made a pretty bold prediction. He believed he could steal 75 to 80 bases in 2010.

That was a pretty bold prediction considering only seven players (Jose Reyes, Kenny Lofton, Tim Raines, Rickey Henderson, Marquis Grissom, Vince Coleman, and Ron LeFlore) have accomplished that feat in the last 30 years. Now that we are about two-thirds through the season, I wanted to see how Davis was doing in his prediction.

Going into last night’s action, Davis had swiped 34 bases, which puts him third in the American League. At his current pace, Davis would finish the season with 52 stolen bases. It’s good, but nowhere near matching the prediction Davis made in March.

I thought Davis would steal between 50 and 60 bases and here was my reason why back in March.

“Last year, Davis hit .305 with a .360 OBP. That OBP allowed him to steal 41 bases. History shows Davis won’t have that average or OBP again.

From 2006-2008, Davis averaged a .256 average with a .314 OBP. Those numbers won’t be good enough to steal 80 bases. It’s just not going to happen.

Let’s say Davis falls somewhere between his 2006-2008 seasons and his 2009 season. That would be a .275 average and a .330 OBP. Even with 500-600 AB’s, those numbers wouldn’t be good enough to steal 75-80 bases.

Jacoby Ellsbury led the American League in stolen bases in 2009 with 70 and he hit .301 and had an OBP of .355. Davis would have to pretty much repeat his 2009 season in order to steal more bases than Ellsbury.”

Just as I thought, Davis isn’t getting on base nearly enough times to steal 75 to 80 bases. He came into last night’s game with a .319 OBP. It’s very, very hard to steal 75-plus bases getting on base only 31 percent of the time.

As a matter of fact, if you take the OBP of the seven players I mentioned above in the seasons that they stole 75-plus bases, their average OBP comes out to .352.

Only Grissom (.317) was able to swipe 75-plus bases with an OBP below .320 in the years he accomplished the feat.

So next year, instead of predicting he will steal 80 bases, Davis should predict he will get on base 35 percent of the time. It will be a lot easier for him to steal those bases if he accomplishes that feat.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg

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The Oakland A’s played the biggest game of the season tonight against the Seattle Mariners. Now, some would say it’s way too soon to talk about big game especially since it’s only August 9, but with a young team like the A’s, any time the team has a chance to make ground on the division-leading Texas Rangers, it’s a big game. 

What were A’s fans treated to tonight? An absolute disgraceful performance offensively. Pitching-wise, Vin Mazzaro pitched extremely well after a shaky first inning. He ended the night going seven innings, giving up three runs, two earned, while striking out five and walking two. 

Not a bad start for Mazzaro, although the one complaint could be after getting Chone Figgins and Casey Kotchman is, what was he doing pitching around Russell Branyan in the first inning? 

As a result, it led to two runs because the next batter, Jose Lopez, followed with a RBI single scoring Ichiro, who opened the game up with a single. Franklin Guttierez was able to take a hanging slider to right field for a RBI single scoring Branyan. 

It looked bad when Mazzaro got behind in the count to Ryan Langerhans, but Mazzaro was able to get out of further trouble by striking Langerhans out on a 3-2 pitch. 

Overall, the A’s had excellent opportunities to score runs. The biggest moment of the game was in the top of the fourth inning and further proves why Bob Geren is not the manager that will lead the A’s to the playoffs. 

Jack Cust opened the inning up with a single and Kevin Kouzmanoff walked, putting runners on first and second with no outs. The A’s hadn’t been hitting well with runners in scoring  position; in fact, when Kurt Suzuki came up in the top of the third, the A’s had been 0-for-30 with runners in scoring position. 

What the issue is that Geren decided to push the envelope instead of playing it safe. Mark Ellis had been the A’s best hitter with runners in scoring position, but knowing that the A’s had been struggling to get runs in with runners on base it would have been a much better decision to bunt. 

Instead Geren chooses to let Ellis swing away. What does Ellis do? He grounds into the inning-ending triple play! Let me restate that: He grounds into the inning-ending triple play! 

Now, in reality, the call was missed. Ellis definitely beat the throw from Chone Figgins to first, but either way two runners were out and the A’s were now 0-for-31 with runners in scoring position. 

The A’s only scoring came on a double by Rajai Davis. Coco Crisp opened up the sixth inning with a leadoff single. Davis then pulled the ball down the left field line, scoring Crisp from first. 

Suzuki again came up with a runner in scoring position and he grounded out to second base moving Davis to third with one out. Make it 0-for-32 for the A’s with runners in scoring position. 

Next up for the A’s was Cust, who had two hits previously, but he ended up striking out making it 0-for-33 for the A’s with runners in scoring position. Kevin Kouzmanoff couldn’t come up with a big two out hit making the string with runners in scoring position. Oh-for-34. 

There’s not much to say about the rest of the game for the A’s offensively since that point in the game as they went 0-for-12, not even making a dent off struggling closer David Aardsma. 

What a disgraceful way to start a series for the A’s. The Mariners are one of the worst teams in baseball and the A’s can’t even gain ground on the Rangers, who were idle today, and in fact lost positioning in the standings because of tonight’s game. 

Even worse, though, for the A’s is that Felix Hernandez is starting tomorrow night’s game. So, instead of sweeping a team that came into tonight with only 42 wins, the A’s could be the team that gets swept—not a good sign when the A’s had a chance of gaining ground on the Rangers. 

The reason why the A’s had an excellent chance to make up some some substantial ground on the Rangers is because the Rangers are facing the New York Yankees the next two games.

Tonight, though, is just another example of the long list of reasons why Geren should be fired at the end of season regardless of where the A’s finish. The only way he saves his job is if the A’s make the playoffs, and under his direction that doesn’t seem very likely.  

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It’s a little too soon to think about the offseason, but with the injuries mounting for the Oakland A’s it’s only a matter of time before the rosters expand. Then the A’s will be  looking at what the roster maybe like for the 2011 season. 

With that being said what players are likely to stay? What players are likely going to be gone? I’ll start with the infielders and finish with the relief pitchers. 

The catcher position is the most stable position for the A’s with Kurt Suzuki signing a four year contract extension. Landon Powell is a solid backup behind Suzuki, he was behind the plate when Dallas Braden’s threw his perfect game. 

At first base this is where it gets interesting especially if the A’s aren’t in striking distance of the Texas Rangers. It’s almost certain that Chris Carter will be called up when the rosters expand to 40. 

Carter is the future of the A’s and is the power bat the A’s have been desperately seeking since Frank Thomas left as a free agent after the 2006 season. The problem is that the A’s have Daric Barton at first base. 

Which, could mean that Barton’s expendable or that he’s going to be asked to switch positions either to third base which he has some experience playing when he was in the minors or to the outfield. 

Second base Ellis should remain the starter, he doesn’t strike out much, can hit for power and is outstanding on defense. 

For shortstop the job still remains Cliff Pennington as the A’s really don’t have much depth at the position. 

Kevin Kouzmanoff’s at third base is a great defensive third basemen, but isn’t truly a middle of the order hitter which the A’s need. The A’s could certainly send him in a package deal in the offseason. 

A player that will likely remain on the A’s roster for his versatility and his hustle is Adam Rosales who played in the outfield and all four infield spots.

In left field for the A’s Rajai Davis will continue to split time at all three positions, his speed is a definite boost to the club and he’s been rather durable since arriving in Oakland. 

Coco Crisp in center signed only a one year contract with a club option, but the A’s will more than likely buy out his contract and hope to sign him for less or if he decides to go somewhere else Davis could return to his more natural position of center field. 

In right field is Ryan Sweeney who should be recovered from his knee injury could still be out of a job. With Michael Taylor starting to hit in Sacramento, Sweeney could be traded in the offseason depending on his health. 

Backup outfielders include Matt Watson, Matt Carson, Gabe Gross, and Jack Cust. Out of the four only Cust should remain with the A’s especially if Carter and Taylor can show they can hit at the Major League level once they are called up. 

The starting rotation will be interesting thanks to a plethora of young talent for the A’s. 

Brett Anderson and Trevor Cahill will be at the top of the rotation, Dallas Braden will be third, Gio Gonzalez fourth, and Vin Mazzaro fifth. Yet, I wouldn’t be surprised if there were some trades involving the A’s young pitching. 

In my opinion Gonzalez and Mazarro are expendable and either one could be used in a trade involving Barton, Sweeney, or Kouzmanoff. For the A’s in Sacramento there’s Clayton Mortenson and Tyson Ross, but more importantly coming back from injury is Josh Outman. 

What was supposed to be the strength of the A’s in 2010 was the bullpen, but instead it was a weakness. Michael Wuertz struggled and I could see him being traded during the offseason. Jerry Blevins had been struggling but has been better as of late, Brad Ziegler continues to struggle and could be moved as well. 

Relievers like Cedric Bowers, Henry Rodriguez, and Ross Wolf need to start being used a little bit more as the season progresses to build up their confidence and show what they can do at the big league level. 

Bowers is 32 years of age but since he’s left handed he has a fit in the Majors, Rodriguez is the youngest he has a dominating fastball he needs to work on locating his offspeed pitches, and Wolf is 27 with not much experience yet. 

Andrew Bailey and Craig Breslow have been the only consistent relievers the A’s have had all year. 

Rodriguez should be a setup man in 2011 if he can find his command, Bowers will more than likely begin the year in Sacramento, same can be said for Wolf. Coming back from injury Joey Devine who will find a spot in the bullpen. 

Looking at the players currently on the disabled list. Eric Chavez should retire, Travis Buck will either be released or find his way back to the minors, Conor Jackson should be with the A’s in 2011 as a fourth outfielder and backup first basemen, John Meloan will begin in Sacramento, Justin Duchscherer will be released, and Ben Sheets will not be resigned either. 

So, the players likely staying for the A’s are Suzuki, Powell, Ellis, Pennington, Rosales, Davis, Jackson, Bowers, Rodriguez, Wolf, Bailey, and Breslow. 

Likely out include: Barton, Crisp, Gonzalez, Mazarro, Wuertz, Ziegler, Buck, Chavez, Duchscherer, and Sheets.

Coming back from injuries: Devine, Outman, and Sweney.

What will be interesting is if the A’s do make any trades during the offseason and what kind of players will they get in return.

Here’s what a possible lineup for the A’s could look like for next year:

1. Davis, CF

2. Jackson, LF

3. Taylor, RF

4. Carter, 1B

5. Suzuki, C

6. Cust, DH

7. Barton, 3B

8. Ellis, 2B

9. Pennington, SS

Utility:

1. Rosales

2. Powell

3. Corey Wimberly

4. Carson

The Starting rotation would look like this:

1. Anderson

2. Cahill

3. Braden

4. Mortenson

5. Outman/Ross

Relivers: 

1. Bowers

2. Blevins

3. Jon Hunton

4. Devine

5. Rodriguez

6. Breslow

7. Bailey 

This lineup doesn’t take into account free agency or who the A’s could possibly get in a trade, so the offseason for the A’s could be big because they have plenty of young pitching talent and a few players that could attract some interest. 

But, the biggest fix of all for A’s fans should be the firing of Bob Geren and hitting coach Jim Skaalen. 

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A fistful of names in baseball this year are steadily producing, but not necessarily gaining the recognition that they deserve. Many of these performances that are flying under the radar are overshadowed by those of early Cy Young and MVP candidates.

By now, Ubaldo Jimenez, Albert Pujols, Miguel Cabrera and others are household names this year. But who else will stand tall with these names as the season rolls on, and who will be surprising contributors in baseball?

Here is a handful of players in Major League Baseball who seem to be getting lost in translation behind the league leaders and flashiest of names.

Begin Slideshow

Okay so I’m a little late with Part II of my season-long look into the lost art of the stolen base. You can read part I here as a template for what future articles in this series will look like (if you are a new reader of mine). For those that aren’t, yes it’s the same format.

In a league where I’d like to see a 100-steal man, that is no longer possible as 80 has become the new 100 in terms of unattainable records. No one’s stolen even that many since Vince Coleman’s 81 in 1988 so why not make that the new standard, seeing how it likely won’t be reached anyway.

At the current pace, this season unfortunately will hold true to form.

As of June 1 here were the top five league leaders:

1. Rajai Davis (pictured) Oakland A’s.

Stole 12 bases in 14 attempts (85.7 percent) for the month of May. His season total to date is 22 as he stole 10 bases in April, and he’s currently on pace for 69 for the season. When you lead the league in steals, you get your picture in the article.

Last month in was Juan Pierre on the Sox page, this month maybe Athletics fans will come to know the series I’ve come to write.

April: 10/10

May: 12/14

June: ???

With any player you’d obviously like to see him increase his base steals each month as the season goes on. So far, Davis is not disappointing in that regard. In fact, if history is any indication Davis should heat up (no pun intended), this summer as he stole 15 bases last August and 11 in September! In a league without a Coleman this era, it appears he’s the best we got.

2. Juan Pierre, Chicago White Sox

Stole 10 bases in 11 attempts in May. His season total is 22 and he’s on pace for 67 for the season.

April: 9/12

May: 10/11

June: ????

Like Davis, Pierre’s numbers are increasing. However, they are misleading as the league leader after April only stole one base after May 15-exactly half the month.

This means that he stole nine bases in the team’s first 13 games which would have (in theory) put him on pace to steal a very eerie Carl Crawford-esque 26 steals in May, similar to how Crawford stole 21 last May.

When you look at it in that perspective, the always frustrating Pierre simply faded away which he has a history of being a nice player, but despite the speed and ability simply desires to be “good enough” when “great” could be a real possibility. Thus, the story of his career.

3. Brett Gardener, New York Yankees

My pick for “first to fade away” did not disappoint in May only swiping eight bases in 11 attempts, giving him 19 for the season on pace for 57.

As the Yankees continue to improve in the standings, expect him to fade away as getting on base and scoring runs become more important to the team that simply moving up 90 feet.

April: 10/11

May: 8/11

June: ????

Gardner’s numbers are all ready going down. Expect more of the same as he’s deemed “too valuable” and ” versatile” to risk injury.

4. Michael Bourn, Houston Astros

Stole eight bases in 12 attempts in May, giving him 18 for the season and putting him on pace for 54.

April: 9/11

May: 8/12

June: ????

Bourn’s numbers are startlingly going down for a player that was steadily improving last summer in this fashion. Not surprisingly his league ranking dropped from third to fourth. For a team going nowhere, why isn’t he running more with nothing to lose?

5. Elvis Andrus, Texas Rangers

Finally a wild card to the discussion! The super-youthful (21) Andrus is easily the most promising of the stolen base fraternity (to date) having stole 11 bases in 16 attempts in May.

April: 7/10

May: 11/16

June: ????

Unlike Gardner his numbers are going up, and outside Davis, no one stole more bases in May than Andrus. Only concern is he may have a bit of Nyger Morgan-like carelessness on the base paths already getting caught eight times on the season in only 26 attempts (69 percent).

In a league that prides itself on an 80 percent target rate, 69 percent just won’t cut it. Still, you have to like his aggressiveness and the fact that his team (29-25) is still in first place, (albeit in a very weak division) despite his struggles.

This is a classic case of having to take the bad with the good and Andrus is only going to get better. In fact, last season I predicted he would soon be a league leader in my final article in the 2009 season-long look and had him pegged for 50.

Well, there you have it. Check back around July 1 for the latest installment into the lost art of the stolen base with updates and projections and what it all means.

Statistics and information from ESPN.com and Wikipedia directly contributed to the content in this article.

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Friday marked the sixth time Bleacher Report and I have been welcomed into the press box at the Oakland Coliseum. My five previous trips were all stellar experiences, but this one felt different the minute I crossed the parking lot’s threshold.

Generally when I arrive around 3:30 pm, the lot is dotted with one hand’s worth of early birds. Today, the number was closer to triple digits.

Barbecues were in full smoke, games of catch featuring both footballs and baseballs were breaking out, and there was a general air of festivity hanging over the scene.

Once inside the stadium, the special atmosphere only got thicker.

More than a few t-shirts amongst the media members had been replaced by suits and ties, glitterati from the Bay Area press were out in full force, and there was even a cluster of representatives from a Chinese television station that were clearly there for the spectacle and nothing else.

When you’re pulling dudes to a baseball game who have to ask what a perfect game is, you know you’re a big deal.

To remove any doubt that the day was unique, Oakland manager Bob Geren was downright jovial in his session with the media. Heretofore, I’d only seen a no-nonsense version face the barrage of questions.

This time, however, he was hamming it up with Kate Longworth of CSN Bay Area and kidding around with other reporters in the pool.

Sure, the pregame ceremony celebrating Dallas Braden’s perfect game had something to do with the warm-fuzzies.

The southpaw was already popular with Oakland Athletic fans, but he vaulted into “adored” status following the stout defense of his pitching mound from the onrushing hordes (yes, a juiced up Alex Rodriguez counts as a horde). Consequently, the perfecto he twirled on Mother’s Day launched him into even more cherished territory.

Possibly divine.

So more than a few of the faithful were there to see the home team honor Stockton’s favorite son. Furthermore, baseball history typically puts a smile on the organization that authors it.

Nevertheless, this was more about the main event—the first game of the 2010 Bay Bridge Series between the A’s and their cross-Bay rivals, the San Francisco Giants.

For many baseball aficionados in the City and Oakland, this is as good as it gets on a diamond.

Major League Baseball’s Northern Californian constituents have met 74 times since Interleague play began and rarely fail to deliver a tense, exciting game. To that end, familiarity has only nurtured contempt bred by the 1989 Bay Bridge World Series—at least as far as the fans are concerned.

The green and gold leads the regular season confrontations with a 39-35 record as it does the postseason meetings (13-5). All is not gloom and doom for the Orange and Black, though, as it has taken seven of the last eight contests, so it’s a nip/tuck type affair.

The current iteration promises to bring more of the same.

Both franchises come into the series deploying a similar formula to win—superlative pitching, solid defense (better than that in Oaktown’s case), and timely hitting. If matchups make a metaphoric fight, this three-gamer should be a bloody knuckle war of attrition because both sides have had success with the approach.

Granted, some of the attrition has already started as the pair comes in scuffling.

San Francisco has fallen all the way to third place in the National League West, courtesy of a recent jag that’s seen the fellas lose eight of their last 13 games and three of four. As has been the case all year, los Gigantes had a devil of a time navigating local waters—dropping six of those eight to NL West foes in the San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks.

Meanwhile, the smell emanating from the Elephants’ dugout is no sweeter.

The Athletics have eaten L’s in seven of their last nine trips to the yard, including two straight after a couple of victories over the Seattle Mariners broke a five-game slide. Coincidentally, all five were against American League West opponents.

In other words, it was the classic “something’s got to give” scenario.

Give it did as the Athletics touched up a resurgent Barry Zito.

The Junior Circuit reps used some very well-placed, bloop doubles to conjure up a trio of runs in the bottom of the third inning and didn’t look back from there. The Gents’ lefty pitched well before tiring in the seventh, but the knocks came in bunches and the result was a six-spot on the scoreboard before he hit the showers.

Ex-Giant Rajai Davis, who tipped his hand early with a loud batting practice, was the main culprit. The speedster landed the most crippling of the bloopers in the third, stole third base, and notched a sacrifice fly to plate the third of his three RBI from the No. 9 hole.

On the mound, a suffocating blend of Trevor Cahill, Brad Ziegler, and Craig Breslow kept the San Francisco lumber in check—an increasingly easy task at the moment. In fairness, the visiting offense did manage to bang out eight hits.

Alas, the Oakland hurlers were able to sprinkle the damage harmlessly throughout the nine frames (only John Bowker tallied a run for SF) and secure a much-needed W.

In so doing, the home team tied a neat bow on an ideal evening for the organization.

And it ruined one for the San Francisco Giants.

**www.pva.org**

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We knew Dallas Braden was good. We knew he was tough. We knew he had a bit of fight in him. But just how good he could be was simply astonishing. Who knew he could be perfect?

27 up, and 27 down.

On a perfect Mother’s Day, you really couldn’t ask for more. Sure Braden got some really good help from Kevin Kouzmanoff, and the rest of the Oakland A’s defense, but as Dallas said after the A-Rod debacle “I don’t care if I’m Cy Young or if I’m the 25th man on the roster, if I’ve got that ball in my hand and I’m out there on that mound, that’s not your mound. If you want to run across the mound, go run laps in the bullpen. That’s my mound.”

It certainly was his mound Sunday. As if every pink bat, arm band, and ribbon fired him up; Braden retired batter after batter with spot-on location on each and every throw. Dallas, for the day, was simply un-hittable.

The team refused to let him down too. Kevin Kouzmanoff made several great plays: he snagged a slicer at the third-base line, followed a foul ball into the dugout, and hit a splitting Daric Barton on first after scooping up an exceptionally tough grounder.

Barton would also quickly glove a potential hit in the ninth.  Rajai Davis, Ryan Sweeney, and Eric Patterson devoured everything that came their way in the out field. Cliff Pennington and Adam Rosales walled off the middle infield. And, of course, catcher Landon Powell called an exceptional game.

A whopping 12,228 fans showed up to witness the historic Mother’s Day marvel.

I sense more fan attendance in the A’s future, especially when Braden pitches. I sense jersey sales increasing. I sense a contract extension for a future franchise player.

This guy’s for real, and these A’s are for real.

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Written by Max Lush and Hunter McDowell

Give us credit. If you followed Man Cave Sports on Facebook or Twitter, you would have already known about Dallas Braden.

We wrote a feature article this week on Braden and how he could break out at any moment. I suggest you get on the ball if you haven’t heard about Man Cave Sports yet.

For just the nineteenth time in MLB history, a perfect game was thrown Sunday, or better known as Mother’s Day.

Dallas Braden , you know that  pitcher on the A’s with a handful of wins ?  Well, he just threw a perfect game against the Tampa Bay Rays, the team with the best record, not bad for just his eighteenth win in the majors.

If you’re like me, and the rest of Man Cave Sports , Braden became a hero after his run-in with Alex Rodriguez , who as far as I can tell, isn’t liked by anyone outside of the Pin Stripe faithful.

When A-Rod was notified about the feat he said, ”I’ve learned in my career, it is much better to be recognized for all the great things you do on the field,” Rodriguez said. “Good for him, he threw a perfect game. And better yet, he beat the Rays, but  no more about him, please.”

No more about him, please? It sounds like Rodriguez may soon have nightmares about Braden.

It was impressive that a guy with just “a handful of wins” believes in himself, and the unwritten rules of baseball enough to exchange words with one of the game’s best.

Braden’s grandmother was quoted as saying “Stick it, A-Rod.” Happy Mother’s Day to her too!

If his continued rants about the issue have showed us anything, it is that Braden is an extremely confident pitcher, but he’s confident not the same way that A-rod is, where it comes off as smug.  He believes in himself, and more than anything wants to see his team succeed before he does.

While some may find his confidence annoying, and ask why he continues to talk about the A-rod fiasco, maybe it will make more sense when you see that ESPN doesn’t mention his chance at a perfect game until the 8th inning had rolled around.  If that was a pitcher on the Yankees or Red Sox, ESPN would have that as front page news after the 5th inning.

What’s more surprising is that Braden still hasn’t earned recognition amongst the media.  Fox Sports’ website ran this headline “A-Rod’s nemesis has perfect game through seven-innings.”  It just shows that a small-market team like the A’s doesn’t get as much respect as the Yankees or Sox do.

And the poor Rays, perfect gamed twice in less than a year’s time .  They really do not like left-handed pitchers who work fast.  What’s more surprising is that both Buehrle’s and Braden’s perfect games happened with back-up catchers, as Kurt Suzuki is on the DL for the A’s.

Although, Landon Powell and Braden have a strong history together.  “We were drafted the same year, he was one of the first guys I caught in pro-ball,” Powell said after the game.

In order for a perfect game to be even remotely possible, the pitcher and catcher must be working in unison, and both players need to completely believe in each other.  “He was putting the right fingers down every time, ” Braden said of Powell.  “It’s not like we’re strangers.”

Still, what is so surprising is that this happened to the Rays, again.  The Rays have scored 174 runs this season, the second-best mark in the majors.  Their line-up comes at opposing pitchers with speed and power throughout, putting a lot of pressure on opposing defenses.  “None of those guys over there are easy outs,” Braden said of the Rays.

After a long hug with his grandmother by the dug-out, Braden did an interview with the A’s television broadcasters saying, “You ain’t got nothing to say, it was perfect,” while smiling.  Those that follow the A’s love Braden’s personality and the fire he brings to the clubhouse.

Most importantly, in a moment that is mostly about Braden, he put the spot light on those around him.  “It feels pretty cool, this is without a doubt a team effort,” Braden said.  “This is ours, not mine, this ours.”

This sums up everything there is to love about Braden.  This is about you Braden, whether you know it or not.  You are the 19th person in Major League history to accomplish what you just accomplished.  Not even Nolan Ryan threw a perfect game.  You’re the first A’s player since the great Catfish Hunter in 1968.  These things do not happen often.

This was his first promotion of “209″ day for his hometown of Stockton, Calif., it was mother’s day, it was Braden’s day.  He worked inside with his fastball, he worked outside with his change-up, and he never let a single Rays’ player get on base.

It’s weird how rare feats like this work out, where people often say that “the stars aligned,” because there is no feasible explanation as to why something so unfeasible could occur.

This is a moment that I will remember watching for the rest of my life.  And I can imagine that it’s a moment A-Rod may wish never happened, because he will forever be linked to Dallas Braden.  Maybe next time, A-Rod will think before stepping into Bradenia.

Braden may go on to have just an average season, maybe even a career, but the legend that is Dallas Braden will become a hero to many children in the Bay Area, and to the many “Davids” of the world who want to find the strength to slay Goliath.

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