A's selections through day 2:

1. (18) Sonny Gray, RHP, Vanderbilt

3. (105) B.A. Vullmoth, SS, Southern Mississippi

4. (136) Bobby Crocker, CF, Cal Poly

5. (166) Beau Taylor, C, Central Florida

6. (196) Dayton Alexander, CF, Feather River College (Calif.) (JC)

7. (226) Blake Treinen, RHP, South Dakota State

8. (256) Colin O'Connell, RHP, Cal State Fullerton

9. (286) Jace Fry, LHP, Beaverton (OR) Southridge HS

10. (316) Dusty Robinson, OF, Fresno State

11. (346) Christopher Lamb, LHP, Davidson

12. (376) Xavier Macklin, OF, North Carolina A&T

13. (406) Jacob Tanis, 3B, Mercer

14. (436) Nicholas Rickles, C, Stetson

15. (466) Thomas Walz, RHP, Kansas

16. (496) Tanner Peters, RHP, UNLV

17. (526) Sean Jamieson, SS, Canisius

18. (556) David Powers, LHP, Sam Houston State

19. (586) Eric Potter, LHP, Maryland

20. (616) Kurt Wunderlich, RHP, Michigan State

21. (646) Brandon Magee, CF, Arizona State

22. (676) Rhett Stafford, OF, Marshall

23. (706) Cecil Tanner, RHP, Georgia

24. (736) Max Kuhn, SS, Zionsville (IN) Community HS

25. (766) Chad Oberacker, CF, Tennessee Tech

26. (796) John Roberts, SS, Virginia Military Institute

27. (826) Derek Self, RHP, Louisville

28. (856) Thomas Girdwood, RHP, Elon

29. (886) Nate Eppley, RHP, Rider

30. (916) Nate Killcrease, RHP, Alabama

I was looking back through my fanposts (nee diaries) on AN, just for old times sake, and apparently, all I've been good for are draft day threads and research, GoG scores, win expectation charts, and two DLDs.

 

Continue reading this post »

so we all know about the first round picks, if not... go back to the main page...

now about the rest of them...
(6) 210. - Scott Hodsdon, Azusa Pacific, RHP, Sr.
(7) 240. - Lance Sewell, SDSU, LHP, Jr.
(8) 270. - Daniel Schlereth, Arizona, LHP, Jr.
(9) 300. - Eric Berger, Arizona, LHP, So.
(10) 330. - Daniel Hamblin, Arkansas, 1B, Sr. (we picked him last year...)
(11) 360. - Michael Richard, Prarie View A&M, SS, Sr.
(12) 390. - Gary Brown, Diamond Bar (CA) HS, CF
(13) 420. - Justin Friend, Oklahoma State, RHP, Jr.
(14) 450. - Jordan Smith, Texas Tech, C, Jr.
(15) 480. - Brad Hertzler, Maine, LHP, Jr.
(16) 510. - Brett Lysander, Sonoma State, RHP, Jr.
(17) 540. - Stephen Hunt, Jesuit HS (Tampa, FL), LHP
(18) 570. - Matt Ray, Middle Tennessee State, SS, Sr.
(19) 600. - Michael Napoleon, Iowa, C, Jr.
(20) 630. - Daniel Wentzell, George Fox Univ, RF, Sr.
(21) 660. - Stephen Portlier, Oklahoma, RHP, So.
(22) 690. - Aaron Jenkins, Northern Iowa, LHP, Jr.
(23) 720. - James Pruitt, U Montevallo, OF, Sr.
(24) 750. - Raymond Rodriguez, PR BB Academy, RF
(25) 780. - Jareck West, Delta State, CF, Jr.

I'm done... if someone want's to fill the next about 15 picks, go ahead... the A's probably won't go 50 picks again. (and I'm wrong... figures, considering how many college juniors the A's took.)

By the way, HollywoodOz has done an awesome job nabbing info on everyone at NFTN.

Continue reading this post »

   If you read this on the livejournal group, it's the same exact thing. AN swallowed my two previous postings.

So, I went to Fenway Park today. Went at 12 for a 2 o'clock game to get the ticket that I had left for myself at will call. It was baking, 91 at first pitch, and staying at 93. No wind anywhere. I was out past the overhang in right field, so basically, it just plain sucked. I went through about 6 bottles of liquid (I only brought 4...), and I only had 1 Fenway Frank. It's funny, you know the thing's four bucks, and it pisses you off that it's four bucks, but you just have to have one. Just a tad funky, I think. Saw an A's win, had awesome seats, you'll see where later, but yeah. Great game, except for the heat. Felt like I died several times over, or something. It was insane.

Some random Fenway points:

• 3rd inning: Beachball hits me in face. Beachballs?! I thought they only did that in Anaheim. It was a bit annoying, and kind of disrupting.
  
• 6th inning: Wally, the mascot, who isn't as cool as Stomper, came up to me, and shot me (and my scorecard) with a water gun. Didn't do a lot of damage, but it was funny. I just kind of looked at him, looked at the scoreboard, and shrugged. He then went away.
  
• 8th inning: Top: Wave came. It sucked. People were actually getting into it too, never mind that it was a 5-1 game at the time. To be fair, Tavarez was taking it really slowly on the mound, and it was really hard to pay attention to the game. It was weird, because the bleachers started chanting "Let's go Red Sox," but then the wave came and the cheer died. Bottom: What's with Sweet Caroline? As far as I can tell, it has nothing to do with either Boston or baseball... I guess this article explains it, though. Kind of funky.

Continue reading this post »

Game Recaps:
Giants, Bonds limp off with loss (San Jose Mercury)
A's run past Giants in 9th Bonds gets rare steal, but Benitez fails again (Oakland Tribune)
A's way is one way (San Francisco Chronicle)
Swisher sends A's past Giants in opener (oaklandathletics.com)
AP story

Injuries? What injuries?
Thomas: expects to be back on Friday; has returned to Oakland after spending a few days at home in Vegas. Took BP yesterday. (source)
Duchscherer: returned and owned.
Witasick: suffering from tendinitis in his recently sprained left ankle; undergoing shockwave treatment. Witasick on shockwave treatments: "That's gotta be the equivalent of giving birth out of your ankle." (same source)
Bradley: won't swing a bat until next week (source)
Kennedy: long toss on flat ground yesterday, will see how he feels today
Ellis: some hitting work and BP; thumb has improved according to x-rays; not far from rehab? (source)

Supposedly, the jerseys from yesterday were autographed and are to be auctioned off, but I can't find confirmation on it. Anyone care to get Benitez's?

In case you didn't know, Barry Zito is being sued by WHAM!BAM!GashouseGangStanTheManThankYouMa'am-
ManRaybAnNeDManRamBamBamSpamLand'O'LakesCan-
CandyCornHolioJeffFlakes Construction Co.

Other random stuff:
The English and Germans fight in Stuttgart
Ozzie Guillen still doesn't like the media
Aaron Harang threw ANOTHER shutout
Steve Moore whacker Bertuzzi traded to Miami, where apparently, they play hockey
They are no longer the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, making Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, California look more ridiculous

So, how does one do this?

Game Recaps?
MLB.com/Oakland
Chron
Trib

Injury Reports? Duchscherer and Kennedy Of note in the first article: He hasn't felt this good in a long, long time, according to Larry Davis. That means it's probably not true, right? Hopefully, of course, it is.

I found this when I searched "Oakland Tribune" on Google News... Trouble from the Gnat camp.
"It's a bunch of [junk]," he said. "This [deleted] team is not going to be good like this. If it doesn't change, it's going to be [messed] up. . . . It's like we never do something right. They only want to put you down on the ground, make you feel dirty and make you feel bad." - Armando Benitez
The joys of KNBR, or at least, the negative aspect of it. There's some other flowery language in that article as well.

Meanwhile, out here: La New Bears are struggling to maintain the lead they've built up. Yes, it's the CPBL, where the outfielders get worse jumps than Eric Byrnes, sometimes even going the wrong way, diving, and missing. It hurts to watch. (In case you care, La New signed Chen Chin-feng, the former Dodger, last season.)

Here's a Catfish Stew link, since I read it. Gives light on the Zito situation, and what Billy might do.

In two completely different stories from Saint Louis, Ankiel's return is delayed, and... well, we know about Pujols' trainer already.

And this post from over half a year ago still holds true.

Are the footballs in Germany behaving like knuckleballs?

Some advertiser needs a lesson in scoreboard reading.

To conclude, I'd like to thank AN on keeping me updated on all things Oakland A's while I'm halfway across the globe. It's hard being an NRAF.

And the DLD is being posted at 18:38, or 3:38PST. I supposed I could wait another 5 1/2 hours and post tomorrow's DLD?

That said, have fun with the thread. I won't be here to control it... I'll be asleep. And I didn't do that bad, did I?

Bumped to front page to continue Draft Day Madness '06 - louismg

We need a new one. We got the first to thread.

A's picks so far:

2. Trevor Cahill, RHP, Vista HS, Vista, CA. Could be a signability issue, since he's committed to Dartmouth, and that scholarship is worth a lot of money, plus an education.
   
3. Matt Sulentic, SS-OF, Hillcrest HS, Dallas, TX. He's a hitting monster, with crazy stats, and with a BA approaching 600 an OBP over 700, with 19 jacks.
4. Chad Lee, LHP, Barton Co JC, Great Bend, KS. He's from OK. Coming back from an ACL injury just last year. Plus fastball and a good curve. Health questions abound. Stats not all too good this year.
5. Jermaine Mitchell, CF, UNC-Greensboro. I refer you to that. The MLB radio guys didn't know about him, and DraftTracker gives no info. Hit 397/493/568/1061. 24/30 on steals, so is fast.
6. Andrew Bailey, RHP, Wagner. 2.03 ERA this past year, in 44 1/3 IP. Struck out 53, walked 16. Wagner profile here. Is a junior, had TJ surgery this year.
7. Michael Leake, RHP, Fallbrook (CA) HS. I think he finished 10-1, with a bunch of Ks, or something. Info is really scarce on him.
8. Angel Sierra, CF, Puerto Rico Baseball Academy. That's an info black hole. I've tried. It doesn't work.
9. Danny Hamblin, 1b, U of Arkansas. Hit 289/382/557/939 in the SEC. All below his average. Arkansas profile here.
10. Christian Vitters, SS, Fresno State. He's a junior. (profile). 340/431/557/988 in the WAC. stats. Was the WAC player of the year, but also broke a finger.
11. Jason Fernandez, RHP, Louisana-Lafayette. 2.86 ERA, 101 Ks/37bbs in 91 1/3 innings. 9 hbps, 9 wild pitches. Was 9-2. (profile)
12. Shane Pertussi, RHP, Franklin Pierce Coll. 2.64 ERA, 9-2. 95k, 31bb in 85 1/3 ip.
13. Ben Jukich, LHP, Dakota Wesleyan. He's good.
14. Toddrick Johnson, CF, Southern Miss. (profile). Lefty, hitting 363/444/552/996 against CUSA. Has 11 jacks.
15. Kyle Christensen, RHP, Millikan HS, Long Beach, CA. MaxPreps stats. Not very good a team, had to forfeit several times this year. 1.64 ERA, 75 Ks and 15 bb in 64ip.
16. Branden Dewing, LHP, San Jos? State. (profile). 3.14 ERA, 7-5. 114 1/3 IP, 72 K, 31 BB, .251 BAA.
17. Michael Affronti, SS, LeMoyne College. (profile). 389/434/662/1096 against the MAAC. (stats).
18. Michael Ambort, C, LaMar University. He's a junior. (profile). Played only 6 games this year. Set all kinds of records in 2005.

Also signed last year's 36th round pick, Shane Keough, the draft-and-follow from last year.

Everything's under the cut this time.

Continue reading this post »

Thought some of you guys would like to see this... so here it is. (For those of you on the Diaries menu, everything is under the cut, since the image is huge.)

Poll

What was weirdest?

16%

The Huff impression of Bill Buckner

4 votes

20%

The fact that Macha has not been fired yet

5 votes

29%

The Payton "stolen base"

7 votes

33%

The double play, which was either a triple play or a blown infield fly call, depending on the manager you listen to

8 votes

24 votes | Poll has closed

Continue reading this post »

Z's ERA again lowered, but did not reach an area code, though it came quite close.  Since 753 does not exist, the closest area code is:

754: Broward County, Florida

2006 BET Index

Game   ERA    Target

  3    7.53   near Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
  2    8.59   Lexington, Kentucky
  1   47.25   deep space

(Since I have nothing better to do this Saturday morning, I hijacked crosis' feature. Sorry, crosis.)

So since none of the fantasy threads can be recommended anymore, I've decided to make this so hopefully consolidate most of the talk (and not bump other worthy diaries off the page) and allow us commissioners who have yet to fill our leagues a space to get people to fill said leagues.

If you want to ask for fantasy advice, go ahead, and see how far you get.

If you want to play with this as an open thread, go straight ahead. I have no objections, and can't stop you. (Besides that, I cleverly hid "OPEN THREAD" behind the ellipsies anyhow...)

A's Offer New Contract to Macha

Update2 [2005-10-4 19:30:38 by Jjjsixsix]: Looks like the talks are somewhat serious, but maybe not. Thanks, gotgreen.

Well. Newsworthy, no? Anyhow, they're trying to bring Macha and his gum-chewing self back to Oakland for a 4th season (and beyond?)...

Macha has "several" openings he is considering; openings include Tampa, Florida, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, and Los Angeles.

Terms of the offer not released, per usual. Part of me hopes that mean it was just a token amount meant for respect for managing the club for three years.

Update [2005-10-4 1:13:5 by Jjjsixsix]: Thanks for catching my mistake, Zonis.

Poll

Mocha?

2%

Where's the Macha gumball machine?

2 votes

7%

Where's the Macha bobblehead?

6 votes

33%

More Macha, please.

27 votes

49%

Never hire Macha.

40 votes

7%

Where's the pack of free Macha-brand gum I was promised?

6 votes

81 votes | Poll has closed

Well, so we have been eliminated from postseason contention.

Continue reading this post »

Took too much time to do this; it's not summer anymore; sorry, you're gunna have to look yourself up.

VORG still confuses me; I'll try to perfect it for next year.

rank1 is for points, rank2 is for ind average.
the weird number is VORG.

Continue reading this post »

As some of you may know, I am now in the midst of junior year. The main problem with this is a little class unlovingly called APUSH. Add that to Calc, and swimming (yes, fall swimming - in prep for spring swimming) and it makes me a busy kid.

Thus, probably no ranks until a weekend. Or when I find time or something.

You might notice a new number. It's called VORG (value over replacement guesser)

(A) points/50 + (B) .015(pp-(.4ttp)) + (C) .03(pp-.25ttp) + (D) .045(pp-.1ttp) + (E) 32(avg-.115) + (F) 48(ind-.250) = unadjusted total.

(pp = personal points possible; ttp = total possible. avg is total average, ind is individual average.)
The points are then averaged, and adjusted so that the average is 0. C and D are capped, at 1.500 & 0.750 respectively, just so it doesn't too much credit just for participating a lot.

Confused? So am I.

-top 16(!)s-
points:

1. Devo 227
   
2. HangMan 222 -5
   
3. GeneNelsonsMullet&Nebraska 209 182
   
5. easyraider 208 -19
   
6. Alien 198 -29
   
7. arch 192 -35
   
8. Brianin317 190 -37
   
9. gigglingone 189 -48
   
10. AsGirl 188 -49
    
11. FormerHuntsvilleStar 187 -40
    
12. dylan 174 -53
    
13. OaktownPower 171 -56
    
14. mkt&SecretAsianMan 169 -58
    
16. Donner 166 -61

ind avg:

1. Devo .357
   
2. peanutgallery .352
   
3. HangMan .349
   
4. easyraider .331
   
5. Nebraska .329
   
6. LifeLongEastCoastAthleticsFan .328
   
7. carney4ever&Donner .325
   
9. ChavyFan03 .319
   
10. DirtbagPride&Arch .314
    
12. GeneNelsonsMullet&FormerHuntsvilleStar .311
    
14. pBruins92 .305
    
15. streetfan .304
    
16. maxnelson .303

In other news, I am now in last place for qualified (40% of total points) average - Kind of like Guzman, but nowhere that bad.

Continue reading this post »

Well, I figured that the Royals are coming here on a very long streak of their own, so I'd pull up retrosheet and find the game in which we continued a very long streak of our own.

2002. Hatteberg. Need I explain more?

Continue reading this post »

Earlier today, I received an e-mail from someone on AN (I'm not going to bother going on a witchhunt to figure out who, it's not worth it) informing me that (s)he had forwarded one of my comments to cgv@athleticsnation.com.

Seeing as how I would have had no idea that I did have a potential CGV up for debate had this brave soul not e-mailed me.
Obviously, if I nominated someone for a CGV, there would be multiple ways to find out who did it - the name on the e-mail, searching user infos for e-mail addresses, etc. - and potentially launch random attacks on these people.
This, obviously, would not be the way we want to run a community.

Thus, I was wondering if the CGV persons would e-mail someone informing them of a potential CGV, then e-mail them if they were absolved. Obviously, a notification would be issued if found guilty, so that's not needed.

Also, how and how often are CGV violations debated upon?

I guess these would just be some suggestions to clarify the CGV and such; it's new, so right now it's basically till in beta mode.

And by the way, on Rule #3 on the Submit New Entry page, the "community guidelines" link still goes to the old community guidelines.

( By the way, no winexp will occur today, I've used up my diaries again. )

-top 10 points-

1. Devo 199
   
2. Nebraska 184 -15
   
3. easyraider 175 -24
   
4. GeneNelsonsMullet 174 -25
   
5. AsGirl&FormerHuntsvilleStar&HangMan 164 -35
   
8. BrianIn317&secretAsianman 160 -39
   
10. Alien 159 -40

-top 10 average-

1. Devo&Donner .3747
   
3. peanut gallery .368
   
4. Carney4ever .366
   
5. easyraider .358
   
6. vignette17 .351
   
7. streetfan .350
   
8. Nebraska .347
   
9. Fongpay .342
   
10. BaseballBrian .339
    

Devo continues to dominate the GoG. I literally punched my keyboard in anger when I saw he got ANOTHER 15 last series. The poll up is for POINTSwise. Donner and Devo are locked in a battle for 1st average, right now tied in the ten thousanth position.

Poll

will ANYONE catch Devo?

53%

yes

7 votes

46%

no

6 votes

13 votes | Poll has closed

Continue reading this post »

Today's diary happy day for me, so GoG stats will NOT be posted until tomorrow. Sorry. I exhausted the limit.

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The ESPN-MLB section poll of the day:

"What is the most overrated stat in baseball?"

1. Batting Average
   
2. Home Runs
   
3. On-base percentage
   
4. RBI
   
5. Slugging percentage

Well, here's how the results (at 12:17 PT) come out...

1. SLUG 44%
   
2. HR 24%
   
3. BA 13%
   
4. OBP 10%
   
5. RBI 9%

... slugging most overrated. Really. Homers second? You've gotta be kidding. RBI not overrated? Good god.
Yikes. Maybe I'm a stathead, but you can't argue that RBI is less overrated than HRs. At least I don't think you can.

The best part of this? Every single state on the map is purple. Meaning, every single state thinks SLUG is the most overrated stat.
Well, except Wyoming, which is grey due to a tie, and Delaware, which is red, indicating HRs, which is more ridiculous.

So, I'm giving AN the chance to redeem SN for this... vote here & at ESPN.com as long as ESPN has it up.

Poll

What is the most overrated offensive stat in baseball?

7%

Home Runs

14 votes

1%

On-base percentage

3 votes

55%

Runs Batted In

98 votes

3%

Slugging percentage

7 votes

31%

Batting average

56 votes

178 votes | Poll has closed

Continue reading this post »

points:
1.    Devo 184
2.    Nebraska 168
3.    HangMan    164
4.    GeneNelsonsMullet 161
5.    easyraider 158
6.    AsGirl 153
7.    FormerHuntsvilleStar 152
8.    BrianIn317 151
9.    Alien 149
10.    secretAsianMan 147

average (49 qual out of 129):

1. carney4ever .374
   
2. Donner .372
   
3. Devo .371
   
4. vignette17 .366
   
5. peanutgallery .364
   
6. BaseballBrian .359
   
7. streetfan .357
   
8. easyraider .348
   
9. Fongpay .347
   
10. pBruins92 .339

29 of the 49 qualified are over .300.
and Devo is no longer in first place.

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Well, well, Halos. Things in mirror are closer than they appear. And, really. There is a race now.

-avg-

1. Devo .358
   
2. Donner .351
   
3. BaseballBrian .339
   
4. streetfan .333
   
5. easyraider .332
   
6. Fongpay .328
   
7. ChavyFan03 .318
   
8. gigglingone .3144
   
9. HangMan&Nebraska .3142

-points-

1. Devo 156
   
2. HangMan&Nebraska 137 -19
   
4. GeneNelsonsMullet 136 -20
   
5. easyraider 131 -25
   
6. gigglingone 127 -29
   
7. AsGirl 126 -30
   
8. Alien 123 -33
   
9. FormerHuntsvilleStar 121 -35
   
10. secretAsianman&Brianin317 117 -39

Continue reading this post »

As you guys (already) know, Urban was on KNBR the night of the 28th, dissing Giants fans like usual.

Anyhow, he dissed novaoakland (hey man, you can't pick a fight with a radio host, he's got more tools than you; now you gotta make a diary to defend yourself)

... and (uh-oh) chick talk. (Yes, after talking about hot chick [Jessica Alba] for a long long time)

But seriously, Mychael, let them type on.
We all gotta put up with it.  And please don't mention high socks on the radio.

Oh, and Huston's ass is good for ball.
Anything that gets us fans is good for ball. We are the 2nd team in a 2-team market, as you know by hosting your radio show on the Gnat flagship station; you can't host that show on KGOD - there's a reason why we don't have as many fans.

Any pub is good pub. Even if that pub is Huston's ass.

Thank you for allowing A's talk on the Gnat-Woinyar-SaberCat-Niner flagship station, keep squashing the Gnat fans, and talk on.

---
Hey Mychael, didn't help yourself talking to GnGG... don't think you hurt yourself either. I think it was a no-win situation. Graceful handling of the situation.
Mike Magnante's WHIP? Bad for ball. Not even bad for ball... just horrible. There's a reason he's gone.

---
On second thought&reading, watch out for the post-it note. It's gunna happen, and I promise I won't have anything to do with it. HSC just might though.

---
BBG, you rock! That was a frikken awesome call! Wonder if he's gunna show his face around here now.

---
Overall, nice calls AN; you guys did us proud. I wonder if Urban is gunna respond to this thread.

Devo is just cruising now.
He leads individual average for anyone over 100 possible points, this with 402 pp. (qualifying is 45% of 402)
He also leads second place Hang Man by 21 points.

AN no longer likes sharing.
The first GoG points tie this week is at 26th, between ZeroIndulgence and almost reggie.  That does mean that 1st through 25th is all solely held.
The only tie in individual average is at 28th, between maxnelson and lurkerD.
There are currently 47 people qualified for the individual average title.

On to the top 10s:
- individual average -

1. Devo .376
   
2. Donner .351
   
3. streetfan .339
   
4. easyraider .333
   
5. BaseballBrian .329
   
6. HangMan .323
   
7. gigglingone .3162
   
8. GeneNelsonsMullet .3159
   
9. Nebraska .313
   
10. Fongpay .311

-points-

1. Devo 151
   
2. HangMan 130
   
3. GeneNelsonsMullet 127
   
4. Nebraska 126
   
5. easyraider 120
   
6. gigglingone 117
   
7. AsGirl 115
   
8. FormerHuntsvilleStar 114
   
9. Alien 113
   
10. secretAsianman 108

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well, i typed everything up, then realized 1) i forgot to extend the results chart to include zonis. 2) i accidently hit BACK, and lost EVERYTHING.

so here are the results, without rankings...

Devo has a commanding lead of more than 10. in fact, it's 19. He also leads the indavg category.

OaklandTribesMan is still in last, at 3, 137 behind.

3 qualified people are below .200. I'm one of them, at .199. The other two are OaklandSi (.187) and WhiteElephantGuy (.195).  

The qualifications are now 45% of points possible.

Have fun. Normal results will be up mid-week, after Cleveland.

ALSO, these past four days, we must have been batting against either the AZL Rangers or the Texas Rangers, because most of us were over .400.

Must have been easy questions.

Continue reading this post »

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