SB Nation User Blog: norcalfan

Cupcakes to Boston?

norcalfan — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 23:20:26 -0000

Rumor has it that it is possible that Boston might package Crisp +1 for Blanton.

Would this move helps us out or are we moving to another d-strong plate challenged cf'r. If this deal gets done could we pull more than one top ten from Boston? I am curious for AN's thoughts! Personally, and I may be dreaming, I would love to see it go down as follows:

Boston: Blanton

Oakland: Crisp, Oscar Tejeda and Ryan Kalish as a starting point and maybe another B pitching prospect.

Thoughts?

Bradley and his comments....

norcalfan — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 05:52:03 -0000

Just my opinion.......

I don't post too often any more, but read everyday. Although there still seems to be a split opinion on AN regarding MB, mainly fueled by cutthemullet, the thing I can't get over is the track record.

We have been an overachieving club, much to my content, when weighed against other freespending teams, (everyone less tampa bay) yet thanks to Billy or possibly the regime prior to...we have been in the playoffs year in and year out. It was clear, to me at least, that last year was our "big shot". We gave it all last year and made a real run at it. This year had low expectation across the boards and maybe MB was correct in saying that things "changed" this year from the start. There is only so long a team of our budget can compete when we run out of type A and B players to lose and the picks we get in return. We need to reload and recharge and that appears to be starting with cutting our losses. MB was without question one of my favorite players, but so was Hudson, Miggy, Johnny and the list could go on and on all the way back to Mac. Gone are the days of Capt Carney to say the least. After enduring the year so far and reading the Bradley article a few things have become apparent to me,

Race card....sound familier?

If you thought Thomas was going to be an A this year, the world series must still seem a realistic goal now.

Bradley did something to personally offend BB prior to this joke of a DFA. I am guessing a purposefully "leaked" comment.

When was it bad buisiness sense to save money when hope has been extinguished? Further, how would it be smart to NOT do so?

If certain attitudes do not mesh with the new direction of a franchise, and it is well known said attitudes would vocalize.......is it a good idea to subject the "future" players of the club with that bad taste. I'm guessing no.

I would take Kendall over Bradley in a heartbeat this year....he played.

Bad apples ruin bushels.

If we can't turst the brass now....could we ever?

I am not happy with the standings this year so far, but I have still watched some fun baseball. It is no secret we need bats next year but who is to say we won't get them in the offseason or find some life internally. That is the beauty of baseball....parity. All I care about is simply avoiding an Athletics drought of four years and I believe moving forword the best thing to do right now is and was to trim the fat and move forword.

Piazza - Oprah
Kendall - Arnold
Kielty - pre slim fast lasorda
Training Staff - Fat Bastard
Bradley -..........jabba the hut

Moving on to an injury free '08
LET'S GO OAKLAND!!
Go A's 2008!!

Poll

With Current A's direction

Athletics four year drought

17 votes

Playoffs in new stadium

9 votes

devaluing the team for quick sale to vegas

4 votes

Playoffs in '08

25 votes

who cares...just fire the trainers!!

29 votes

Playoffs in '09

27 votes

111 votes | Poll has closed

1/16th in Report: IMHO

norcalfan — Fri, 13 Apr 2007 17:24:18 -0000

Anemic offense. Shut down starting pitching. Already overworked bullpen and a rookie.

So here we are, 10 games into the season and the great AN water cooler is surrounded by the two feuding plains of thought. From my readings I gather that 75% of AN is harshly writing off our offense as horrible. 24% feel that it is too early to judge our bats as there is still snow and frost every morning throughout many parts of our great country. 1% believe our start is purely based on Shannon Stewarts' throwing arm.

Well simply for the sake of making myself feel better I offer my thoughts:

Is it just me or has it seemed like we have had some real inconsistent plate umps with floating strike zones and high ego trips?

As baseballgirl stated, it is hard to win any games, no matter how lopsided of an early score, after being 1 hit over eight?

We may have a good ranking as far base hits go, but that stat cannot be as good as it sounds when we have two consecutive base hits with two outs, then pop out to third.

Bobby, I know it has been awhile....but come on. Sluggish in the field and sluggish at the plate. I know it must be SO hard to have missed so much time and come back to the bigs with only a hint of spring training, but unless I am mistaken, that is what AAA is for. I think BCrob should be sent down for his own good to get his reps in. Marco gives us a better shot for now.

Garen has really impressed me thus far. Good solid baseball calls,.....mostly. I think it is time for him to start looking to the NL for inspiration though. We have always had SOME bat in the lineup that helped us when men were on with walks, leadoff triples, leadoff doubles or to help us capitalize off of some defensive error, but this year it is different. We need to start bending to small ball. Move the runner over. We have already got a taste of our potential to be a good base knock team, but without question, we will be power difficient. We really need to focus on scoring that 1 run instead of waiting on the big inning that will be so much harder than any of the past 5 years to achieve.

We need Kotsay "back" healthy. Bradley and Kotsay (heathy) give us two solid arms in the OF where we have one now. Come late June, I would love to see a Buck, (I know wrong position) Bradley and Kotsay OF. I feel with BCrob gettin' back to form in Sactown, come July we put out one of the best defensive teams in the bigs to help support one of the best pitching staffs and our two run totals.

Would I love to trade away the farm for a miggy type? Sure, but we all know that isn't going to happen so lets start reshaping this year insted of rebuilding next.

After all is said and done, these type of starts are what make us A's fans have soooo much character. Anf that is why we are better.

Harden Cy Young & our rotation..

norcalfan — Wed, 28 Mar 2007 17:55:00 -0000

Just yesterday I was in the begining stages of what will play out to be a season long arguement with some Padres Fans. The issue? Rotations. They actually went so far as to create a premium work wasting poster board about 4'x 5' quoting my statment, " If Rich Harden is healthy, he could be the best pitcher in basball". Needless to say they found this commical and thought it worthy of posting using a fork lift, thus placing it out of my reach. But here is the thing, even if I could reach this poster to take it down, I don't think I would.

Earlier I read Nicos post regarding St numbers and the waste they are. If I were to disagree, and then based by projections of our starting rotation, I would say we are in for a long year, but in reality, I agree with him whole heartedly. I believe that in ST, our guys are only really working on a few things such as mechanics and even specific pitches from outing to outing, hence smearing their numbers.

The question I ask of AN is this; Where do we feel our rotation will be in the upcomming year? Further, if heathy ( I hate saying that) IS Rich Harden capable of being the best pitcher in baseball. My opinion is simple, good and yes. I think Harden has the tools to be better than most in this league as well as still possess a simple advantage due to his health. Barry the "san fran" treat Zito in his Cy year was still a novelty. Batters had not seen enough of him, (IMHO) so his stuff was brutal. After the league got to know his 88 mph fastball and hook, he went from elite to slightly above average, unless your name is Sabean.

I think the import pitchers, (see Red Sox) will have good years, but I think Harden has the same advantage as he has not been seen enough to really be "known" by oposing hitters. Therefore, here, right now I am laying it out to you AN......harden will win the Cy Young this year. You tell me, am I just dreamin' or will Harden be our eternal flame.....thrower?

And heeeeeeere we go again!

norcalfan — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 02:05:29 -0000

It's official. We have the first injury of the year. Bobby K is out 3-6 weeks and all of a sudden Stewart is looking like a miracle pickup. I would like to believe it's not the case but I can't help wondering if this "injury" could be a little convenient thing that allows us to keep Goleski. It almost seems like we should give Goleski a deeper shot at the lineup in any case because of Kotsay and his ailing back. Hmmmm.

I just wanted to throw this out there and see what comes of it. Me, I'm a little worried that we don't have the depth or pipeline talent to get through this season without some platoon style help that can hit both left and right handed pitching.

Side Notes:

Holy Grail knocked a three run inter-squad bomb today.

There is a great story, (short but good) on the Windsor/Suzuki story on oaklandathletics.com that is a good read, and kinda makes you think about the Melhuse topic of yesterday.

Poll

Kielty' injury is a........

a good reason to trade Kotsay & Johnson for a young CF

7 votes

normal thing that happens in spring training

13 votes

sign of things to come

7 votes

problem due to the compression weight of his hair

8 votes

a dl means to keep Goleski

11 votes

46 votes | Poll has closed

AN.....Name my baby!!!

norcalfan — Tue, 13 Feb 2007 22:24:37 -0000

Hey all! if you read my profile you would see that the first non-hospital blanket to touch my young fresh born toosh was an A's wrap. Never thought it would happen, but here I am. My wife and I are expecting a new young bouncing (no I won't actually try it,) baby boy in May! How perfect, right in time for the thick of baseball season! So here is the deal........I need a boys name. I wan't to hear what creative names from Athletics history I can use! My wife, having been with me ten years has become an A's fan and therefore knows most current and past lost stars so lets skip the decade or so. Here are my front runners but I want to hear yours!!

1)Dennis.....would this make him an alcie and help him recover?

2)Carney.......just wait for high school

3)Walter.....again just bait for sschool

4)Dave.......not bad CF and P, two stars covered but plain

5)Catfish........wifey didn't dig this one too much

So let me have it AN, help name a new A's fan for life!!

Poll

Which Name Do You Like Best?

Catfish

35 votes

Dennis

11 votes

None read my post!

13 votes

Carney

15 votes

Walter

9 votes

Dave

14 votes

97 votes | Poll has closed

As the offseason turns......

norcalfan — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 18:20:37 -0000

With this offseason showing us no real additions to get AN excited it seems that there is a slide in anticipation. The same topics keep comming up in the doomsday predictions.

1.) We lost Zito....all is lost
2.) Without Big Hurt we are hopless to ever score a run.
3.) Jay Payton should have won the batting crown with special considerations for doubles.

Sure, we have lost without adding, but what else is new? Minus last year, we have become use to this as we see this years class move on. Happens to us very often, yet we seem to be in the hunt year in year out. Two years ago was a rebuilding year. We were in the hunt untill the last week of the season. We traded Huddy and Mulder, people were terrified that we were left with only Zito, and now he somehow has become the messiah gone astray. Our farm is bleak, hell we mine as well just get together and drink our grape kool aide with Mr. Jones.

I don't buy it. I believe Billy can keep us in it. Without injury we HAVE talent. Notice there were no if's in that sentence. I choose to think positive and know that as A's, we thrive on being the underdog, and well.......we are really the underdog so we should do great! So I want, in my infinite dumbness, to change my thoughts and predictions in "norcalfan land"

1.) WHEN Harden has no injuries this year he will win 21 games.

2.) WHEN E-chav stops posting on www.e_chav@injury_prone.net, he will hit .285 with 35 dings

3.) WHEN Ellis stops running into Crosby BOTH will be part of one of the best tandom field % seasons ever.

4.) WHEN Swish realizes balls are scared of the bleachers in Oakland, he will hit .305 28 120

5.) WHEN Loiza gets drunk and punches the jukebox at (insert emeryville bar here) he will have magically released his shoulder and will be able to throw 90+ all season.

6.) WHEN Kotsay's back feels better, he will be a damn good announcer.

7.) WHEN Garen has the choice of who to start in the OF against a lefty, Kielty will actually get some playin' time.

8.) WHEN Vlad starts his slump this year, the rest of LAAoSCoSan Juan's bats all follow, we will seal up the division in July.

9.) WHEN A's fans realize Haren is better than Zito, everybody will cheer up a little bit.

10.) WHEN we keep the faith in Billy, we will be happier in the offseason!

LOL this offseason!

norcalfan — Fri, 29 Dec 2006 21:20:12 -0000

Wow! The Giants are really smart! No really. We are off again in a season where we are slated to finish 2nd to last in our division again. As usuall, I expect we will walk away with the west riding an excellent 2nd half and getting abnormally good performances from the unexpected sources. My list is as follows:

1) 126 million.....wow. What does SF know about our ex-2nd tier starter that the Yankees didn't?
I got an idea, maybe SF should really try to solidfy their rotation by offering Clemens 246 Million over the next six years as a bench coach with a start clause of 3 per year. That would make sense!

I am hearing a lot of anti Giants smack, almost reflective of bitterness over this signing. Why? I know they get all the press in the Bay, but what could be better than the Big Market team across the bay pigeon holing themselves into a small market team over the next 7 years for a declining over-rated future middle reliever? Pro Dodgers? Anybody who roots for the A's and prefers ANY LA team is just deranged in my opinion. Anybody remember Kirk Gibson? Always duck the fodgers under any circumstance.
Durazo.....Why do I have a feeling this is going to be huge? I believe in my heart this will be the push that get's us through Ruby + Pizza = the Frank Thomas anomoly.
Zito not to Mets......then here we go. I think this will really help us in the pursuit of Milledge who now becomes a even less valuble in a trade for starting pitching. Do California DUI laws carry over to NY?
Angels.......keep spending guys, I really think it's going to work out for you!

That's it for now....I hate the offseason.

Return to life....

norcalfan — Wed, 22 Nov 2006 07:38:32 -0000

I have been readin' but not postin'. As of today, I can finally speak of the heartbreak that was last year. there are a lot of topics out in our little corner of the world that I feel compeld to address, if for no one else but myself:

1.) FT gone, surprise surprise. You tellin' me nobody saw this comming? I thought all the talk from BB and LW of us certainly getting FT back was the doomsday foreshadowing, but let us not forget the drama salery wise from CWS prior to comming to Oaktown. Good luck to our leader/renta player. Me, I feel a Mulder-esq season in the makings for Big FT. Still thanks for the help and good luck.

2.) Jay Payton. I think we gotta' make a move and sign this guy. Many AN'ers feel like he wouldn't take a 4th outfielder role.....i'm sorry, what is he now? Jay can give us good at bats as well as give Kotsay much needed time off.

Bob Crob and Harden. It was either Nico or Blez who were up in arms about a not talked about issue in our trainers. Done. Fired. Ousted. Asked nicely to leave. Nuf Said. We need trainers who actively and proactively treat our players. It seems as if they are stuck in reaction mode and that doesn't sit well with me as we lose valueable and cheap seasons to strange injuries.
How does our infield react to the loss of Washington? I am worried about this one, but I have to say that deep down, like Thomas, Washington has taught these kids all he knows and has brought them as far as he can. I think a lot of the praise regarding his relationship with players is based on our players not having a strong relationship with THE manager. Best wishes to Ron, 2 and out in Texas sadly.

5.) Barry Bonds. I have a few things on this one. If you stop rooting for the A's if he is signed, good riddance. A true fan would never threaten to leave his/her team, at least in my opinion. I don't feel we stand to gain lots of new fans from having him, especially SF fans as they are tired of him as well, see billboards in SF last year. We will gain ticket sales, but not fans. If he gets well, which is tough after taking all thoses steroids, he is one of the best hitters of all time. Steriods don't improve your eye or plate patience or hand eye coordination. Mixing hime in a chavez, bonds, bradley may really help chavy get his mojo going and with any luck a severe drop in the order for crosby may be perfect as well. All this being said, AN is just bored. Bonds is not comming to O-Town as he, even as a rental, is out of our price range.

6.) Zito. Breaks my heart becasue the guy just seems right in NorCal. I loved watching him grow up in the league. I will always remember many gutsy performances and reflect on them when talking to my kids. On that note.......see ya!
Honestly, this guy is dying for the big show. He needs to fail in that enviroment to relize what he had with our fans, fine. Sure he was reliable, but just wait and see Barry how that reliablity holds water in a Boston, New York, Los Angeles enviroment after getting shelled two outings in a row. News flash Barry, learn a spliter or some some other pitch or your "magical" curve will really get rocked as your other stuff aint' all that. You are not an Ace, stop acting like it. Barry's best fit would be LAA as he has proved in the AL West, nobody cares what you do. I really really wish Barry good luck as he was a great professional with us, but I fear for his safety.....be carefull what you wish for sound 'bout right?

7.) Adam Dunn....no news really, but does he not seem like he could be an A? Discuss.

Hey, at least we're not the Red Sox. 51 million dollar dinner anyone?

Peace to AN......
Go A's

Feelin' Blue?

norcalfan — Sat, 14 Oct 2006 06:36:58 -0000

Read this, it can't help but bring a smile to your face and take your mind off of baseball:

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/15242140/?GT1=8618

But since I have to fill the required spaces,

remeber Detroit had to suck for about a century to be able to draft all those young arms. We were out ofthe mix for what, 2 years? Time to go on a four game winning streak!