Despite a disappointing 2-5 road trip, the A's have a lot to be happy about.
We're almost one third of the way through the 2013 season, and I would like to praise the Oakland Athletics. They are by no means perfect - having gotten shellacked by the Texas Rangers the other night in Arlington, 9-4 - but over the past 162 games, they have played to a record of 101 wins and 61 losses, and that's something to crow about.
The A's, that little scruffy team of no-names that plays in a lousy sewage-overflowing concrete stadium all year across the Bay from big beautiful AT&T Park and the World Champion San Francisco Giants, have built this record against all teams, not just the Astros.
Some cold, hard facts, America. On June 25 last year, after playing their first 74 games, the Oakland A's had a record of 36 wins and 38 losses, They had just beaten the Mariners 1-0 in Seattle. Since that day, their record for the next 162 regular season games has been 101-61, including last night's 9-4 loss to the Rangers!
Numbers don't lie. After they beat the Giants a year ago, the A's played 58-30, a winning percentage of .659, for the rest of 2012. They finished 2012 94-68 and won the American League West Division on the last day.
After 77 games in 2013, the A's are atop the division again, with a record of 43-34. They have done this with injuries to Josh Reddick, Yoennis Cespedes, Coco Crisp and Brett Anderson. They have reached deep into their young, maturing selves and found patience, persistence and performance.
If those commentators in New York, those national baseball writers with the Reds, Cardinals, Giants, Yankees, Tigers and Red Sox take a look at the first two paragraphs above, they might scratch their heads and say, whaddya know, these guys are one of the top teams in baseball, in either league.
We have learned that a team's season performance is not a predictor for how they will perform in the playoffs, under pressure. The Cardinals won the 2006 World Series with a .516 season record, the Orioles lost the 1969 World Series to the Mets after winning 109 season games, and let's not forget the Mariners who set a season record with 116 wins in 2001 and didn't even make it past the Yankees in the ALCS to the World Series.
Still, for regular season play, where Oakland is and has been for the past 162 games, the A's deserve recognition as a special and remarkable young ball club.
Look at the ERA of their starting rotation, look at their bullpen, look at the little guys like Adam Rosales tearing around the bases for a homer, Eric Sogard stealing bases, Brandon Moss hitting .229 and homering twice to beat the Yankees. Patience, persistence and performance. These guys are for real.
