End of the Road 2015: Oakland Athletics
After their loss Saturday, the Oakland Athletics have been mathematically eliminated from the MLB postseason, meaning that they’ve effectively come to the end of the road in their 2015 season. As we’ll do with each eliminated team this season, let’s give them a send-off that would make Boyz II Men proud.
We’ll look at the highs and lows of their season, what bright spots their future might hold and what questions need answering as they prepare for 2016.
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HIGH POINT: If the A’s have one thing to hang their hat on this season, it’s the continued development of Sonny Gray into a true ace. The 25-year-old right-hander flirted with history on opening day, carrying a no-hitter in the eighth inning, and never looked back. In his second full season, Gray 13-7 with a 2.72 ERA. He leads the team with three complete games and is tied for the league lead with two shutouts. He’s basically the man in Oakland.
LOW POINT: There’s no worse feeling as a sports fan than watching your team in a close game and just knowing they’ll find a way to lose. The A’s were in that type of funk throughout the entire first half of the season. In fact, at the end of June, they were 4-20 in one-run games. That’s almost impossible to do. It may even be considered a fluke. It was definitely their reality though, and they never recovered.
BEST HIGHLIGHT: It’s all about Sonny Gray. His opening day masterpiece deserves consideration, but he might have done one better July 12 in Cleveland. On that sunny Sunday afternoon, Gray outlasted Cy Young winner Corey Kluber and completed a two-hit shutout in Oakland’s 2-0 win. The only downside? By making that start, Gray wasn’t eligible to start the All-Star game two days later. He deserved it. Another pretty cool moment was switch-pitcher Pat Venditte’s MLB debut. He used both arms to record two scoreless innings in Boston.
HOPE FOR THE FUTURE: Despite the rough season, Oakland will have stability in the dugout with the return of manager Bob Melvin. They also have their ace, Gray, and a nice assortment of starting pitchers including Jesse Chavez, Kendall Graveman and a hopefully healthy Jesse Hahn. The offensive has been decent, raking right in the middle in runs scored and batting average. The good news is there’s potential for bounce back from several of their veteran hitters. Well, at least those that are brought back. There’s also potential for a lot of turnover with this roster, and that may not be the worst thing either.
[On this week’s StewPod: Pirates’ star Andrew McCutchen: “I’m looking to get a ring.”]
QUESTION THAT NEEDS ANSWERING: How will Billy Beane approach what could be a pivotal offseason for the organization? After going all in and falling short in 2014, Beane scaled back the payroll by trading fan favorite (and now MVP contender) Josh Donaldson and Jeff Samardzija during the offseason. Jon Lester walked too, which he knew would happen, but then he curiously signed Billy Butler to a three-year, $30 million deal that doesn’t appear to be working out. They definitely have workable pieces, but they also play in a quickly improving division. Beane will need to be on his game to get them back on track.
Previously in this series: Phillies, Braves, Reds, Rockies, Marlins, Brewers, Padres, Diamondbacks.
Up next: The Washington Nationals, San Francisco Giants and Detroit Tigers are next in line to be eliminated.
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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813
