Almost any way you sort the AL pitching stats, the Red Sox staff ranks approximately #11 in the American League. Certainly below the A’s. The Orioles are at the bottom in just about every category and then the Rangers, White Sox and Royals show up in some order below Boston.
The A’s are 10-3 against those teams (BOS, BAL and TEX, N/A vs. CHI and KC), having outscored them 91-56. So that might bode well for an offense that struggled mightily against a much better-ranked staff at the Rogers Centre.
Working against that is the A’s long and dismal history at Fenway Park. The club is 96-173 (.357) there since moving to Oakland, with Melvin teams putting up an 8-16 record.
The A’s did win 2 out of 3 in the series there last May. The last time the A’s won consecutive series at Fenway was August 6-8, 2002 and August 19-21, 2003, with the A’s winning 2 out of 3 each of those times. The winning pitchers were Mark Mulder, Aaron Harang, Ricardo Rincon and Chad Bradford. You might remember the way Harang’s win ended:
Weather forecast is chilly with temperature in the 40s and 50s but if tonight’s rain holds off until after the game as forecast there shouldn’t be any delays. The A’s also get a fairly rare weekday afternoon game as the Red Sox play in Chicago Thursday while the A’s have an off day in Pittsburgh. Scheduled pitching matchups:
Pitching matchups for the #Athletics – #RedSox series that starts tonight at Fenway Park: pic.twitter.com/r3f12n13ue
— Pete Abraham (@PeteAbe) April 29, 2019
Day off in Pittsburgh! Team trip to the Me. Roger’s set!
I’m still working on spare time plans. I did an Andy Warhol exhibit some years ago and that’s something you only need to see once in your life so I’m not going to the museum. The Jerry World tour was unavailable in June so I’m settling for the Heinz Field tour on Friday. They can’t take you to the spot where Franco Harris caught the ball though I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s some marker on the former Three Rivers Stadium site. Besides the obvious trip to Primanti Bros. (might see Vince there!), one meal, probably postgame Sunday, will be in the brewery in the old church (talk about putting a church to great use). Weather is supposed to be very nice so maybe a bike ride along the rivers.
Complete with yard markers painted on the sidewalk, and that’s Franco’s footprint you can put your own foot on.
A Steelers fan was walking by as I was taking the photo. I said I’m from Oakland and he said “Oh, where Antonio Brown went to die.”
If you can go buy a sticker with the letter D and place that on there it would be greatly appreciated.
I have a few other ideas for things to put on Franco’s footprint.
The lack of a bench will continue until morale improves.
Yes I know I’ve posted the TLong clip before. Actually I’ve written more or less this same Fenway post before, bemoaning the A’s crappy record there, and I’ve just updated the numbers. I bear 50 years worth of A’s fan scars from that place. That hideous loss yesterday, it seemed like we used to see at least one, sometimes two, of those in Boston every season.
I was at this one during my college years. Fkin Billy Hatcher. My memory was that it broke a record save streak by Eck, but he did have a blown save that ended with a win earlier in the month; this was the first loss he appeared in that year, in his 53rd appearance, so maybe that’s what the streak was.
I see nothing but good sign.
Jurk Store and Fregley come through with the RBIs! This is not a typo.
A 12-1 win would be a good idea but I’m already wondering how Bob gets this one in the barn if he has a 1 or 2 run lead after 7. Soria in the 8th and Wendelken to close would be my guess.
That’s one where the umpire had a better angle than any camera angle so I believe the umpire.
Also, man it’s getting tough to justify keeping Profar on this roster.
If the second baseman can’t turn a routine double play, and at this point there is a lot of evidence to support that proposition, then he can’t be the second baseman.
Since this game became unwatchable I’ve been looking through the CBA for provisions related to giving a player leave due to needing to go to some sort of retreat with a sports psychologist under the Employee Assistance Program. I’m seeing stuff about administrative leave after accusations of domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse but so far nothing about psychological matters where the player himself is the victim. Which seems to be where Profar is. This is getting real close to DFA and move on.
Seems odd to me that there’s a brief mention of mental health issues under “Safety and Health” which sounds like it’s ripped off straight from the Wells Fargo Employee Handbook. Whereas the stuff about domestic violence and sexual assault goes on for 20 pages.
Thanks for causing the wheels to fall off, Profar.
Second also: Laureano is even worse than Coco about taking the first step in when he should be going back from the start.
Yeah he really needs to work on reads and routes if he wants to be a truly elite centerfielder, and not just a guy who sometimes makes great plays.
Yeah, Profar is officially the love child of JJ and CY25.
So fucking stupid right there. This team is hard to watch.
Ugggggh
Khris missed on those last couple swings by a total of about 4 feet.
As suggested above I feel sad for Profar rather than angry at him, but that situation is only getting worse and if I’m Beane, Forst or Melvin I can’t let him suck the other 24 guys into the vortex.
Too late.
this is harder to take than 2011/2017. this is more like 2007/2015
I was thinking the second half of 2014. And we even are starting to have our very own Team Dynamite.
Profar –> bench.
Yes but who will come to save the day from Aaron Brooks?
I feel like Kendrys striking out while getting hit by the pitch is the perfect encapsulation of his A’s career. It’ll never get more perfect; cut him now.
Rapidly reaching the point where this isn’t just bad, it’s also boring.
I know, you can just feel the hope getting ripped out by the fingertips. If they don’t turn something around soon this could be one long grim season.
I may need to declare that April 26 was the last time they’ll see .500 until 2020. That worked quite well last year.
Agreed. Each game so far I have turned off and disengaged from before I even got home to turn on the TV.
It looks like Mengden will be starting for the Aviators tomorrow so he would be on five days rest next Tuesday which is the next time this spot comes up in the A’s rotation.
Although with the A’s current offensive production Sandy Koufax wouldn’t have a better chance of winning than Brooks.
The Pirates have lost 8 in a row entering tonight and haven’t been hitting worth diddly poo either so that will be quite a battle this weekend.
Is this Red Sox pitcher a huge fan of the Nineteenth Amendment or something?
Vaguely related: they will need at least one more bench player (preferably two) for playing in an NL park. Of the players on the 40-man roster, Bolt and Mateo are hitting the best in LV, but Fowler and Barreto have previous major league experience.
I’d like to see Mateo, out of curiouity if nothing else. Barreto’s ability to play infield and outfield might make him the better NL fill in.
Personally, I’d call up two guys and dump Morales now.
It’s Skye Bolt.
Great name at least.
Worth a flyer at 30-1 if the track is fast.
Heh.
(Also, he’s a Tar Heel.)
And as noted last week a Fleetwood Mac fan. Not many born in the 90s have Rumours in their collection; my cassette tape would be buried in the landfill next to the Farrah Fawcett poster.
there is only one good fleetwood mac song
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I like Never Going Back Again.
From the pop era I like Go Your Own Way.
But this from Peter Green era kicks ass:
Getting hard to distinguish between bad luck and bad baseball.
Not when I watch Kendrys “hit”, no sir it is not hard to distinguish.
It’s gotten to the point where sending him to the plate is just needlessly embarrassing a formerly good baseball player.
I thought he would have a little bit left offensively but boy has that not been true. He has 7-10 days to somehow get himself one last good baseball memory.
Morales is completely hopeless up there.
I’m excited about the Derby field for Saturday. No heavy favorite for first time in several years. Haven’t handicapped it yet but at a glance it feels like a good chance for a longshot win.
And now the morning line favorite Omaha Beach is scratched with an “enlarged epiglottis.” And rain forecast currently at 100%. Love it when the Derby gets squirrelly.
Free DRF past performances available here.
can someone kidnap mitch moreland?
This team is awful.
Speaking of horses this team is horseshit.
So pumped to be flying most of the way across the country to bury my nose in this manure pile for three days.
As I’ve said before, Cal football taught me a long time ago to have a great time on the road trips regardless of a wretched performance on the field. The Pirates suck too so I hope for competitive, if not necessarily “good”, ballgames. One literal dark cloud is that the weather forecast, which was dry several days ago, has turned progressively wetter every successive time I’ve looked, particularly on Saturday.
so definition 2 of “soaker”
Can’t miss that many chances against Messi & co and expect to come away with anything.
too few goals.
Too bad they can’t pump that excess water westward to the desert and drought sections of the country.
that’s gorgeous
This reminds me of the Iowa Baseball Confederacy by Kinsella. There is a big rainstorm and everything but the ballpark is eventually washed away (if memory serves).
Yes, after an extra inning game keeps on going for 40 days.
I read that book but found it boring and now I don’t remember much.
I got it for Christmas I think when I was in the 5th/6th grade. I enjoyed it enough then but havent revisited it. Got Ball Four at the same time-that one I’ve picked up almost annually since.
Looking out the window of the hotel room, no view of Allegheny River, bridges or downtown because ballpark is in the way. On my way to Allegheny City Brewing for dinner and live music by Dead and In The Way.
that’s gorgeous
3 rivers > 1 slough.
Hey – don’t forget Lion Creek!
On the walk back (maybe 3/4 mile) the streets were rivers because it was pouring…which I suspect is going to be a theme of this weekend along with poorly-played baseball games.
Vince scoffs at your plans.
Ken’s expression says he took Vince for the dinner checks all weekend long.
i am always surprised by vince’s appearance
After a little morning rain it has been a cloudy but dry and pleasant day to be out and about exploring Pittsburgh. With the games about to start I think the “dry” part is about to end. Radar loop currently showing a big line moving across eastern Ohio and about to enter Pennsylvania. Best guess is they play all three games with delays tonight and tomorrow. Both teams are off on Monday but I don’t think the A’s would want to give up the off-day at home after this long train wreck of a road trip so in the event of a rainout tonight or tomorrow I would be hoping for a Sunday doubleheader.