whoever is engineering the radio is having a day. Royalty free instrumental rock during olson and piscotty ABs and about 20 seconds of dead air after the last out
That says “I’m carrying a couple small things I think are really valuable on my head.” Phone, cash, car keys. So the risk/reward of snatching that cap off the wearer’s head and running seems particularly attractive. In addition to it looking so foolish to begin with.
If Pablo Sandoval is the Eddie Van Halen of making good contact on terrible pitches, this is like watching Yngwie Malmsteen for the first time. https://t.co/XGi3Bw3suf
It’ll be years before I’m over that betrayal. Between the OU connection it would have fostered with Mrs. N’s family and having to watch him two weeks a year in the NFL (at least theoretically)…
"There's never enough time to do all the nothing you want"
SLF doesn’t like sports. She used to ask me what I was reading/watching etc, I always said “porn” which would annoy her less, but, but, I think I wasnt wrong
– two legit top 5 position players
– one with top 5 potential
– one top 5 prospect
– 2 scrap heap finds with all star numbers
– Fletcher
– Bundy who seems to have finally figured it out
In one typical iteration, the Israeli team took samples of 384 people and divided them into 48 pools, so that each person’s sample wound up in a unique set of six pools.
Each of the 48 pools was then tested. If one person was positive for the virus, then each of the six pools containing that sample should test positive — resulting in a unique combination of positive pools revealing the identity of the person (or people) carrying the virus.
Like all types of pooled testing, the usefulness of this method drops as a community’s “positivity rate” — the proportion of tests that come back positive — climbs. But when positivity rates are lower, the Israeli method is dramatically more efficient than others, said Dr. Hertz. At an infection rate of 1 percent, he said, the new method is eight times as efficient as individual testing and nearly twice as efficient as an eight-sample Dorfman pool.
I guess the biggest question is that you now use one-sixth of the sample, but they seem to be fine with that, although the explanation why is not that convincing:
A frequent concern raised about pooled testing is that samples will be diluted, causing a loss of sensitivity that could result in false negatives. But Dr. Shental said the new method was effective even with low viral loads because each sample is tested in multiple pools.
Admittedly, I have no idea how the exact process works. I guess what they are saying is that such diluted samples will fail to trigger a response only in certain percentage of cases, not in all of them. So, for example if only four out six samples from the same person trigger a reaction, then that four-digit pool code will still be unique.
It can’t go over the playing field though because of the risk of interfering with a batted ball or a throw, so I don’t see how it contributes anything other than artsiness. In football they position it above and behind the QB and it can follow the ball carrier without interfering, so that can be more interesting.
Chapman says hip was bothering him more defensively than when he was at bat. Had been dealing with it some all year, never felt that he had his legs under him this season. He has felt improvement the past few days.
If the A’s can take care of business this series (4-1 or better), there’s really no reason to rush him back until the playoffs, maybe treat the last series of the year like a rehab stint. I’m a little unnerved that Semien is already back.
After suffering the beginning of the game I decided to FSU several innings. It looks like it got a little better, although Semien makes a hideous error just as I type that.
Hopefully the air allows them to play tomorrow. It’s a good time to be in that 18-of-23 on the road stretch. Discouraging that atmospheric conditions are better in Texas than in California in late August, but that’s what we got.
Stayed low overnight, but shot up over the last couple of hours to near 200.
The Coliseum is a little better currently, so they might still able to play.
Just over the hills, all the sensors near Orinda are showing readings > 500.
The A’s are really limiting the number of shifts they employ against righties but I think it’s to their detriment. Rendon’s had more than a few pulled and up the middle GBs go for hits, which could’ve been prevented with a shift. It’s not out of line with his spray chart.
Probably not much worse than he is hitting righty.
There is also Kendrys Morales. (Someone mentioned him recently, and I had to triple check that it was really only last year that we had him. Still not entirely sure I believe that.)
All these routine fly balls are making me think they could stand to tone down the launch angle stuff a little.
I reserve the right to change my mind when we hit some more dingers.
One problem is, the Angels have had this crew for a week so they aren’t flying with the Angels, but the A’s may well be bringing them on the plane to Dallas.
There was a moment earlier in the game when the ump took a foul ball right into the mask. He seemed perfectly ok afterwards (didn’t get looked at IIRC), but I’m wondering if it was affecting him more and more into the game.
I think it’s sort of plausible he could be near the top if you ignore framing, but framing is more important than the other stuff, and I would put extremely low trust in this stat for catchers especially with a small sample size.
I’ve been pretty critical of both of our C’s framing, but on the positive side, they do seem to be pretty good at blocking pitches, which is a refreshing change from last year.
The Rangers aren’t doing the 8 p.m. local starts. I don’t know when they changed that. Monday-Wednesday are 5:05 Pacific time starts, then Thursday is 3:37 Pacific for Fox. The Astros are still listing their weeknight starts at 8:10 p.m. local.
Strategy thing I didn’t think of until Melvin said it on the pregame: He probably would have used Hendriks in the 9th yesterday in a normal season, but he’s a more powerful weapon in the 10th because of the strikeouts.
So far this year, he’s swung at 51 pitches outside the strike zone and only missed nine of them. That 87.3% out-of-zone contact rate is higher than the league contact rate on pitches in the strike zone.
I spent a chunk of time this morning trying to remember the details of the other ridiculous hit like that (non-Vlad, non-Sandoval division) that I had seen.
It was Gattis’ two-run double off of Clippard in the 9th inning. Per Gameday, that pitch was a bit (maybe 6″) lower than the one to Fletcher, but in some ways it was even more ridiculous, since Gattis managed to tomahawk it to the wall in CF, not just fight it off and bloop it down the line.
I had that game a little mixed up with this one where Maldonado came a single short of the cycle, but those were all pitches in the zone. Both big games for Houston catchers against us that I got to see from the FKing front row.
I also found (via FK comment search for “eyeballs”) Reddick’s homer in this game but that was lower still, more like around the neck if gameday is to be believed.
Ah – I’ll delete mine.
Also, Marcus!
But you were first! Oh well…
Ray deciding to trigger us all by mentioning Keith Foulke. And claiming he was good.
Good start
Bemboom?
whoever is engineering the radio is having a day. Royalty free instrumental rock during olson and piscotty ABs and about 20 seconds of dead air after the last out
I don’t think I’d wear this hat. Maybe in Bill King deck-type situations.
that’s the worst hat i ever saw. you buy a hat like this, i bet you get a free utility kilt.
oh, but it looks good on you tho.
That says “I’m carrying a couple small things I think are really valuable on my head.” Phone, cash, car keys. So the risk/reward of snatching that cap off the wearer’s head and running seems particularly attractive. In addition to it looking so foolish to begin with.
walking tommy lastella in front of trout. Maddon you are a genius
Wondering if the smoke layer dampens the flight of the long ball.
it’d be nice to get rendon out at some point
Hypothetically, yes. I imagine it would be.
It is!
i don’t remember
No more than one per day though.
how does pujols double?
And if Pujols can get to second, how does Redon not get home?
Broken bat double down the left field line, that’s how.
That inning had to be frustrating for Angel fans.
i am sure Future Tanner on free orange whip is very mad at that and hitting Khris davis
Another couple off Heaney would be reassuring, he seems to be settling in.
WTF
Get it together Fiers.
That was some Vladdy shit.
vlad is hendrix
this was yngwie
GRANT SUCKS!
this two-bar run should be easy to play – assuming you can pick 16th notes at 160bpm!
The feeling of impending doom was strong there.
make them pay matt
well, making him work a little before the third out is not the worst thing
Really like Canha hitting between the Matts.
everything about his game has been improved this year
Everything about his game has improved every year. This year he’s even stealing bases.
B2B 2 out non home run hits that score runs!
that is not my team
just saw olson’s “double”
neat that gvoodwin was playing it like adell or upton
Why do we insist on facing the top of the order with runners on base.
related, why is the top of the order always up?
walk the next two batters
Could have been much worse.
score 2 more?
The only response to that frustrating half inning is to score 5 more runs.
why david? just let us be
you know scioscia loves the wrap around pitching change
goddammit
score 6. Please.
Matt Can Matt
unbelievable
Puk, Barreto, and Kap for Fletcher
throw in kyler murray
Won’t happen, Billy is still sure Murray is going to pan out.
It’ll be years before I’m over that betrayal. Between the OU connection it would have fostered with Mrs. N’s family and having to watch him two weeks a year in the NFL (at least theoretically)…
Wow!
wow
Bring some of that cold over this way cause Trout is frozen solid!
soria go 2? batter to batter?
They said Hendriks is up. He pitched the last two, right?
Yup, both on 4 run leads.
Add on, please
Are we not PHing today?
not gonna pull him in his last game of the year, are you?*
*Ken said grossman was stretching in case piscotty got on last inning
More A’s and Padres runs please
SLF doesn’t like sports. She used to ask me what I was reading/watching etc, I always said “porn” which would annoy her less, but, but, I think I wasnt wrong
Filthy.
Emilio on the hill with a one-run lead…
I guess I like our situation a little better than that.
never in doubt
Yay! My favorite part was Ohtani not getting to hit.
yay
I’m glad Scioscia saved Ohtani while two shitty righties made the last two outs.
was he going to hit for benboom?
Yeah.
benboom is a lefty, yeah?
Wait, why wasn’t Ohtani in the lineup to begin with?
he has been scuffling, and scioscia wanted to rest him against a tough lefty
Angels worst record in the AL now.
It’s pretty incredible that they have
– two legit top 5 position players
– one with top 5 potential
– one top 5 prospect
– 2 scrap heap finds with all star numbers
– Fletcher
– Bundy who seems to have finally figured it out
and a winning percentage under .300.
Fire Scioscia
A’s with 857 wins to their 830 since 2010.
And they signed CJ wilson, josh hamilton albert pujols anthony rendon and ohtani
Along with trading and signing simmons and upton
And of course drafting a signing cheap extention for Mike trout.
Sure, but can they beat the Astros please?
With Pittsburgh sweeping a double header today, the Angels now have the worst record in either league.
This testing method is pretty cool.
I guess the biggest question is that you now use one-sixth of the sample, but they seem to be fine with that, although the explanation why is not that convincing:
Admittedly, I have no idea how the exact process works. I guess what they are saying is that such diluted samples will fail to trigger a response only in certain percentage of cases, not in all of them. So, for example if only four out six samples from the same person trigger a reaction, then that four-digit pool code will still be unique.
The Mariners have installed one of those football-style hanging swoopy cameras. Could be pretty cool, but probably won’t work with fans in the way.
does the road team get the feed?
How about the replay center?
We got it briefly at the start of the game, so I guess the answer is yes.
It can’t go over the playing field though because of the risk of interfering with a batted ball or a throw, so I don’t see how it contributes anything other than artsiness. In football they position it above and behind the QB and it can follow the ball carrier without interfering, so that can be more interesting.
This is two days in a row scioscia has been late with the lineup. I think its his jam
might swap canha and piscotty
Ugh.
X2
One of these teams looks like they got a good night’s sleep.
Tony just needed one to wake up.
Chapman’s made some great plays, but it doesn’t feel like he’s quite at the same extraordinary level he had been previously.
x3
bothering defensively perfectly describes years 5–13 of me and my sister’s relationship.
If the A’s can take care of business this series (4-1 or better), there’s really no reason to rush him back until the playoffs, maybe treat the last series of the year like a rehab stint. I’m a little unnerved that Semien is already back.
I think win 2 of the next four, there is no reason to rush
oy
So, Goodwin isn’t good at defense, is he?
So we have to add smokey to the conditions The Hound cant pitch in?
Not surprising – I mean, do you remember how freaked out he looked when he saw that guy burning during the Battle of the Blackwater?
With perfect defense behind him (from Chapman of all people) he might not have allowed any of those runs.
OTOH, he hasn’t pitched great either.
Somehow we’re in this game.
OK the fake drumming is really starting to bother me.
Allen’s framing seems bad even by A’s standards.
He’s so bad. I’ve counted double digit pitches today that could’ve been potential strikes if he didn’t move his glove so damn much.
After suffering the beginning of the game I decided to FSU several innings. It looks like it got a little better, although Semien makes a hideous error just as I type that.
So many mistakes.
Fletcher is cheating somehow.
Fletcher’s BABIP vs. the A’s must be .700 or something. That one was particularly pathetic.
Trout looks…thicker than usual.
rats
That was dreary.
Hopefully the air allows them to play tomorrow. It’s a good time to be in that 18-of-23 on the road stretch. Discouraging that atmospheric conditions are better in Texas than in California in late August, but that’s what we got.
Depending on whether this thing decides to drown Houston later this week.
It’s OK
Called it.
Uncanny.
Today’s loop:
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Holy FK, that is awesome.
Special alert:
We are having our daily period of breathable air. Maybe this one will last longer than an hour.
Stayed low overnight, but shot up over the last couple of hours to near 200.
The Coliseum is a little better currently, so they might still able to play.
Just over the hills, all the sensors near Orinda are showing readings > 500.
640 on Skyline.
It looks horrible on some of those Caltrans traffic cams out around Walnut Creek.
lolastros
With the trade deadline a little more than a week away, SuSlu is indicating that the team is focused on SPs:
They’ll get a first-hand look at Lance Lynn tonight. Signed through next season at $8M. That would cost quite a bit more than Barreto.
come on. really? again?
The A’s are really limiting the number of shifts they employ against righties but I think it’s to their detriment. Rendon’s had more than a few pulled and up the middle GBs go for hits, which could’ve been prevented with a shift. It’s not out of line with his spray chart.
Part of it might be that shifting that way leaves an even bigger hole if you’re also trying to hold the runner on first.
True, but I feel like I haven’t seen them shift for him (or most righties) even with the bases empty.
Gues what? Fletcher is up in the 2nd inning!
of course
Vince:
talk about making chicken salad out if you know what!
Just a routine FC 8-1
“You talk about making some chicken salad out of you know what.” -Vince
well at least the throw to third doesn’t matter
They suck against everyone except us. Against us, they get all the BABIP luck, fielding mistakes, and Ohtani remembers to be Ohtani again.
Fortunately the A’s are done with them after today but do still have 3 left vs. the Giants though.
Finally getting some BABIP help
score 6 please
Oh look, another hard hit ball from us for an out.
fletcher up in the 4th
makes sense, 2 for threewith the 2 likke that
Well it makes sense that the A’s are targeting starting pitching.
sigh. this also means fletcher at the latest, the 6th
Is adam dunn available?
Hunter Pence would come cheap.
Can he hit left handed?
Probably not much worse than he is hitting righty.
There is also Kendrys Morales. (Someone mentioned him recently, and I had to triple check that it was really only last year that we had him. Still not entirely sure I believe that.)
is bryce harper available?
No, but he will get 200 PA for the A’s in 2028.
Convince me the offense isn’t the problem
All these routine fly balls are making me think they could stand to tone down the launch angle stuff a little.
I reserve the right to change my mind when we hit some more dingers.
Putting my hopes on the Padres game.
Shut up Scioscia.
Bye Scioscia
And it started going better for the A’s the minute Gallego took the lineup card from Scioscia.
quiet down scioscia. we all have those go against our team
His hitters have gotten the benefit of so many close pitches (like the first pitch of the critical Ohtani at bat vs Montas).
And all three called strikes on Canha immediately after the ejection
Now would be a great time to finally do something against their supposedly shitty bullpen.
I’d rather be lucky than good
Dinking and dunking..who is this?
fletcher guaranteed another AB
I miscounted. Should have said rendon
I liked it when the A’s hit dingers
diekman threw a strike that was called aball
That wasn’t even borderline.
And it turns into a walk, I fking hate umpires.
and he ends up walking him
Jake Diekman, strike thrower, was fun while it lasted.
Machado 2 run homer, Padres take a two run lead in the 8th.
Score three in this bottom of the 8th please
one run?
good job A’s. Nobody got hurt
I would use Hendriks against Trout/Rendon/Ohtani, and worry about the 10th inning if/when it comes.
FK you again blue.
That was a strike all day.
that non call on trout means fletcher on deck at least in the 10th
Catch the fking ball.
Catch the FKing ball!!!
Thanks for getting 5 outs Soria.
scioscia is changing pitchers?
Olson is due.
stop hitting ramon
Fletcher is up third.
the fuck is wrong with this guy?
Bob, you gotta get thrown out here.
One problem is, the Angels have had this crew for a week so they aren’t flying with the Angels, but the A’s may well be bringing them on the plane to Dallas.
WTF?
There was a moment earlier in the game when the ump took a foul ball right into the mask. He seemed perfectly ok afterwards (didn’t get looked at IIRC), but I’m wondering if it was affecting him more and more into the game.
after the second one, murphy should have called out the trainer
inconclusive until we see a monograph like this one.
Please win here. Can’t deal anymore with the combined slegnA/umpire bullshit.
For the radio crowd, shoukd Barreto have been deked or did he just Franklin?
No he did the right thing. It was right at Simmons.
Line drive directly at Simmons, but over his head. Barreto had to hold up.
We actually won this game.
Didn’t see if Canha batflipped on the sac fly, but he should have.
That win felt good. Let’s hope the Anaheim team can beat the asterisks.
Excellent win. Not sure about Gallego using Buttery that much.
the angels manager is scioscia, but I get your point
If Scioscia gets tossed from the game is the manager still Scioscia?
It’s Scioscias all the way down.
That thing with Angels and their pocket cheat cards seems like a contributor to their games taking forever.
Now 8 of those extra innings played, and only 1 run allowed IIRC.
That is amazing. I would guess league average will be around 7 runs for 8 innings.
Vince commented that Murphy leads in DRS, here is the fangraphs leaderboard. SSS. No framing. Sees weird, no?
I think it’s sort of plausible he could be near the top if you ignore framing, but framing is more important than the other stuff, and I would put extremely low trust in this stat for catchers especially with a small sample size.
I’ve been pretty critical of both of our C’s framing, but on the positive side, they do seem to be pretty good at blocking pitches, which is a refreshing change from last year.
Someone at ESPN just loves the Gnats
LOL, worldwide zoom crash on a Monday morning.
Ack, making me nervous about my first class session tomorrow am.
LBNL zoom not working, but U Chicago is …
I knew the Heritage Foundation was behind this.
The Rangers aren’t doing the 8 p.m. local starts. I don’t know when they changed that. Monday-Wednesday are 5:05 Pacific time starts, then Thursday is 3:37 Pacific for Fox. The Astros are still listing their weeknight starts at 8:10 p.m. local.
The A’s have optioned Austin Allen, and called up my homie Jonah Heim.
That play on Saturday where he got doubled off first by Simmons was probably the last straw for Allen.
He isn’t hitting either
Did not know Blackburn was on the roster. Probably a good thing.
He was called up after kaprillian went a couple in SF, seems the burch smith roll will be whomever can be recalled.
But yeah, that was a double “oh yeah, that guy”
It’s strange to hear Fitz’ voice calling the Rockets/Thunder game.
I didn’t catch it. How anti-Harden was his game calling? Any complaints about how a team that typically doesn’t shoot well was hitting 3’s?
I didn’t end up watching for very long, but he seemed to be doing a good job of calling a neutral game.
Strategy thing I didn’t think of until Melvin said it on the pregame: He probably would have used Hendriks in the 9th yesterday in a normal season, but he’s a more powerful weapon in the 10th because of the strikeouts.
Probably everyone reads all the Fangraphs stuff already, but this was a fun look at that stupid Fletcher double off Fiers.
This is wild:
Also, I love that the guy who is slashing 381/438/548 against the A’s this year has:
Presumably the two are correlated.
I spent a chunk of time this morning trying to remember the details of the other ridiculous hit like that (non-Vlad, non-Sandoval division) that I had seen.
It was Gattis’ two-run double off of Clippard in the 9th inning. Per Gameday, that pitch was a bit (maybe 6″) lower than the one to Fletcher, but in some ways it was even more ridiculous, since Gattis managed to tomahawk it to the wall in CF, not just fight it off and bloop it down the line.
I had that game a little mixed up with this one where Maldonado came a single short of the cycle, but those were all pitches in the zone. Both big games for Houston catchers against us that I got to see from the FKing front row.
I also found (via FK comment search for “eyeballs”) Reddick’s homer in this game but that was lower still, more like around the neck if gameday is to be believed.
oh ken. Game two is a bullpen game for the A’s also