by The GM on May 8 at 11:24AM
Now that Oakland has won four games in a row, they have jumped back into a first place tie with the Angels. Both teams sit at 22-14 on the season and both have played very consistent baseball. So what is going to separate the two teams?
The first thing that will create space is pitching. Looking at both staffs, the Angels appear to have the better staff by name recognition. However, the A's have the best pitching in the American League right now. When a team is struggling on offense, the pitching can get them through. Oakland's offense is nowhere near as potent as the Angels' offense, so they have to rely on their pitching quite a bit more. Later in the season that will help the team out a little more, because they know that they can be patient on offense while their pitching goes out and keeps the other teams from scoring a ton of runs.
The second thing that is going to cause a change in the standings is injuries. Both teams have quite a few players on the DL right now. Oakland has Rich Harden (coming back very soon), Keith Foulke, Kiko Calero, Travis Buck, and Eric Chavez. LA has Kelvin Escobar, John Lackey, Dustin Moseley, Maicer Izturis, and Howie Kendrick on the DL for their team. As you can see, both teams have players on the DL that are big time contributors. Oakland is used to having Rich Harden on the DL, but Eric Chavez has not even seen an at-bat this season. He could be the key to the offense once he comes back. The same could be said for the Angels' Howie Kendrick. Whoever comes back stronger for their respective team, is going to go a long way in determining which team will start to make a strong push for the post season.
Next up for Oakland is a weekend showdown with the Texas Rangers, this time in Texas. Oakland is currently 10-5 on the road. Texas is 6-8 at home.
The first thing that will create space is pitching. Looking at both staffs, the Angels appear to have the better staff by name recognition. However, the A's have the best pitching in the American League right now. When a team is struggling on offense, the pitching can get them through. Oakland's offense is nowhere near as potent as the Angels' offense, so they have to rely on their pitching quite a bit more. Later in the season that will help the team out a little more, because they know that they can be patient on offense while their pitching goes out and keeps the other teams from scoring a ton of runs.
The second thing that is going to cause a change in the standings is injuries. Both teams have quite a few players on the DL right now. Oakland has Rich Harden (coming back very soon), Keith Foulke, Kiko Calero, Travis Buck, and Eric Chavez. LA has Kelvin Escobar, John Lackey, Dustin Moseley, Maicer Izturis, and Howie Kendrick on the DL for their team. As you can see, both teams have players on the DL that are big time contributors. Oakland is used to having Rich Harden on the DL, but Eric Chavez has not even seen an at-bat this season. He could be the key to the offense once he comes back. The same could be said for the Angels' Howie Kendrick. Whoever comes back stronger for their respective team, is going to go a long way in determining which team will start to make a strong push for the post season.
Next up for Oakland is a weekend showdown with the Texas Rangers, this time in Texas. Oakland is currently 10-5 on the road. Texas is 6-8 at home.
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