Deja Vu

7.1.05
CHW 2, OAK 6

6.30.05
SEA 2, OAK 6

6.29.05

SEA 2, OAK 6

Spot a trend? Wierd, isn't it? After suffering through a few eight game losing streaks earlier in the season, it sure feels good that the A's are on the winning end of a eight game streak.

Rich Harden had a rocky start to the game but got better with each passing inning. Jose Contreras started the game sharp but got progressively worse and wilder with each passing inning.

Despite throwing nearly 40 pitches in the top of the first, Harden acquitted himself well the the following pitching line:

R. Harden: 5.2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 5 K, 1 BB

Contreras didn't even last five.

Early in the game the A's had a hard time executing in clutch situations. Later, in another bases loaded situation in the fifth, instead of getting a hit the A's drew two walks, walking in two runs and leaving the bases loaded. Is there a such thing as "clutch walking?"

It wasn't until the eighth inning where the A's finally executed in yet another bases loaded situation. The A's have a really wretched LOB number tonight, but they won, and that's the important thing.

I saw the game from the left field bleachers. I'm glad I sat in LF because the game was really long as the ChiSox burned through their bullpen. The clock hit nine when the game was still in the sixth inning. It was a three hour game. Sitting in the LF bleachers is fun and I'm glad we have a percussion section again.

One observation I made tonight was the new Marco Scutaro chant is eerily reminiscent of the T-Long chant:

[bump, bump] MARCO! [ba-ba-bump] SCUTARO!
[bump bump] T-LONG! [ba-ba-ba-bump] T-LONG!

It's just a little bit eerie, when I heard that, I had flashbacks of T-Long's tumultous departure from Oakland. Not the flashbacks of the good times he had when he first was traded to the A's. I'm not a big fan of the new Scutaro chant. The good old "MARCO....SCUTARO!" is good enough for me.

As the game was long, so was my BART ride home. My train was stuck at the Coliseum station for almost ten minutes as the paramedics were called to assist with somebody who was sick or injured. It probably was serious, since an ambulance was called. I didn't get home till almost midnight.

All in all, good game.