"Their Year" Wins

When you root for a team that you don't think will be very good, there's a slow process in which they can start to win you over. There's a lucky bounce here, a catching the other team at the right time there, a sudden and unexpected performance from a young player and voila... you're daring to hope. Day by day, grateful for the opportunity, but more or less convinced that it's all going to pop like a balloon, and you will be back where you were, but probably still OK with the ride.

So it was last month with the Sixers, and so it is now with the A's. The little team that didn't even seem to want to try is 22-14, tied for first in the AL West with those Anaheimian Angels of Rancho Cucamonga, and since it's never too early to look at the wild card, 3.5 games ahread of (gulp) Tampa Bay. Only the DBacks have a better record in all of MLB.

Yesterday's win finished a sweep of the fast-falling Orioles (gosh, summer came early this year), and was punctuated by a walk-off foul pole home run from Mark Ellis. And while they've played six more games at home, they also get back Rich Harden on Sunday, which means that they will move Chad Gaudin (and his team-leading 3 wins and horrible 3.75 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 2.6 to 1 K/BB ration) to the bullpen. Yes, this does mean that the A's are sending a guy to the pen who, on performance, would be the #2 starter on the Yankees. Keith Foulke's return is also imminent, and he's looked good this year.

Is it time to believe yet? Well, 36 games is over 20% of the season, and it's hard to imagine that the pitching (currently with a 3.13 ERA and 1.20 WHIP) and defense is going to completely collapse. Offensively, they all get on base, and it hardly seems possible that they'll hit for less power for the rest of the year (they've hit, um, 20 homers so far this year, which is kind of mind-boggling for a team playing .611 ball). Heck, they might even get something out of Frank Thomas and Eric Chavez later in the year. So...

No. Nope. Ain't gonna believe. No chance. And there's no way this is a double-jinx, because that kind of thing is just childish. (Go A's!)