Athletics - 4/05/03

::FIC Local Spin::

So far, the focus has been on Miguel Tejada’s destination or perhaps lack of after the 2003 season. A’s owner Steve Schott retreated from his earlier declaration of not even attempting to resign Tejada, after being harshly castigated by media and A’s fans alike. So he instead took a different approach and maintained that he “never intended to slam the door on Miguel Tejada. If the opportunity rises and his agents want to talk to us again about a shorter-term contract than what we heard he was looking for, we’re always ready to listen.” Tejada replied that he wanted a deal done by the end of the season, or he would become a free agent. He declined to provide the first offer, saying that it was the job of management to approach him. GM Billy Beane agreed with Tejada, citing “GM 101.”

One move A’s fans are debating is the role of Adam Piatt on the A’s club. Although Piatt was once a highly regarded A’s prospect, he has failed to deliver in the clutch, namely in the 2002 ALDS. On Saturday, Piatt got his first start of the season in LF and went 2 for 3 with a solo homer and a double, although it should noted that both hits came on fastballs from Angels’ ace lefty Jarrod Washburn. Piatt has not demonstrated the ability to hit a breaking ball.

::Latest Team Info::

Opening Day: The A’s opened their season with a bang, the power being provided by various colorful fireworks as well as a newbie on the Oakland team by the name of Erubiel Durazo. He received scattered applause upon his introduction. That would change. To the amazement and delight of the 41,000+ Oakland fans in attendance, the unknown Athletic flashed his sweet swing, stroking a two run homer just above the yellow line over the out – of- town scoreboard in Left Field, bringing the fans to their feet. The next time he came up to bat, the bases were loaded, and the stadium was anything but quiet. He didn’t disappoint, launching a shot towards the wall in right center field. The stadium exploded, and Durazo pounded his fist as he joyously rounded the bag and went to second on his 3 RBI, bases clearing double. This would prove to be all the offense the A’s needed, as A’s opening day starter Tim Hudson threw eight shutout innings, scattering five hits. His sinker was working extremely well and he kept the infield defense on their toes. Mark Ellis, the A’s E-topps Rookie All-Star 2B, made two fantastic diving stops at 2B, once robbing the speedy Ichiro Suzuki. The A’s outfield defense also looked much improved, as Chris Singleton chased down an Ichiro liner in left center field.

Small Ball: The sign in left field read “A New Machatude,” and the A’s new skipper didn’t disappoint. On Opening Day, A’s left fielder Terrence (“T”) Long singled and took off running on a pitch to catcher Ramon Hernandez, who promptly smacked a single into left field, allowing Terrence Long to get to third base. The A’s laid down 2 sacrifice bunts on Thursday. On Friday, Tejada and Chavez pulled off a double steal, which paid off when Erubiel Durazo plated them both with a 2-out RBI single. Chris Singleton added his first stolen base of the season later in the game, bringing the A’s to a total of 3 stolen bases on the year. Last year, the A’s had a combined total of 46 stolen bases, dead last in the majors.

Pitching: The A’s starting pitching rotation has been the talk of baseball for the past couple of years. With the exception of Mark Mulder, who had a shaky outing, check out these pitching lines and you’ll see why:
Hudson, Tim (W,1-0) 8.0IP, 5Hits, 0R, 0ER, 4K’s, 2BB’s, 0Hr, 0.00 ERA
Zito, Barry (W,1-0) 6.0 IP, 3Hits, 1R, 1ER, 3K’s, 2BB’s, 0Hr, 1.50 ERA
Lilly, Ted (W,1-0) 7.1 IP, 3Hits, 2R, 2ER, 3K’s, 2BB’s, 1Hr, 2.45 ERA
Halama, John (W, 1-0) 5.2 IP, 5Hits, 1R, 0ER, 3K’s, 2BB’s, 0Hr, 0.00 ERA

::Injuries::

The San Francisco Chronicle reported that A’s first baseman Scott Hatteberg's ankle was "sore and swollen up.” Hatteberg was injured in the third inning on Thursday when Seattle pitcher Joel Piniero lost his popup in the sun, which then appeared to roll foul. He then grabbed the ball and collided with Hatteberg, running down the line. Hatteberg attempted to leap over him, but ended up jamming his ankle on the bag and is "day to day". He was called out via “tag” on the play. Hatteberg didn’t play on Friday, and he didn’t start on Saturday but did get into the game via pinch-hitting appearance.

::On the Farm::

Rich Harden, A’s phenom, threw 6 perfect innings as the Opening Day starter for the A's double A affiliate. His line looked like this: 6.0 IP, 0 H, 0R, 0ER, 0BB, 9K’s, 0Hr, 0.00 ERA

::Quick View::
Add
~ Terrence Long has a much improved swing, along with some sweet plays in Left Field.
~ Jermaine Dye is looking very healthy in the field and at the plate.
~ Erubiel Durazo .. I can not emphasize enough how awesome this guy looks. Try this: quickest to 10 RBI’s (4 games) in Oakland history. In his fifth game, he collected his 11th RBI.
~ Keith Foulke pitched poorly in a non-save situation, but needed just EIGHT pitches to get three outs in a save situation against the Angels, throwing seven of the eight for strikes.
~ Jeremy Fikac isn’t quite a household name, and there’s nothing particularly memorable about him like say Mike Fetters’ trademark head snap, but he looks like a solid middle reliever.

Hold
~ Chris Singleton finally got his first hit Thursday, scoring the tying run in the 9th inning. Although he looked completely overmatched and overwhelmed in the first two games, his first hit may have been a breakthrough.
~ Ricardo Rincon's nasty slider is gone, and if doesn’t come back soon, beware, as his fastball alone is not always successful.

Drop/Deal
~ Adam Piatt hasn’t shown the ability to hit a major league breaking ball yet, but he can hit the fastball as well as almost anyone in the league. When Piatt was called up in 2002, after a torrid week of pounding fastballs, pitchers began throwing him breaking balls. He then went extremely cold. He has good range in the outfield (LF) and can play 1B.
~ Eric Byrnes looks to be getting some more playing time than in years past. It’s too early to tell, but he drew a walk in his first start of the season on Thursday and may prove to be a good reserve outfielder or pinch hitter off the bench. He has incredible speed and makes some fantastic dives or jumps in the outfield.