The A's

We ran into the Verlander buzzsaw last night and could not continue the mojo.  It was unfortunate the umpire was giving Verlander calls 4 inches off the plate, as if the best pitcher in baseball needed the benefit of the doubt.  But let's face it - the guy is awesome.  He throws pitches that are laughably unhittable at times.

The substory of the game - and series - was baserunning.  Norris couldn't throw anyone out all series.  Maybe Parker couldn't hold runners on, but it was pathetic.  On the flipside, Moss gets thrown out at 2nd trying to steal on a ball in the dirt early on in the game when Verlander was on fire.  I don't see how the A's can give up outs like that.  If the A's didn't have the miracle comeback the night before, the story was going to be Drew getting thrown out going for a triple with no outs and the heart of the order coming up.  Stupid.

When the Tigers finally erupted in the 7th, it was a string of bad luck and mini-meltdowns by a young team.  With Verlander on the mound up 6 runs, you knew there was little mojo could do to bring it back.

These best of 5 series are tough when the other team has the best starting pitcher.  But oh well, an awesome season and still a lot of fun.

Cespedes is my favorite A's player.  Norris is my least favorite.  The guy can't hit and can't play defense.  Remind me why we traded Suzuki to give this guy a shot?