The Oakland A’s Mark Canha connects for a single in the seventh inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium in New York on Fri Jun 18, 2021 (AP News photo)

Hot Again -Athletics Winning is no Surprise

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

Oakland Athletics going for their eighth win in a row this Saturday at Yankee Stadium, New York. Among all 30 MLB teams there are surprises every season, teams that were supposed to win, that are not, and teams that were not supposed to win that are winning.

Your typical over achievers and under achievers. But the Oakland Athletics are neither, they have been a good team and they continue to be. Although it was a short season in 2020 the A’s won their division and this year they had the longest winning streak in the game.

13 victories in a row and that was no fluke. Led by first baseman Matt Olson, who is having an MVP-type of season, a solid starting rotation and a very efficient bullpen, even though they are without closer Trevor Rosenthal, whom they signed to a one-year deal for $11 million in February.

He was to take the place of Liam Hendricks who left the Athletics and signed as a free agent with the Chicago White Sox. Rosenthal (surgery) has yet to pitch. Off everything goes to plan he might be able to pitch towards the end of the season. Rosenthal, 30, has 132 saves and a 3.36 ERA over eight major league seasons.

The AL West is basically a two-team race, between the reigning divisional champion Oakland A’s and the Houston Astros who are in second and continue to keep pace with the A’s. The word “distancing” came out of the closet with the Covid pandemic, and in this division there is distancing, between Oakland and Houston and then the rest of the herd. The AL West can be divided into two segments.

The Athletics have enough to win between 90 to over 100 games. For the A’s the big question must be; how deep can they go into the postseason. The Chicago White Sox are one of the most athletic teams in the game, well balanced and managed by Tony LaRussa, while the Tampa Bay Rays could easily return to the World Series.

The Houston Astros, might have the best offense in the game. Trade deadline is only six weeks away. What do they Athletics need for the second half? Twins slugger Nelson Cruz (DH) will probably be available. He would be a key bat for the postseason, and some more help in the bullpen is always welcome. The A’s front office usually finds a way to make a deal when they are contending and this year should be no different.

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