Tag: mlb

That’s Amaury News and Commentary: Baseball Rules Changes or Restoration

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Baseball Rules: Changes or Restoration?

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

The Toronto Blue Jays and American League MVP of the 2021 All Star Game Vladimir Guerrero Jr holds up the MVP Trophy after being selected for the award at Coors Field in Denver after the 2021 All Star Game Tue Jul 13, 2021 (AP News photo)

During the All Star Break Commissioner Rob Manfred watched the American League beat the National League for the eight consecutive year, with 22-year old Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (Toronto Blue Jays) becoming the youngest MVP during a mid-season classic to win the coveted award. The AL beat the NL 5-2.

LA Angels Shohei Othani, a serious candidate for AL MVP, became the first ever player to start an All Star Game as a hitter and as a pitcher. “Shotime” was credited with the win; he also joined his compatriot Hideo Nomo as the only two Japanese pitchers to open an ASG (Nomo in 1995) Mr. Manfred, made news as he spoke about possible rules coming down for the 2022 season.

Manfred spend a few days in Denver hosting the MLB players draft and ASG festivities. Here is what might be coming down the pike for the 2022 according to the Office of the Commissioner.

A) Designated Hitter: First of all (like it or not) and I know a lot of traditional people that do not like this, the Commissioner announced the universal DH (Designated Hitter ) rule could be adapted permanently for the first time in the National League on all 15 teams, starting 2022. “I think it would be a non-radical change, but I’m not going to speculate on whether we’re going to propose it or get it,” he said. He feels most teams in the National League will be happy to go along with the DH.

B) Seven-Inning Double Headers: Most likely will not be back for 2022 “I don’t think seven-inning doubleheaders are going to be part of our future going forward.’’ said the Commissioner. These rules were adopted based on medical advice,’’ Manfred said. “Those are less likely they will become part of our permanent landscape. It was a covid-19 related change.

C) Extra-Inning Rule: The one beginning the tenth inning with a runner at second base, (free-phantom-zombie runner), many terms have been used to describe this runner that is automatically inserted in the top of the tenth inning before the first hitter comes to the plate. This likely will not return in 2022.

D) The Shift: This defensive strategy could be banned next season. “Let’s just say you’ve regulated the shift by requiring two infielders each side and second base. What does that do?” Manfred said. “It makes the game look like what it looked like when I was 12 years old.

It’s not change; it’s kind of restoration, right?” Mr. Manfred said he believes this will have a positive reaction from front offices. Personally, I applaud this decision. When you score a game; an out recorded by a third-baseman on a throw to first, many times is not the traditional 5 to 3 for an out, because that third-baseman (or shortstop or second base) could be fielding the ball from short to medium right field, we see this a lot during the season.

All the above will be on the agenda after the season when the MLPA (players union) and MLB and the Commissioner negotiate their Collective Bargaining Agreement, which Mr. Manfred feels very positive. There were rumors of a possible lockout or strike in 2022, if they cannot come to an agreement. I believe after what has happened the last year and a half, it would be basically suicide for the game if this happened.

Regarding the Oakland Athletics Howard Terminal new stadium and possible relocation out of Oakland: “Viewing Oakland A’s exploration of Las Vegas relocation as a bluff “is a mistake”. (quote) Rob Manfred, Commissioner of Baseball.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the lead play by play announcer for Oakland A’s Spanish radio on 1010 KIQI LeGrande San Francisco and does News and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Oakland A’s report: Build it and they will come

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By Jerry Feitelberg

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred tries to laugh off being booed after being introduced at the MLB 2021 baseball draft on Sun Jul 11, 2021 in Denver (AP News photo) 

OAKLAND–On Tuesday, MLB’s commissioner, Rob Manfred, announced that time has run out for the City of Oakland to make a final decision to support the A’s very ambitious project at the Howard Terminal.

The City Council meets on July 20th to announce their decision. Failure to join in with the A’s to build the stadium means the A’s probably will be looking elsewhere to build their new stadium. Possible sites include Portland, Oregon, Las Vegas, Nevada, Charlotte, North Carolina, and Montreal, Canada.

The A’s, without question, need a new ballpark. The Oakland Coliseum was built to be the home of two sports: baseball and football. The current configuration for baseball has the fans sitting too far away from the infield.

The Coliseum does not have the intimacy of a ballpark, such as Oracle Park in San Francisco, Camden Yards in Baltimore or Boston’s Fenway Park. Before Mt. Davis was built in 1995, the fans sitting in the bleachers could talk to the A’s outfielders. The outfield fence is much higher, and the fans’ view from the seats is much different now.

When Lew Wolfe was running the team, he wanted to move the team to several sites in the Bay Area. He looked at sites in Fremont and San Jose. The San Francisco Giants, who own territorial rights to San Jose, objected.

The Giants gained those rights when they were on the verge of moving the franchise to Toronto or Tampa Bay. The Giants built their new stadium in San Francisco but were not willing to relinquish their rights.

The A’s new president, Dave Kaval, thought he had a deal to build a stadium on the grounds of Laney College in Oakland. He had egg on his face with that highly-touted deal fell through. Undaunted, the A’s came up with a new plan to build at Howard Terminal, a few blocks north of Jack London Square in Oakland.

The original plan, or so though Oakland’s city council, was to build a baseball-only ballpark to be privately financed. The park would seat about 35,000 people.

They were blindsided when the A’s came to them will a 12 billion dollar project that would include not only the stadium but 3000 units of housing, over a million square feet of office buildings, and 200,000 square feet of retail space.

They informed the city that Oakland would have to invest over 855 million dollars to build the project. The A’s tried to show the council that those costs would be recouped by the new tax revenues generated by the project. They felt the additional jobs, homes, and businesses would greatly benefit the city’s economy.

The A’s and Oakland have to resolve several issues. Who will be paying for infrastructure costs? Access to the park and parking issues will have to be settled. Oakland wants the A’s to stay in town for the next 45 years.

The A’s will commit to 20. If the plan is to be approved by Oakland, it has to be a win-win situation. Both sides have to realize there is more to gain than lose.

The fans will be crushed to lose their team. Life will go on if the A’s leave town, but it will leave a big hole in the hearts of the people that have supported this team since their arrival here in 1968.

Oakland A’s podcast with Jerry Feitelberg: A’s Bassitt and Olson make appearances during All Star game

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Oakland A’s pitcher Chris Bassitt seen here pitching in the first inning against the Texas Rangers on Sun Jul 11, 2021 in Arlington the day before the All Star break. Bassitt pitched for an inning on Tue Jul 13, 2021 against the National League All Stars in Denver (AP file photo)

On the Oakland A’s podcast with Jerry F:

#1 Before we get started with the A’s podcast Jerry do you think that ESPN’s Stephen A Smith has lost credibility with his audience or will has apology regarding his remarks that Los Angeles Angels designated hitter and pitcher Shohei Ohtani can’t speak English and his needing an interpreter is ruining baseball.

#2 American League and Oakland A’s pitcher Chris Bassitt pitched an inning, one hit, and two walks, one strikeout talk about Bassitt’s outing against the National League.

#3 Matt Olson whose been hitting home runs was 0-1 striking out twice playing first base for the American League Olson was eliminated in the first round

#4 Oakland A’s president Dave Kaval acknowledged that the City of Oakland City Council needs to pass the vote for Howard Terminal or the A’s are leaving Oakland for good. The A’s and the City are half a billion dollars apart on infrastructure costs so much so that Kaval is prepared to take a flight to Las Vegas the day after the July 20th vote to explore relocating the A’s to Vegas.

#5 Jerry just to get your impressions on the kind of second half the A’s are expected to have.

Join Jerry for the A’s podcasts each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

American League brings the pitch and the pop to Denver in All-Star Game win

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By Morris Phillips

DENVER–Vladimir Guerrero didn’t get the start in his first All-Star Game at Fenway Park in 1999. And he didn’t do much: Guerrero–facing Texas’ Jeff Zimmerman–saw three pitches and grounded out to end the seventh inning. The Hall of Famer was 24 years old in 1999, and he would make eight more All-Star appearances, turning the game into his own personal showcase on more than one occasion.

Guerrero’s son, Vladimir Jr. might not be that impressed.

The 22-year old Vlad Jr. shocked the sold out Coors Field crowd on Tuesday by hitting the third All-Star pitch he saw 468 feet to get the American League headed in the right direction in their 5-2 win. Guerrero Jr. was named the starter at first base, and in the fifth inning struck again, driving in a run on a ground out to put the AL up 3-0.

Oh, and did we mention the reaction of Fernando Tatis Jr. to Guerrero’s blast, his jaw dropped and unable to turn and look as the blast headed into the left field bleachers. These days, television replays tell the whole story: Guerrero’s homer was the 200th of All-Star Game history and it left the diamond traveling well over 100 mph. Thus Tatis’ reaction.

The victory was the American League’s eighth consecutive in the series, and 15th of the last 18 meetings. How is that dominance demonstrated? Future NL rosters with the numbers expanded for the All-Star occasion will have no players that have beaten the AL on the All-Star stage. Quite staggering.

Xander Bogaerts of the Red Sox added an RBI single in the fifth, and Tampa Bay catcher Mike Zunino homered in the sixth to cap the American League scoring. The National League got a home run from J.T. Realmuto in the fifth, and Manny Machado scored on a past ball in the sixth.

Shohei Ohtani was the AL starting pitcher in an unmatched feat of pitching and batting leadoff at the All-Star level. He pitched just one inning, not allowing a hit, and eight AL relievers each handled an inning of work after Ohtani’s exit.

Bogaerts was the only batter to get a pair of hits, and Corbin Burnes of the Brewers was the only pitcher to throw two innings. Burnes allowed the home run to Guererro.

Locally, Brandon Crawford and Matt Olson saw action, but didn’t factor in the game’s outcome. Crawford had one at-bat, and Olson two, but neither slugger got a hit.

All-Star Game post game wrap: Ohtani main event as AL defeats NL 5-2

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The American League’s lead off hitter Shohei Ohtani takes a cut for a ground out against the National League’s pitcher Max Scherzer in the first inning action at Coors Field in Denver at the 2021 All Star Game (AP News photo)

By Morris Phillips

DENVER–Vladimir Guerrero Jr and Shohei Ohtani were two of the top feature in Tuesday night’s All Star Game at Coors Field in Denver. Ohtani who was the lead off hitter for the American League also pitched two innings of shoutout ball to start off the game.

In the top of the third inning Guerrero hit a deep drive 468 feet for two RBIs at games end Ohtani had picked up the game victory with a 5-2 win over the National League All Stars. Guerrero was elected the MVP and was the youngest player to receive the All Star Game MVP Award in baseball history.

In the top of the second the Toronto Blue Jays Marcus Semien hit into a ground out for an RBI that gave the AL the lead. Guerrero hit a ground out that gave the AL two more runs. The Red Sox Xavier Bogaerts knocked in another run with an RBI single.

The Philadelphia Phillies TJ Realmuto hit a home run in the bottom of the fifth for the National League for the NL’s first run of the night. The AL struck back when the Tampa Bay Rays Mike Zunino hit a home run in the top of the sixth and in the bottom of the sixth the NL added one more run on a passed ball.

The win by the AL is their eighth straight All Star Game victory the win is the second longest winning streak in All Star history. The all time All Star winning streak is held by the National League at 11 straight from 1972-1982.

Morris is a San Francisco Giants beat writer and does the Giants podcasts each Monday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco Giants Report: Giants have more draft picks than last year; Select Will Bednar College World Series MVP

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Mississippi State Bulldogs pitcher Will Bednar was selected along with the San Francisco Giants 14th overall pick. Bednar was the MVP in the College World Series seen here hoisting the MVP Trophy (file photo from the Pittsburgh Post Gazette)

By Jessica Kwong

The San Francisco Giants are heading into the All-Star break on a good note after sweeping the Washington Nationals in a three-game series that wrapped up on Sunday. The Giants (57-32) have maintained their spot at the top of the NL West.

Meanwhile, the biggest news for the Giants during the break is the 2021 MLB Draft. San Francisco has 20 picks this year which include one on Sunday, nine on Monday and 10 on Tuesday. That is far more than last season when they had just seven picks.

The Giants picked nine straight pitchers to start the draft. They selected Will Bednar, the College World Series MVP, with the No. 14 overall pick in the first round, and eight more pitchers after that. It was just what the organization — with many hitting prospects and not as many pitching options — wanted to do.

“We’re super excited about what we were able to do,” said Giants Director of Amateur Scouting Michael Holmes after the draft. “To be honest with you, yeah, we went on a nice little run of pitching there. I wouldn’t say it was primarily our focus when we started the day, it just started to kind of play out that way.”

Holmes said the Giants felt the draft had a lot to offer pitching-wise.

“Although there were a lot of position players that we had extensive talks about and we were in play in different parts of today’s draft, it really kind of fell by the way of the pitcher,” Holmes said. “We’re really excited about the group of arms and the one position player at the end that we were able to add.”

That position player is outfielder Vaunt Brown.

All attention on Tuesday for the Giants will be on the other half of their draft picks.

The Giants will be back to the regular swing of things on Friday to start a three-game series against the St Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium.

Super Slugger: Mets’ Alonso wins the Home Run Derby again while outshining the star-studded competition

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By Morris Phillips

DENVER–The greatest Home Run Derby ever? This one had all the elements.

Powerful hitters? Start with Pete Alonso, the defending champion with the tree trunk lower base and Popeye forearms. His first round of the night just turned out to be the biggest round ever with 35 home runs hit.

Exhausted hitters? For Sho… Shohei Ohtani looked gassed one minute into his first round, no doubt due to all the buildup surrounding his record-breaking exploits, not to mention having to be the last of the eight participants to hit. Ohtani was bested Juan Soto in round one, but that just means he’ll be better prepared for tomorrow’s starting pitching assignment and his spot leading off in the American League batting order. And no Ohtani didn’t flame out, he finished with a bang, pumping out 28 homers in his round, most of those in the final minute.

Hitters with amazing stories? Trey Mancini didn’t even play in the major leagues in 2020. Instead, the 27-year old successfully battled colon cancer and returned to action this season. His inclusion in the Derby was supposed to be a feel good story, but his first round elimination of Oakland’s Matt Olson was all in the swing. Mancini sent balls all over the yard, winning the duel 24-23. And the Orioles’ slugger followed that up by ousting hometown favorite Trevor Story, 13-12 proving that it’s always better to go last and not hit even one more home run than necessary to advance.

Of course, the setting of the contest–Coors Field in Denver–had a major impact on the quality of the contest. From the mile high locale to the baseballs not being run through the well-known humidor, the stage was set for a record-breaking event. The Rockpile beware! Here come the bombs!

The longest HR of the evening? Only by a couple of feet, that distinction went to Washington’s Juan Soto, whose longest blast traveled 520 feet. Ohtani and Alonso put themselves in this competition with shots that each traveled 513 feet. Soto’s homer reached the second deck in right center and was greeted by a section of wildly delighted–and disbelieving–fans.

Hey don’t forget about me! I’m exhausted too! Mets bench coach Dave Jauss, 64-years old and high-minded courtesy of his Amherst education, pitched gopher balls to Alonso through three rounds, and based on the prodigious totals, did an incredible job. Jauss is the son of Bill Jauss, the well-known sportswriter for the Chicago Tribune. He’s also an older, but successful, parent: his son, D.J. was drafted in the MLB Draft in 2014.

And the winner? Alonso made it back-to-back titles hitting 23 homers in the final round to best Mancini. Alonso thoroughly enjoyed the moment, spinning his gaudy Derby Champ necklace presented by Ken Griffey Jr. and pounding his chest until he was heartily greeted by Mancini. Alonso became only the fourth contestant to win the Derby twice. Yoenis Cespedes was the last to win back-to-back in 2015.

Oakland A’s Mid-Season analysis for first half 2021 season

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American League slugger Matt Olson representing the Oakland A’s watches the flight of the ball he hit during the first round of the Home Run Derby at Coors Field on Mon Jul 12, 2021 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s are off for the next four days as MLB holds its annual All-star game festivities this week. Monday night’s activities include the annual Home Run Derby. A’s first baseman, Matt Olson, will compete against seven other sluggers for the crown.

He will have to beat the likes of Shohei Ohtani, who leads MLB with 33 dingers, Toronto’s Vladimir Guerrero, Jr, and San Diego’s Fernando Tatis. It will not be easy, but the contest will be fun. The A’s best pitcher, Chris Bassitt, will also be in Denver as part of the American League’s pitching staff.

The rest of the A’s will be at home getting a well-deserved four-day rest. The baseball season, as fans know, is a grueling, grinding marathon for six months. There are not very many off-days throughout the season. The four days give the players to rest their weary bodies.

The A’s season did not start well. They lost the first six games of the season. Fans were concerned the team would not be able to overcome the poor start. A’s manager, Bob Melvin, would have liked the team to get off to a fast start, but that didn’t happen.

What made matters worse was the first four losses were to their main division rivals, the Houston Astros. The A’s then lost two more games to the LA Dodgers.

Things improved when they beat the Dodgers for their first win. The A’s got back on track with an amazing 13-game winning streak. The A’s were able to continue to play winning baseball. They found themselves in first place in the AL Western Division.

After the first 70 games of the year, they owned a two-game advantage over the Astros. However, they were 8-13 since then and now trail the Astros by three and 1/2 games. Their problems started when they went on a 4-6 on a ten-game road trip to New York, Dallas, and San Francisco.

They came home to face the Rangers and the Red Sox for a short six-game homestand. They went 2-4. They placed the next six games on the road against the Astros and Rangers. Houston took two out three and owned a 9-4 record against Oakland with six games left to play late in the season.

The A’s lost the first game of the three-game set to the Rangers last Friday night. They outlasted the Rangers 8-4 in eleven innings on Saturday and beat Texas 4-1 on Sunday to finish with a 50-42 record.

What are the takeaways for the season? At this point, the A’s have to be very pleased with the pitching staff’s performance. Chris Bassitt has been their ace. Bassitt has a record of 1-2 with an ERA of 3.28. He has gone seven innings in several of his last ten starts and leads the A’s with 118 pitched.

Being able to go seven innings has allowed the A’s to keep the bullpen fresh. Sean Manaea has pitched well. The Big lefty’s record is 6-6 and has an ERA of 3.19. Frankie Montas is 8-7, and his ERA is 4.41. Montas has pitched, but a couple of rocky starts has pushed his ERA to over four runs per game.

Lefty Cole Irvin has been a pleasant surprise. Irvin is 6-8 with an ERA of 3.65. The A’s hitters failed to give him support in some of the games that he lost. Righty James Kaprielian has been another find. The big righty who pitched his collegiate ball at UCLA is 4-3 with an ERA of 2.90. Kaprielian came to Oakland in the trade that sent Sonny Gray to New York in 2017.

Kaprielian was sidelined with injuries, and he is now showing the A’s why the Yankees made him a number one draft pick several years ago.

Bob Melvin has to be pleased with the A’s bullpen’s performance. The A’s lost their All-Star closer, Liam Hendriks, to free agency last winter. They signed Trevor Rosenthal to a one-year $11 million contract to replace Hendriks. Rosenthal injured his shoulder in spring training and, hopefully, will return in August. Bob Melvin decided to use lefty Jake Diekman and righty Lou Trivino as the closer.

Diekman had a wonderful 2020 season. He was lights out. Not so much this season. He still has done well and has recorded seven saves. Lou Trivino, a sensation in 2018, struggled the last two seasons. Trivino worked to improve, and Sweet Lou has responded to the challenge. Trivino has 14 saves and an ERA of 1.84 for Oakland. Yusmeiro Petit has been good again. J.B. Wendelken, Deolis Guerra, Sergio Romo all have come through for Oakland.

The A’s offense has been a work in progress. The A’s lineup on Sunday had just two players hitting over .250. Matt Olson leads the A’s with a .282 batting average with 23 home runs and 59 RBIs. Jed Lowrie was second on the team with a .263 average.

Lowrie, who hadn’t played in the last two years as a New York Met, returned to Oakland the third time. Jed can still swing the bat. Ramon Laureano and Tony Kemp are hitting about .240. Laureano has some pop in his bat with 13 dingers and 31 RBIs.

Kemp was hitting about.280 a couple of weeks ago, but his bat went cold. Sean Murphy and Matt Chapman are at the .220 mark. Murphy homered in the last two games against Texas.

Chapman missed the last part of last season with a hip injury. He had surgery. Matt struggled early in the season. He has been doing better lately. Elvis Andrus arrived via a trade with the Rangers. The A’s needed to replace Marcus Semien, who left to play second base with the Toronto Blue Jays.

Semien is having a terrific season and made the All-Star team. Andrus struggled early in the season. He has been hitting well the last six weeks, and his average is about .238. Mitch Moreland is currently on the 10-day IL. It is the second time this season for Moreland.

The A’s need his bat back in the lineup. Stephen Piscotty’s average is slightly above the Mendoza line. Piscotty has been injured a couple of times and has not returned to the player that he can be. He did have a huge pinch-hit home run to help win the game last Saturday against Texas.

Billy Beane and David Forst will have to make some decisions regarding the team before the July 30th trade deadline. Rumors are floating around that they are interested in acquiring slugger Nelson Cruz from the Minnesota Twins to fill the DH slot.

Another possibility is trading for Texas Rangers’ outfielder Joey Gallo. Gallo has one year of arbitration left and will be a free agent after the 2022 season. The Rangers are paying him 6.2 million dollars. The A’s could handle his salary easily.

Those two big bats would put a lot more power into the A’s lineup. Right now, the only consistent power hitter in the A’s lineup is Matt Olson. The A’s may also be looking to acquire help either for the starting rotation or the bullpen.

The A’s want to win the division. If the season ended today, the A’s would be the second Wild Card. They would have to travel to St. Petersburg to face the Tampa Bay Rays.

The A’s hitters need to improve if they want to make the playoffs and win the pennant. Right now, the team has not been able to hit with men in scoring position.

The team, as a whole, strikes out too much. They need to put the bat on the ball. In the past few years, the A’s have played better in the second half of the season. Let’s hope the A’s will do well. The fans in the Bay Area would love to see another World Series between the A’s and the San Francisco Giants. It could happen.

Jerry Feitelberg covers Oakland A’s road games for the 2021 season for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco Giants podcast with Morris Phillips: Crawford and Gausman looking forward to All Star Game; Posey looking forward to resting thumb

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San Francisco Giants catch Buster Posey leaves the field after getting hit in the thumb against the Arizona Diamondbacks in the bottom of the sixth at Chase Field in Phoenix (AP file photo)

On the Giants podcast with Morris:

#1 Catcher Buster Posey’s thumb has landed him on the ten day Injured List he’ll take the All Star break and then some the timing of the All Star break couldn’t have come at a better time.

#2 Posey is one of the notable players at the All Star game hitting a first half, .328, 12 homers, 28 RBIs in 58 games a decent first half.

#3 Posey was all set to go to the All Star game in Denver but said the thumb injury won’t allow him to hit or catch and his kids who were coming on the trip were disappointed.

#4 San Francisco starting pitcher Kevin Gausman has had a terrific first half (9-3 ERA 1.73) he’s also had a successful number of strikeouts at 124.

#5 Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford has had a great first half with the bat and glove hitting .282, 48 runs, 74 hits and 18 home runs.

Join Morris for the Giants podcasts Mondays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Oakland A’s podcast with Barbara Mason: All Star picks Oakland gets no love; Bassitt lone representative of second place team

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Oakland A’s pitcher Chris Bassitt seen pitching against the Texas Rangers on Wed Jun 30, 2021 will be the A’s lone representative at the 2021 All Star Game in Denver on Tue Jul 13, 2021 (AP file photo)

On the A’s podcast with Barbara:

#1 If your Oakland A’s pitcher Chris Bassitt (10-2 ERA 3.28) you had to work you tail off to get some attention in order to be selected by Tampa Bay and American League manager Kevin Cash as Bassitt is the lone A’s representative at the All Star game.

#2 Bassitt has had such a outstanding year losing only two games and winning ten he’s had some strong outings this season.

#3 Although he’s has a 3.28 ERA in the last seven games he’s got a 12.46 ERA so his earned run production has been elevated a little.

#4 In Bassitt’s last loss turned out to be against the Houston Astros 9-6 on Tue Jul 6th at Minute Maid Field. Bassitt doesn’t want to have a second half where his ERA get too inflated.

#5 Oakland A’s slugger Matt Olson will be representing the A’s in the home run derby on Monday. Olson is hitting .282, 23 home runs and 59 RBIs it should be a competitive contest for Olson.

Join Barbara for the A’s podcasts each Monday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com