Wednesday: Rangers 3-2 Athletics
Thursday: Rangers 4-9 Athletics

Wednesday was a sport start from Dan Giese, and a decent one at that, giving up three runs in 5 2/3 innings of work. The A’s offense couldn’t back him up, though, and they ultimately went down. Context aside, this felt just like a run of the mill loss, the type a team will have forty times a season. In context, however, it was a bit of a sickener – a bad team, again finding a way to lose.

Thursday, however, everything changed. Trevor Cahill was really good; he was getting a lot of ground balls, and did a good job of limiting base runners during his seven innings, something that he’s struggled with during his previous starts. The offense started slowly, but then in the fourth inning, a single from Kurt Suzuki was followed by back to back walks from Jason Giambi and Matt Holliday to load the bases for Jack Cust. Jack Cust did what he does best, hitting his second career grand slam. The A’s followed this with a four run fifth, and the game was up for the Rangers, aside from a slightly shaky return to pitching from Brad Ziegler, who gave up three runs in a slightly rusty ninth. A great win for the A’s, then, and hopefully something they can take some confidence from.

The Good

Another home run (and a smile!) from Matt Holliday; he’s up to four now, and, that ugly 0-7 the other night aside, really looks like he’s starting to heat up. He’s a big part of the A’s plans this year, so if he comes good, the team could really put in a run. They’re only four games behind the first placed Rangers in the AL West; none of the teams in the division is particularly good, so if one team can put together a few wins…. Who knows!
Bobby Crosby joined the party and went 3-4 on Thursday afternoon, with two doubles.

The Bad

Jason Giambi is still only batting .207. He is walking a bit more, however (his on base percentage is up to .346), so hopefully he’ll start to connect with a few extra base hits soon.

The Ugly

What a difference a win makes! Clearly, not everything is perfect in the world of the Oakland Athletics (they’re in the bottom three in each of on base, batting average and slugging percentage), and it’s a measure of how poorly things have been going that one big win can feel like such a boon, but still.

Up next is a three game series with the Toronto Blue Jays, who come in with the best record in the American League, and who are 6-4 in their last ten games. Sean Gallagher is scheduled to return to the rotation on Saturday, and the A’s will be hoping he can pitch up to his potential. They’ll also be hoping that Josh Outman can continue his form from his last outing, too. The good news is that the A’s won’t see the Blue Jays’ ace, Roy Halladay, who currently looks like he can’t lose a game. Should be a fun series!