Hey look, it is below normal temps an pouring again. Sigh (yes, I know you don't care, so what).

6 minutes ago, Vanimal46 said:

The current status at Oakland Coliseum. 

"Welcome to Major League Baseball . . . sort of"

Fast duck in the pond!  Bring him around!

LUIS!!!

LUIS!

Nice contact from Arraez, glad to see we're finally hitting up the A's.

Just now, wsnydes said:

Fast duck in the pond!  Bring him around!

Just like that!

Luis!!

6 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

Hey look, it is below normal temps an pouring again. Sigh (yes, I know you don't care, so what).

73 and sunny here! I’m logging off work for the day and taking my dog for a long walk. 

Just now, Vanimal46 said:

73 and sunny here! I’m logging off work for the day and taking my dog for a long walk. 

Ya, MN is definitely winning the weather war the last few weeks. The last 6 here have mostly been not great. At some point that will change.

That has to be one of the first steals of third under Rocco

C4!

1 minute ago, wsnydes said:

Fast duck in the pond!  Bring him around!

I honestly thought you typed, "**** a duck"! I was worried the Coliseum went full Bane and fell into a crater

10 minutes ago, Vanimal46 said:

The current status at Oakland Coliseum. 

I started doing the finger-behind-the-ear-whiskeywipe because of Harry Doyle. The Little Woman does not find it amusing. OCD you know. Can't get the vacuum cleaner up that high.

CC4!!!

Home runs are always exciting, but I will always enjoy putting up a crooked number by stringing together walks and hits.

The way the Twins are scoring, Gray will probablly pitch the 4th & 5th inning even if he's not on.

1 minute ago, Doctor Gast said:

The way the Twins are scoring, Gray will probablly pitch the 4th & 5th inning even if he's not on.

If they want to save his arm, he could pitch left handed too.

All apart of the master plan! 

2 minutes ago, Doctor Gast said:

The way the Twins are scoring, Gray will probablly pitch the 4th & 5th inning even if he's not on.

I'll be shocked if he doesn't finish 5, maybe 6.

News Flash: Sonny Gray isn't very good,

11 minutes ago, 9moons27 said:

News Flash: Sonny Gray isn't very good,

Compared to......?

13 minutes ago, 9moons27 said:

News Flash: Sonny Gray isn't very good,

If you're comparing him to Jacob DeGrom, Gerrit Cole, and Max Scherzer than sure. But he's a top 50 SP in MLB. 

18 minutes ago, 9moons27 said:

News Flash: Nick Gordon isn't very good,

FIFY

that was disappointing.

Oh, crap another ruined opportunity

7 hours ago, wsnydes said:

I've managed to stave off @Dave The Dastardly's bid at a series Game Thread sweep.  It was a very difficult task to accomplish (I picked the day before he did), but I managed to do it!  It took a strenuous training regimen and no less than four keystrokes in a message to @stringer bell to accomplish this monumental feat.  If you're up to the task, be sure to train hard and message @stringer bell about getting in on the glory!

But, enough of my modesty and on to the Game Thread intro!

I grew up and got hooked on baseball almost mainly because of the Twins and A's duals of the mid to late 80s and early 90s, so these series with the A's are always somewhat nostalgic for me even if the luster has long worn away.  I remember being fortunate to attend a game or two where the Bash Brothers brought their show on the road and into the ol' Metrodome.  We'd always get those dirt cheap general admission, worse than nose bleed, upper deck in the outfield seats, but it was still fun.  And as a small kid, how can you not enjoy getting literally blown out of the place when you leave!

Speaking of the ballpark experiences, RingCentral Coliseum has had some interesting ones!  Sidebar, RingCentral Coliseum is right up there with Guaranteed Rate Field as among the worst stadium names in existence.  Anyway, in the late 70s, the place was dubbed the "Oakland Mausoleum" because attendance was so sparse for A's games that they TWICE had crowds of less than 1,000 fans.  Of course, you've got the 1989 World Series that was interrupted by a major earthquake.  I remember 8 year old me being angered when Game 3 was postponed because I was allowed to actually stay up and watch the game!  A 1996 renovation added a third deck of seating in the outfield serving mainly football games.  Within 10 years, the A's had tarped off these sections with the names and numbers of A's greats.  

And who can forget the state of the art plumbing!  The field level is actually below grade and sea level, so there are some engineering hurdles to overcome with such a facility.  There have been multiple sewage backups, most recently in 2013 after a game against Seattle.  Sewage had backed up into the visiting team's training room, showers and offices.  It was bad enough that both teams ended up having to share the Raiders locker room on the 2nd floor.  I'm sure that didn't add to the problem at all.  And the problem has even crept up with the A's on the road!  Food service at the stadium's restaurants has been halted due to sewage backups in the kitchens!  I'll eat before I get there, thank you very much!  And now they've got possums roaming about forcing broadcast teams to vacate their booth!  What's next?  Hopefully not an earthquake...

On to today's game!  The forecast calls for a sunny day with highs in the upper 70s.  On the bump for this rubber match, Sonny Gray will square off against Daulton Jeffries. 

At the dish facing those guys will be:

Visiting Twins

1 - Buxton, CF

2 - Arraez, 1B

3 - Correa, SS

4 - Polanco, 2B

5 - Kepler, RF

6 - Sanchez, DH

7 - Urshela, 3B

8 - Jeffers, C

9 - Gordon, LF

 

Hosting Athetics

1 - Kemp, 2B

2 - Neuse, DH

3 - Laureano, CF

4 - Brown, 1B

5 - Bethancourt, C

6 - Pinder, LF

7 - Barrera, RF

8 - Andrus, SS

9 - Smith, 3B

Maybe an earthquake will hit only the colosseum while the As are on a road trip and level the building?  One can only hope

3 minutes ago, Mill1634 said:

FIFY

Yep, Gordon just isn't very good and hopefully Larnach will be back quick... or else I'd rather see Lewis out there, even if LF is foreign to him. That hasn't stopped the Twins from using a whole bevy of players who didn't belong there in LF.

2 minutes ago, Richie the Rally Goat said:

Maybe an earthquake will hit only the colosseum while the As are on a road trip and level the building?  One can only hope

I'd laugh at this, but assuming there's a fan or two in the place, there are innocent people involved!

That went well