Rays/MLB

A's not too sure of a comeback

By MARC TOPKIN
Published October 14, 2006

DETROIT - Down three games to none in the best of seven series, the Athletics have only to look to the 2004 Red Sox for inspiration that a comeback is possible.

But after Friday's loss, they didn't sound too confident of being the second of 29 teams to overcome that deficit.

"They had a lot more punch than we do," Oakland outfielder Milton Bradley said. "Hopefully we can scrap it out like we did all year. They did it, so we know it can be done, but it's a mighty task."

Or, as first baseman Nick Swisher said: "We're not the Sox."

Third baseman Eric Chavez said the reason for the results is obvious: "We've run into a better team. I'm not surprised at all. ... They have no weaknesses."

The frustration is obvious as the A's make uncharacteristic mistakes in the field and get readily impatient at the plate.

GATOR BAIT: Former Florida Gator Mark Kiger took over at second base in the eighth inning for Oakland, making him, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, the first in history to make his major-league debut in a postseason game.

THE CHAIRMAN: Jeremy Bonderman was only in the Oakland organization for about a year, but his place in A's history is well-documented. Just look in their offices for the patched-up hole in the wall.

In an episode detailed in the book Moneyball, general manager Billy Beane was so incensed they used a 2001 first-round pick on a high school pitcher that he threw a chair that made a hole in a wall.

Beane says the book version was "an embellishment" but the message was clear, and less than a year later, Bonderman was included in a three-way trade and ended up in Detroit. Today he starts against the A's in Game 4.

"I've beat them before, they've beat me, so I don't really have any hard feelings anymore about it," he said. "For me to have a grudge against the team now, you've got to put that aside. This is the shot of a lifetime to go to the World Series."

JUST CHILLING: Baseball certainly appeared to be catering to Fox's TV ratings when switching Friday's game to an afternoon start so the Cardinals and Mets would be in prime time, but commissioner Bud Selig insisted that was not the case: "This was based on weather and nothing else." The forecast for colder temperatures as the day went on in Detroit and rain early in the day in New York made it an easy decision, Selig said, and one all four teams agreed on.

MISCELLANY: The A's will start Dan Haren, who has the benefit of postseason experience with the Cardinals in 2004. ... Dating to the 2003 division series when he was with Minnesota, Kenny Rogers has a 16¹/₃-inning postseason scoreless streak. ... The game was the first "Friday the 13th" playoff since the 2000 ALCS between the Mariners and Yankees. ... Tigers reliever Joel Zumaya is supposed to be available to pitch today. He has been off since Tuesday with soreness in his wrist.

[Last modified October 14, 2006, 01:57:38]