2008 Oakland Athletics season

The Oakland Athletics' 2008 season marked their 40th year in Oakland, California. It was also the 108th season in franchise history. The team finished third in the American League West with a record of 75–86.

2008 Oakland Athletics
LeagueAmerican League
DivisionWest
BallparkOakland–Alameda County Coliseum
CityOakland, California
Record75–86 (.466)
Divisional place3rd
OwnersLewis Wolff
General managersBilly Beane
ManagersBob Geren
TelevisionCSN Bay Area
KICU (Action 36)
RadioKYCY
KNTS/KDOW
KFRC-FM
← 2007 Seasons 2009 →

The Athletics were not expected to contend for the American League West title in 2008. Despite this, the team remained near first place well into July. The Athletics fortunes peaked on July 11, when a 9-2 rout of the Angels allowed them to pull within four games of first place. The team then lost 44 of its 68 remaining games. The slide saw the Athletics finish 24.5 games behind the Angels, who clinched the division for a second consecutive year.

The Athletics struggled at the plate for most of the season. Particularly troubling was the team's lack of power hitting; apart from Jack Cust, who hit 33 home runs, no Athletic hit more than 13. Oakland ultimately finished 11th (out of 14 American League teams) in this category. All told, the Athletics scored fewer runs (646) than any other American League team in 2008.

Off-season

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Potential free agents

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Outfielder Jeff DaVanon, catcher Mike Piazza and outfielder Shannon Stewart all filed for free agency after the 2007 season. DaVanon was signed to a minor league contract by the Athletics on August 10, 2007, after being let go by the Arizona Diamondbacks less than a week later. His contract was purchased on August 17, following an injury to Mark Kotsay, who was plagued with injuries in 2007. He posted a .238 batting average and no home runs in 26 games for the Athletics. Piazza was signed in the previous offseason to a one-year contract which began Piazza's career as a designated hitter. In early May, Piazza was placed on the disabled list after suffering an injury while sliding into third base against the Boston Red Sox. Piazza was activated from the disabled list on July 20 but saw limited action after that as Jack Cust, who the Athletics brought in as a replacement, put on a big show once he joined the team. Piazza played in a total of 83 games in 2007 and batted .275 with 8 home runs. Stewart was also signed in the previous offseason to a one-year contract after missing most of the 2006 season. Stewart played in 146 games in 2007 and led the team in batting average (.290).

October

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  • October 16: Ron Romanick was added to the Athletics coaching staff and will serve as the bullpen coach for the 2008 season.[6]
  • October 23: Don Wakamatsu was added to the Athletics coaching staff and will serve as the bench coach for the 2008 season.[7]
  • October 25: Outfielder Chris Snelling was claimed off waivers by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.[8] Acquired on May 2, 2007, from the Washington Nationals for Ryan Langerhans, Snelling played in just 6 games before being placed on the disabled list on May 16 and never played in another game for the Athletics. That same day Connor Robertson was outrighted to the minor leagues. Robertson appeared in 3 games in 2007 and posted an 18.00 ERA. Tony DeFrancesco was also added to the Athletics coaching staff and will serve as the third base coach for 2008.[9]

November

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  • November 2: Pitcher Colby Lewis was claimed off waivers by the Kansas City Royals.[10] Lewis mainly worked out of the bullpen for the Athletics in 2007, posting a 6.45 ERA and an 0–2 record in 26 games.

December

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January

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  • January 3: In another move as part of the Athletics rebuilding mode, outfielder/first baseman Nick Swisher was traded to the Chicago White Sox for pitcher Fautino de los Santos, pitcher Gio González and outfielder Ryan Sweeney.[15] In 2007, Swisher posted a career high .262 batting average but had only 22 home runs, a big drop from 35 in 2006. Of the players acquired from the White Sox, Sweeney was the only one with major league experience, having made his debut for them in 2006. In 15 major league games for the White Sox in 2007, Sweeney batted .200 with a home run.
  • January 11: Outfielder Emil Brown was signed by the Athletics to a one-year contract. Brown, 33, started half the games for the Kansas City Royals in the outfield in 2007. He batted .257 with 6 home runs. According to Athletics assistant general manager David Forst, Brown's success against left-handed pitching was what appealed the Athletics into signing the right-handed veteran.[16] To make room for Brown on the 40-man roster, fellow outfielder Danny Putnam was designated for assignment. Putnam made his debut in 2007 for the Athletics and batted .214 with a home run in 11 games.
  • January 14: In another move as part of the Athletics rebuilding mode, center fielder Mark Kotsay was traded to the Atlanta Braves for pitcher Joey Devine and minor league pitcher Jamie Richmond.[17] Kotsay was limited to just 56 games in 2007 due to back problems that bothered him in the past. He hit just .214 with a home run in those 56 games. Devine spent most of the 2007 season in the minor leagues, splitting time in Double-A and Triple-A. In 10 major league games, all out of the bullpen, Devine went 1–0 with a 1.08 ERA.
  • January 25: Outfielder Jeff Fiorentino was claimed off waivers from the Cincinnati Reds. To make room for Fiorentino on the 40-man roster, pitcher Ruddy Lugo was designated for assignment.[18] Fiorentino spent the entire 2007 season in the Baltimore Orioles organization, playing at the Double-A level for the Bowie Baysox. He hit .282 with 15 home runs and 65 RBIs for the Baysox. Lugo was claimed off waivers from the Tampa Bay Devil Rays earlier in the 2007 season and made a combined 38 relief appearances for the Devil Rays and the Athletics. He went 6–0 with a 5.40 ERA.

February

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  • February 8: Pitcher Keith Foulke came out of retirement and signed a one-year contract with the Athletics. He had previously pitched for the Athletics in 2003, as their closer. To make room for Foulke on the 40-man roster, Bankston was designated for assignment and was later outrighted to Triple-A Sacramento on February 13.[19]

March

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  • March 25: First baseman and designated hitter Mike Sweeney had his contract purchased right before the Athletics first game. He had signed a minor league contract on February 11, 2008. He had previously spent his entire career with the Kansas City Royals and his last few years with them were plagued with injuries. Sweeney had done well in spring training to earn a spot on the Athletics 25-man roster.

Regular season

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Season standings

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AL West
Team W L Pct. GB Home Road
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 100 62 .617 50‍–‍31 50‍–‍31
Texas Rangers 79 83 .488 21 40‍–‍41 39‍–‍42
Oakland Athletics 75 86 .466 24½ 43‍–‍38 32‍–‍48
Seattle Mariners 61 101 .377 39 35‍–‍46 26‍–‍55


Record vs. opponents

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Team BAL BOS CWS CLE DET KC LAA MIN NYY OAK SEA TB TEX TOR NL
Baltimore 6–12 4–5 4–4 4–3 5–3 3–6 3–3 7–11 0–5 8–2 3–15 4–5 6–12 11–7
Boston 12–6 4–3 5–1 5–2 6–1 1–8 4–3 9–9 6–4 6–3 8–10 9–1 9–9 11–7
Chicago 5–4 3–4 11–7 12–6 12–6 5–5 9–10 2–5 5–4 5–1 4–6 3–3 1–7 12–6
Cleveland 4–4 1–5 7–11 11–7 10–8 4–5 8–10 4–3 5–4 4–5 5–2 6–4 6–1 6–12
Detroit 3–4 2–5 6–12 7–11 7–11 3–6 7–11 4–2 3–6 7–3 3–4 6–3 3–5 13–5
Kansas City 3–5 1–6 6–12 8–10 11–7 2–3 6–12 5–5 6–3 7–2 3–5 2–7 2–5 13–5
Los Angeles 6–3 8–1 5–5 5–4 6–3 3–2 5–3 7–3 10–9 14–5 3–6 12–7 6–3 10–8
Minnesota 3–3 3–4 10–9 10–8 11–7 12–6 3–5 4–6 5–5 5–4 3–3 5–5 0–6 14–4
New York 11–7 9–9 5–2 3–4 2–4 5–5 3–7 6–4 5–1 7–2 11–7 3–4 9–9 10–8
Oakland 5–0 4–6 4–5 4–5 6–3 3–6 9–10 5–5 1–5 - 10–9 3–6 7–12 4–6 10–8
Seattle 2–8 3–6 1–5 5–4 3–7 2–7 5–14 4–5 2–7 9–10 3–4 8–11 5–4 9–9
Tampa Bay 15–3 10–8 6–4 2–5 4–3 5–3 6–3 3–3 7–11 6–3 4–3 6–3 11–7 12–6
Texas 5–4 1–9 3–3 4–6 3–6 7–2 7–12 5–5 4–3 12–7 11–8 3–6 4–4 10–8
Toronto 12–6 9–9 7–1 1–6 5–3 5–2 3–6 6–0 9–9 6–4 4–5 7–11 4–4 8–10

Season summary

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March

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The Athletics opened the regular season on March 25 in Japan and faced the Boston Red Sox there. Before the opener, the Athletics placed starting pitcher Chad Gaudin and third baseman Eric Chavez on the 15-day disabled list and placed relief pitcher Kiko Calero on the 60-day disabled list. The Athletics were allowed to carry 25 players plus three extra inactive players in case of injury. The three extra players were pitchers Justin Duchscherer and Dana Eveland along with outfielder Carlos González.[20] The Athletics opened with ten pitchers, two catchers, seven infielders, five outfielders, and one designated hitter. The pitchers were Joe Blanton, Dallas Braden, Andrew Brown, Santiago Casilla, Lenny DiNardo, Alan Embree, Keith Foulke, Rich Harden, Fernando Hernández and Huston Street. Rob Bowen and Kurt Suzuki were the two catchers while Daric Barton, Bobby Crosby, Mark Ellis, Jack Hannahan, Dan Johnson, Donnie Murphy and Mike Sweeney were the seven infielders. The five outfielders were Emil Brown, Travis Buck, Chris Denorfia, Jeff Fiorentino and Ryan Sweeney, while Jack Cust was the designated hitter.

Joe Blanton got the nod to start the first game. The game went into extra innings and the Athletics lost 6–5 in 10. Emil Brown made a costly baserunning error in the 10th, which possibly cost the Athletics the game.[21] Rich Harden started the second game of the two-game series and led the Athletics to a 5–1 win over the Red Sox after pitching six strong innings while giving up one run on three hits and also struck out nine.[22]

Game log

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2008 game log
March
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record
1 March 25 Red Sox* 6 – 5 (10) Okajima (1–0) Street (0–1) Papelbon (1) 44,628 0–1
2 March 26 Red Sox* 5–1 Harden (1–0) Lester (0–1) 44,735 1–1
* At Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan, see MLB Japan Opening Series 2008
April
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record
3 April 1 Red Sox 2–1 Matsuzaka (1–0) Blanton (0–1) Papelbon (2) 36,067 1–2
4 April 2 Red Sox 5–0 Lester (1–1) Embree (0–1) 21,625 1–3
5 April 4 Indians 6–3 Duchscherer (1–0) Byrd (0–1) 13,916 2–3
6 April 5 Indians 6–1 Eveland (1–0) Sabathia (0–1) 16,279 3–3
7 April 6 Indians 2–1 Lee (1–0) Blanton (0–2) Borowski (2) 16,384 3–4
8 April 8 @ Blue Jays 9–8 Embree (1–1) Accardo (0–1) Street (1) 31,336 4–4
9 April 9 @ Blue Jays 6–3 Hernández (1–0) Accardo (0–2) Street (2) 16,102 5–4
10 April 10 @ Blue Jays 11 – 8 (12) Devine (1–0) League (0–1) Foulke (1) 16,521 6–4
11 April 11 @ Indians 9–7 Blanton (1–2) Sabathia (0–2) Street (3) 17,859 7–4
12 April 12 @ Indians 7–3 DiNardo (1–0) Carmona (1–1) 19,170 8–4
13 April 13 @ Indians 7–1 Lee (2–0) Gaudin (0–1) 17,228 8–5
14 April 14 @ White Sox 2–1 Smith (1–0) Buehrle (1–1) Street (4) 20,430 9–5
15 April 15 @ White Sox 4–1 Danks (1–1) Eveland (1–1) Jenks (5) 18,254 9–6
16 April 16 Mariners 4–2 Hernández (2–0) Blanton (1–3) 21,126 9–7
17 April 17 Mariners 8–1 Silva (3–0) DiNardo (1–1) 10,164 9–8
18 April 18 Royals 13–2 Gaudin (1–1) Bannister (3–1) 12,528 10–8
19 April 19 Royals 6–5 Devine (2–0) Peralta (0–1) Street (5) 20,390 11–8
20 April 20 Royals 7–1 Eveland (2–1) Hochevar (0–1) 18,645 12–8
21 April 22 Twins 5–4 Rincón (2–0) Blanton (1–4) Nathan (7) 10,267 12–9
22 April 23 Twins 3–0 Gaudin (2–1) Bonser (1–4) Street (6) 15,242 13–9
23 April 24 Twins 11–2 Smith (2–0) Liriano (0–3) 12,593 14–9
24 April 25 @ Mariners 4–3 Eveland (3–1) Batista (2–3) Street (7) 40,845 15–9
25 April 26 @ Mariners 5–3 Bédard (2–0) Duchscherer (1–1) 37,563 15–10
26 April 27 @ Mariners 4–2 Blanton (2–4) Hernández (2–1) Street (8) 32,612 16–10
27 April 28 @ Angels 14–2 Gaudin (3–1) Garland (3–3) 37,725 17–10
28 April 29 @ Angels 2–0 Saunders (5–0) Smith (2–1) Rodríguez (11) 35,764 17–11
29 April 30 @ Angels 6–1 Santana (5–0) Eveland (3–2) 35,301 17–12
May
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record
30 May 1 @ Angels 15–8 Duchscherer (2–1) Moseley (1–3) 37,396 18–12
31 May 2 Rangers 4–3 Padilla (4–2) Blanton (2–5) Wilson (7) 15,408 18–13
32 May 3 Rangers 6–3 Murray (1–0) Gaudin (3–2) Benoit (1) 20,524 18–14
33 May 4 Rangers 3–1 Casilla (1–0) Feldman (0–1) Street (9) 31,673 19–14
34 May 5 Orioles 2 – 1 (10) Devine (3–0) Johnson (0–1) 10,128 20–14
35 May 6 Orioles 4–2 Duchscherer (3–1) Burres (3–3) Casilla (1) 11,492 21–14
36 May 7 Orioles 6 – 5 (10) Braden (1–0) Cormier (0–1) 15,235 22–14
37 May 9 @ Rangers 4–0 Feldman (1–1) Smith (2–2) 23,516 22–15
38 May 10 @ Rangers 6–4 Rupe (1–1) Eveland (3–3) 22,899 22–16
39 May 11 @ Rangers 12–6 Casilla (2–0) Germán (1–1) 23,959 23–16
40 May 13 @ Indians 4–0 Byrd (2–3) Duchscherer (3–2) Kobayashi (1) 16,974 23–17
41 May 14 @ Indians 2–0 Sabathia (3–5) Blanton (2–6) 18,188 23–18
42 May 15 @ Indians 4–2 Laffey (2–2) Smith (2–3) Kobayashi (2) 26,764 23–19
43 May 16 @ Braves 3–2 Acosta (2–1) Embree (1–2) 31,004 23–20
44 May 17 @ Braves 5–4 Harden (2–0) Hudson (6–3) 38,324 24–20
45 May 18 @ Braves 5–2 Reyes (2–1) Duchscherer (3–3) 31,025 24–21
46 May 19 Rays 7 – 6 (13) Hammel (3–2) Gaudin (3–3) Percival (12) 11,077 24–22
47 May 20 Rays 3–2 Kazmir (3–1) Smith (2–4) Percival (13) 11,272 24–23
48 May 21 Rays 9–1 Eveland (4–3) Sonnanstine (6–2) 22,712 25–23
49 May 23 Red Sox 8–3 Harden (3–0) Wakefield (3–3) 29,057 26–23
50 May 24 Red Sox 3–0 Duchscherer (4–3) Beckett (5–4) Street (10) 33,468 27–23
51 May 25 Red Sox 6–3 Blanton (3–6) Lester (3–3) Street (11) 35,067 28–23
52 May 27 Blue Jays 3–1 Smith (3–4) Burnett (5–5) Street (12) 10,635 29–23
53 May 28 Blue Jays 2–1 Halladay (6–5) Foulke (0–1) Ryan (12) 17,460 29–24
54 May 29 Blue Jays 12–0 Litsch (6–1) Eveland (4–4) 21,862 29–25
55 May 30 @ Rangers 3–1 Millwood (3–3) Duchscherer (4–4) Wilson (11) 21,763 29–26
56 May 31 @ Rangers 8–4 Ponson (4–1) Blanton (3–7) 36,798 29–27
June
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record
57 June 1 @ Rangers 13–8 Gaudin (4–3) Wright (3–2) 17,661 30–27
58 June 2 Tigers 3–2 Street (1–1) Cruceta (0–3) 11,772 31–27
59 June 3 Tigers 5 – 4 (11) Gaudin (5–3) Seay (0–1) 10,871 32–27
60 June 4 Tigers 10–2 Duchscherer (5–4) Robertson (3–6) 19,258 33–27
61 June 6 Angels 3–1 Lackey (2–1) Blanton (3–8) Rodríguez (25) 25,120 33–28
62 June 7 Angels 5–3 Garland (6–3) Smith (3–5) Rodríguez (26) 29,294 33–29
63 June 8 Angels 7 – 3 (12) Ziegler (1–0) Bootcheck (0–1) 26,332 34–29
64 June 10 Yankees 3–1 Wang (7–2) Eveland (4–5) Rivera (17) 26,402 34–30
65 June 11 Yankees 8–4 Duchscherer (6–4) Rasner (3–4) 27,292 35–30
66 June 12 Yankees 4–1 Pettitte (6–5) Blanton (3–9) Rivera (18) 28,658 35–31
67 June 13 @ Giants 5–1 Smith (4–5) Zito (2–10) 42,445 36–31
68 June 14 @ Giants 4–0 Harden (4–0) Cain (3–5) 40,873 37–31
69 June 15 @ Giants 5–3 Eveland (5–5) Correia (1–4) Street (13) 41,547 38–31
70 June 17 @ D-backs 15–1 Duchscherer (7–4) Webb (11–3) 28,710 39–31
71 June 18 @ D-backs 11–1 Haren (7–4) Blanton (3–10) 28,507 39–32
72 June 19 @ D-backs 2–1 Peña (1–1) Foulke (0–2) Lyon (15) 31,997 39–33
73 June 20 Marlins 7 – 6 (11) Brown (1–0) Waechter (0–2) 15,035 40–33
74 June 21 Marlins 6–4 Pinto (2–2) Street (1–2) Gregg (13) 19,287 40–34
75 June 22 Marlins 7–1 Duchscherer (8–4) Miller (5–6) 22,461 41–34
76 June 24 Phillies 5–2 Blanton (4–10) Moyer (7–5) Street (14) 13,348 42–34
77 June 25 Phillies 4–0 Kendrick (7–3) Smith (4–6) 22,231 42–35
78 June 26 Phillies 5–0 Harden (5–0) Eaton (2–6) 17,228 43–35
79 June 27 Giants 4–1 Eveland (6–5) Yabu (3–4) Street (15) 27,125 44–35
80 June 28 Giants 1–0 Lincecum (9–1) Duchscherer (8–5) Wilson (22) 36,067 44–36
81 June 29 Giants 11–1 Sánchez (8–4) Blanton (4–11) 33,841 44–37
82 June 30 @ Angels 6–1 Smith (5–6) Garland (7–5) 42,046 45–37
July
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record
83 July 1 @ Angels 5–3 Shields (4–2) Embree (1–3) Rodríguez (33) 42,047 45–38
84 July 2 @ Angels 7–4 Saunders (12–4) Foulke (0–3) Rodríguez (34) 41,091 45–39
85 July 3 @ White Sox 3–2 Duchscherer (9–5) Vázquez (7–7) Street (16) 26,730 46–39
86 July 4 @ White Sox 7–1 Blanton (5–11) Buehrle (6–7) 29,600 47–39
87 July 5 @ White Sox 6–1 Floyd (10–4) Smith (5–7) 35,586 47–40
88 July 6 @ White Sox 4–3 Danks (6–4) Harden (5–1) Linebrink (1) 31,955 47–41
89 July 7 Mariners 4–3 Eveland (7–5) Washburn (4–8) Street (17) 11,129 48–41
90 July 8 Mariners 2–0 Duchscherer (10–5) Silva (4–11) 12,543 49–41
91 July 9 Mariners 6–4 Corcoran (1–0) Blanton (5–12) Morrow (8) 21,128 49–42
92 July 10 Mariners 3 – 2 (11) Street (2–2) Jiménez (0–1) 15,187 50–42
93 July 11 Angels 9–2 Gallagher (1–0) Garland (8–6) 31,372 51–42
94 July 12 Angels 4–1 Santana (11–3) Eveland (7–6) Rodríguez (37) 27,161 51–43
95 July 13 Angels 4–3 Arredondo (3–0) Street (2–3) Rodríguez (38) 29,352 51–44
96 July 18 @ Yankees 7–1 Mussina (12–6) Smith (5–8) 54,145 51–45
97 July 19 @ Yankees 4 – 3 (12) Robertson (1–0) DiNardo (1–2) 54,183 51–46
98 July 20 @ Yankees 2–1 Pettitte (11–7) Duchscherer (10–6) Rivera (24) 54,366 51–47
99 July 21 @ Rays 4–0 Kazmir (8–5) Eveland (7–7) 12,428 51–48
100 July 22 @ Rays 8–1 Braden (2–0) Sonnanstine (10–5) 16,800 52–48
101 July 23 @ Rays 4–3 Shields (9–6) Smith (5–9) Percival (20) 23,437 52–49
102 July 25 Rangers 14–6 Padilla (12–5) Blevins (0–1) 20,141 52–50
103 July 26 Rangers 9–4 Harrison (2–1) Duchscherer (10–7) 20,653 52–51
104 July 27 Rangers 6–5 Blevins (1–1) Hurley (1–2) Street (18) 21,135 53–51
105 July 28 Royals 4–2 Greinke (8–7) Braden (2–1) Soria (28) 12,464 53–52
106 July 29 Royals 5–2 Meche (9–9) Smith (5–10) Soria (29) 12,182 53–53
107 July 30 Royals 4 – 3 (10) R. Ramírez (2–1) Street (2–4) Soria (30) 26,272 53–54
August
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record
108 August 1 @ Red Sox 2 – 1 (12) Timlin (4–3) Embree (1–4) 37,832 53–55
109 August 2 @ Red Sox 12–2 Lester (10–3) Eveland (7–8) 37,838 53–56
110 August 3 @ Red Sox 5–2 Matsuzaka (12–2) Braden (2–2) Papelbon (31) 37,317 53–57
111 August 4 @ Blue Jays 6–1 Halladay (13–8) Gallagher (1–1) 24,761 53–58
112 August 5 @ Blue Jays 4–3 Carlson (4–1) Street (2–5) 23,580 53–59
113 August 6 @ Blue Jays 5–1 Marcum (6–5) Gonzalez (0–1) 29,256 53–60
114 August 7 @ Blue Jays 6–4 Burnett (14–9) Blevins (1–2) Ryan (22) 28,821 53–61
115 August 8 @ Tigers 4–2 Braden (3–2) Rogers (8–9) Ziegler (1) 41,457 54–61
116 August 9 @ Tigers 10–2 Galarraga (10–4) Meyer (0–1) 41,308 54–62
117 August 10 @ Tigers 6–1 Robertson (7–8) Smith (5–11) Rodney (3) 40,743 54–63
118 August 12 Rays 2–1 Gonzalez (1–1) Kazmir (8–6) Ziegler (2) 14,284 55–63
119 August 13 Rays 3–2 Sonnanstine (12–6) Duchscherer (10–8) Percival (27) 21,438 55–64
120 August 14 Rays 7 – 6 (12) Hammel (4–3) Casilla (2–1) Miller (1) 16,689 55–65
121 August 15 White Sox 6–4 Street (3–5) H. Ramírez (0–1) 19,405 56–65
122 August 16 White Sox 2–1 Danks (10–5) Smith (5–12) Jenks (25) 22,206 56–66
123 August 17 White Sox 13–1 Vázquez (10–10) Gonzalez (1–2) 28,843 56–67
124 August 18 @ Twins 3–2 Saarloos (1–0) Blackburn (9–7) Ziegler (3) 25,024 57–67
125 August 19 @ Twins 13–2 Slowey (10–8) Gallagher (1–2) 35,256 57–68
126 August 20 @ Twins 3–1 Liriano (4–3) Braden (3–3) Nathan (34) 30,888 57–69
127 August 21 @ Mariners 2–0 Smith (6–12) Rowland-Smith (2–2) Ziegler (4) 25,611 58–69
128 August 22 @ Mariners 7–5 Corcoran (4–0) Blevins (1–3) Putz (8) 26,603 58–70
129 August 23 @ Mariners 5–1 Eveland (8–8) Washburn (5–14) 34,145 59–70
130 August 24 @ Mariners 8–4 Hernández (8–8) Meyer (0–2) Putz (9) 28,731 59–71
131 August 25 @ Angels 2–1 Braden (4–3) Weaver (10–10) Ziegler (5) 39,584 60–71
132 August 26 @ Angels 5–1 Lackey (11–2) Smith (6–13) 37,431 60–72
133 August 27 @ Angels 6–5 Street (4–5) Saunders (14–7) Ziegler (6) 38,587 61–72
134 August 28 Twins 3–2 Devine (4–0) Breslow (0–2) 12,357 62–72
135 August 29 Twins 12–2 Slowey (11–8) Meyer (0–3) Breslow (1) 22,355 62–73
136 August 30 Twins 3–2 Street (5–5) Nathan (0–1) 25,238 63–73
137 August 31 Twins 12–4 Baker (8–4) Smith (6–14) 18,427 63–74
September
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record
138 September 2 @ Royals 5–2 Greinke (10–9) Gonzalez (1–3) Soria (34) 11,143 63–75
September 3 @ Royals Postponed (rain) Rescheduled for September 4
139 September 4 @ Royals 5 – 4 (10) Soria (2–3) Devine (4–1) 63–76
140 September 4 @ Royals 9–6 Davies (6–6) Meyer (0–4) R. Ramírez (1) 12,791 63–77
141 September 5 @ Orioles 11–2 Braden (5–3) Waters (2–2) 14,984 64–77
September 6 @ Orioles Canceled (rain)
142 September 6 @ Orioles 5–1 Smith (7–14) Cabrera (8–9) 21,553 65–77
143 September 8 @ Tigers 14–8 Fossum (3–1) Gonzalez (1–4) 37,981 65–78
144 September 9 @ Tigers 3 -2 Devine (5–1) Rodney (0–5) Ziegler (7) 37,240 66–78
145 September 10 @ Tigers 5–2 Street (6–5) Galarraga (12–6) Ziegler (8) 37,194 67–78
146 September 11 Rangers 6–1 Nippert (3–4) Braden (5–4) 10,566 67–79
147 September 12 Rangers 7–0 Harrison (8–3) Smith (7–15) 15,117 67–80
148 September 13 Rangers 7–1 Outman (1–0) Feldman (5–7) 21,102 68–80
149 September 14 Rangers 7–4 Devine (6–1) Madrigal (0–2) Ziegler (9) 18,551 69–80
150 September 16 Angels 8–1 Gallagher (5–6) Lackey (11–4) 14,325 70–80
151 September 17 Angels 3–2 Ziegler (2–0) Rodríguez (2–3) 20,102 71–80
152 September 18 Angels 6–4 Saunders (16–7) Outman (1–1) Rodríguez (59) 12,645 71–81
153 September 19 Mariners 2–0 Eveland (9–8) Hernández (9–11) Ziegler (10) 30,149 72–81
154 September 20 Mariners 8–7 Street (7–5) Thomas (0–1) Ziegler (11) 18,756 73–81
155 September 21 Mariners 5–3 Ziegler (3–0) Batista (4–14) Devine (1) 18,707 74–81
156 September 22 @ Rangers 4 – 3 (11) Embree (2–4) Mendoza (3–8) Casilla (2) 14,925 75–81
157 September 23 @ Rangers 6–4 Wright (8–7) Embree (2–5) Francisco (5) 18,408 75–82
158 September 24 @ Rangers 14–4 Harrison (9–3) Eveland (9–9) 16,832 75–83
159 September 26 @ Mariners 10–8 Morrow (3–4) Gallagher (5–7) Corcoran (3) 24,662 75–84
160 September 27 @ Mariners 7–3 Rowland-Smith (5–3) Smith (7–16) Green (1) 24,440 75–85
161 September 28 @ Mariners 4–3 Dickey (5–8) Outman (1–2) Putz (15) 27,110 75–86

Notable games

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  • March 25, 2008 – As the 'home' team, in the Tokyo Dome, Japan, vs. the Boston Red Sox.
  • March 26, 2008 – Second game at the Tokyo Dome, Japan.

Player stats

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Batting

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Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; BB = Walks; SO = Strikeouts; SB = Stolen bases; OBP = On-base percentage; SLG = Slugging percentage

Player G AB R H Avg. HR RBI BB SO SB OBP SLG
Jeff Baisley 14 43 1 11 .256 0 5 4 7 0 .319 .279
Wes Bankston 17 59 4 12 .203 1 4 2 15 0 .238 .305
Daric Barton 140 446 59 101 .226 9 47 65 99 2 .327 .348
Rob Bowen 37 91 6 16 .176 1 9 4 38 0 .219 .286
Emil Brown 117 402 48 98 .244 13 59 27 65 4 .297 .386
Travis Buck 38 155 16 35 .226 7 25 11 38 1 .291 .432
Eric Chavez 23 89 10 22 .247 2 14 6 18 0 .295 .393
Brooks Conrad 6 19 0 3 .158 0 2 0 9 0 .158 .211
Bobby Crosby 145 556 66 132 .237 7 61 47 96 7 .296 .349
Aaron Cunningham 22 80 7 20 .250 1 14 6 24 2 .310 .400
Jack Cust 148 481 77 111 .231 33 77 111 197 0 .375 .476
Rajai Davis 101 196 28 51 .260 3 19 7 34 25 .288 .372
Chris Denorfia 29 62 10 18 .290 1 9 6 16 2 .362 .387
Mark Ellis 117 442 55 103 .233 12 41 53 65 14 .321 .373
Jeff Fiorentino 2 1 0 1 1.000 0 1 0 0 0 1.000 1.000
Carlos González 85 302 31 73 .242 4 26 13 81 4 .273 .361
Jack Hannahan 143 436 48 95 .218 9 47 55 131 2 .305 .342
Dan Johnson 1 1 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000
Donnie Murphy 46 103 10 19 .184 3 13 11 38 2 .274 .301
Matt Murton 9 30 1 3 .100 0 2 1 7 0 .129 .133
Eric Patterson 30 92 11 16 .174 0 8 12 24 8 .269 .207
Cliff Pennington 36 99 14 24 .242 0 9 13 18 4 .339 .293
Gregorio Petit 14 23 4 8 .348 0 0 2 9 0 .400 .435
Kurt Suzuki 148 530 54 148 .279 7 42 44 69 2 .346 .370
Mike Sweeney 42 126 13 36 .286 2 12 7 6 0 .331 .397
Ryan Sweeney 115 384 53 110 .286 5 45 38 67 9 .350 .383
Frank Thomas 55 186 20 49 .263 5 19 28 44 0 .364 .387
Joe Blanton 1 1 0 0 .000 0 0 0 1 0 .000 .000
Justin Duchscherer 2 6 0 0 .000 0 0 0 6 0 .000 .000
Dana Eveland 2 4 0 1 .250 0 0 1 2 0 .400 .250
Rich Harden 2 4 0 1 .250 0 0 0 1 0 .250 .250
Greg Smith 2 2 0 1 .500 0 0 0 1 0 .500 .500
Team Totals 161 5451 646 1318 .242 125 610 574 1226 88 .318 .369

Starting pitchers

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Note: G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; BB= Walks; SO = Strikeouts

Player G GS IP W L ERA BB SO
Joe Blanton 20 20 127.0 5 12 4.96 35 62
Dallas Braden 19 10 71.2 5 4 4.14 25 41
Justin Duchscherer 22 22 141.2 10 8 2.54 34 95
Dana Eveland 29 29 168.0 9 9 4.34 77 118
Sean Gallagher 11 11 56.2 2 3 5.88 36 54
Gio González 10 7 34.0 1 4 7.68 25 34
Rich Harden 13 13 77.0 5 1 2.34 31 92
Josh Outman 6 4 25.2 1 2 4.56 8 19
Greg Smith 32 32 190.1 7 16 4.16 87 111

Relief pitchers

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Note: G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; BB = Walks allowed; SO = Strikeouts

Player G GS IP W L SV ERA BB SO
Jerry Blevins 36 0 37.2 1 3 0 3.11 13 35
Andrew Brown 31 0 35.0 1 0 0 3.09 21 28
Kiko Calero 5 0 4.2 0 0 0 3.86 3 7
Santiago Casilla 51 0 50.1 2 1 2 3.93 20 43
Joey Devine 42 0 45.2 6 1 1 0.59 15 49
Lenny DiNardo 11 2 23.0 1 2 0 7.43 13 12
Alan Embree 70 0 61.2 2 5 0 4.96 30 57
Keith Foulke 31 0 31.0 0 3 1 4.06 13 23
Chad Gaudin 26 6 62.2 5 3 0 3.59 17 44
Jeff Gray 5 0 4.2 0 0 0 7.71 1 4
Fernando Hernández 3 0 3.0 1 0 0 18.00 5 2
Dan Meyer 11 4 27.2 0 4 0 7.48 14 20
Kirk Saarloos 8 1 26.1 1 0 0 5.47 4 12
Huston Street 63 0 70.0 7 5 18 3.73 27 69
Brad Ziegler 47 0 59.2 3 0 11 1.06 22 30
Team Pitching Totals 161 161 1435.0 75 86 33 4.01 576 1061

Roster

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2008 Oakland Athletics
Roster
Pitchers Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Other batters

Manager

Coaches

Farm system

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Level Team League Manager
AAA Sacramento River Cats Pacific Coast League Todd Steverson
AA Midland RockHounds Texas League Webster Garrison
A Stockton Ports California League Darren Bush
A Kane County Cougars Midwest League Aaron Nieckula
A-Short Season Vancouver Canadians Northwest League Rick Magnante
Rookie AZL Athletics Arizona League Ruben Escalera

LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Sacramento, Stockton

References

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  1. ^ "A's outright seven to Triple-A Sacramento; Chavez to undergo back surgery". MLB.com. October 5, 2007. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  2. ^ "A's announce coaching staff changes for 2008". MLB.com. October 6, 2007. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  3. ^ Urban, Mychael (October 12, 2007). "Notes: Kotsay, Chavez on the mend". MLB.com. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  4. ^ McDonald, Joe (October 15, 2007). "Red Sox acquire pitcher". Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  5. ^ Langosch, Jenifer (October 15, 2007). "Pirates claim Thompson off waivers". MLB.com. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  6. ^ Urban, Mychael (October 17, 2007). "A's to interview Wakamatsu". MLB.com. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  7. ^ Urban, Mychael (October 24, 2007). "Wakamatsu hired as A's bench coach". MLB.com. Archived from the original on December 5, 2007. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  8. ^ Chastain, Bill (October 25, 2007). "Rays claim Snelling off waivers". MLB.com. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  9. ^ Urban, Mychael (October 25, 2007). "DeFrancesco fills final spot on staff". MLB.com. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  10. ^ Kaegel, Dick (November 2, 2007). "Notes: Matthews made most of Hall". MLB.com. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  11. ^ Urban, Mychael (November 18, 2007). "A's deal Scutaro for two prospects". MLB.com. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  12. ^ Urban, Mychael (December 6, 2007). "A's pick up Hernandez in Rule 5 draft". MLB.com. Archived from the original on February 7, 2008. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  13. ^ Urban, Mychael (December 13, 2007). "Mitchell mentions current, former A's". MLB.com. Archived from the original on December 22, 2007. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  14. ^ Urban, Mychael (December 14, 2007). "A's begin rebuilding by dealing Haren". MLB.com. Archived from the original on December 18, 2007. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  15. ^ Haft, Chris (January 3, 2008). "A's deal Swisher to White Sox". MLB.com. Archived from the original on January 7, 2008. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  16. ^ Urban, Mychael (January 11, 2008). "A's add free agent Brown to outfield". MLB.com. Archived from the original on January 17, 2008. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  17. ^ Urban, Mychael (January 14, 2008). "Trade with Braves for Devine complete". MLB.com. Archived from the original on January 20, 2008. Retrieved January 28, 2008.
  18. ^ Haft, Chris (January 25, 2008). "Oakland signs Gaudin to one-year deal". MLB.com. Retrieved January 28, 2008.
  19. ^ Eymer, Rick (February 8, 2008). "Foulke picks A's in return to Bay Area". MLB.com. Archived from the original on March 28, 2008. Retrieved March 25, 2008.
  20. ^ Urban, Mychael (March 25, 2008). "Gonzalez still in mix for job". MLB.com. Archived from the original on March 25, 2008. Retrieved March 29, 2008.
  21. ^ Urban, Mychael (March 25, 2008). "No Street closure in opener". MLB.com. Archived from the original on March 25, 2008. Retrieved March 29, 2008.
  22. ^ Urban, Mychael (March 26, 2008). "Health insurance". MLB.com. Archived from the original on March 27, 2008. Retrieved March 29, 2008.
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Game logs
1st half: Oakland Athletics Game Log on ESPN.com
2nd half: Oakland Athletics Game Log on ESPN.com