OAKLAND
Jose
Cruz Jr. Jersey , Calif. (AP) ¡ª if he can slug the Oakland Athletics much deeper into the
postseason.Sure, he has some numbers in his head. How could he not after leading
the majors with 48 homers last year? Perhaps 50 is now within reach.There was
time for reflection, and it has now passed.¡°I did at the end of the season. Now
I¡¯m kind of like over it,¡± Davis said. ¡°I want to pick up where I left off. I
felt like I ended the season on a good note, making it to the playoffs. Nobody
thought we¡¯d get there. Even though we lost, there was a lot to be proud of. It
was by far the most fun I¡¯ve had playing baseball, because we won so many games.
And winning is way better than losing.¡±With a young power-hitting lineup, the
A¡¯s realize they won¡¯t surprise the rest of baseball as they did last year with
their knack for late-game rallies and winning the close ones. Oakland lost the
AL wild card game to the New York Yankees.¡°We¡¯ve come a long way as a team to
get into this type of position,¡± manager Bob Melvin said. ¡°It¡¯s easier to
envision where the lineup¡¯s going to be and look a little bit farther down the
road with this type of team than with teams where you¡¯re kind of always having
to mix and match.¡±Here are some things to watch for as the A¡¯s look to start
strong, beginning in Japan on March 20 against the AL West rival Seattle
Mariners:MOMENTUM TIME: Melvin expects his A¡¯s to have swagger, a well-deserved
confidence after the remarkable turnaround of 2018.The A¡¯s trailed the Mariners
by 11 games in the wild-card race on June 15 then propelled themselves into the
playoffs with a superb second half.¡°We were able to, through confidence, create
the success, and now we have that kind of confidence to go into the season,¡±
said
Melvin
Nolan
Ryan Jersey , the reigning AL Manager of the Year.PROFAR¡¯S PRESENCE: New
second baseman Jurickson Profar joins a talented infield with a pair of slugging
Matts ¡ª Matt Chapman at third and Matt Olson at first ¡ª along with much-improved
Marcus Semien at shortstop.Profar knows how good his new club can be after
watching the A¡¯s beat his former Texas Rangers so many times before being
traded.¡°Now I get the chance to play with them. So far, it¡¯s fun,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m
excited to get it started already and have a good year with everybody.¡±Profar
batted .254 with 20 homers and 77 RBIs in 146 games last season while playing
all four infield spots for the Rangers.He is embracing a new opportunity with
Oakland.¡°They did great last year and we¡¯re still young. I¡¯m looking forward to
doing it again, go to the playoffs and not only one game like last year. Keep
going.¡±POWER PLAY: Davis, who received a $6 million raise this offseason to
$16.5 million, also had a career-high 123 RBIs. He jokes about the fact he has
hit .247 for each of the past four seasons.Olson hit 29 homers and drove in 85
runs while Chapman had 24 homers and 68 RBIs in his first full major league
season. He is coming off left shoulder surgery in December.¡°Now that I think
about it, wow, it was because of these young guys,¡± Davis said of the recent
success. ¡°They bring something fresh, and that¡¯s what Oakland needs is some
freshness.¡±ROTATION FACES: The A¡¯s are counting on veteran starters Mike Fiers
and Marco Estrada to lead the rotation until everyone is healthy again.Fiers
returned on a $14.1 million, two-year deal in December, then Estrada received a
$4 million, one-year contract in January.The A¡¯s acquired Fiers in August from
Detroit, and he helped the club reach the playoffs for the first time since
2014. He went 5-2 with a 3.74 ERA in 10 outings with nine starts after joining
Oakland.Brett Anderson is back with the A¡¯s and the lefty also is slated to be
in the rotation when the season starts.Lefty ace Sean Manaea pitched a no-hitter
against Boston on April 21 then underwent shoulder surgery in September. He is
expected to be out until around the All-Star break.Jharel Cotton had Tommy John
surgery in March, followed by three others who also underwent the elbow ligament
replacement surgery: departed 2018 opening day starter Kendall
Graveman
http://www.astrosfanproshop.com/authentic-justin-verlander-j ersey ,
Daniel Gossett and top prospect A.J. Puk.TOP PROSPECT: While Jesus Luzardo
didn¡¯t get named to the roster for Japan, he is still hopeful of breaking camp
with a big league spot. He will remain in Arizona to stay on a throwing
schedule.The prized lefty made all of four starts at Triple-A Nashville last
season, when he also pitched in Double-A and Class-A ball. DENVER (AP) ¡ª The
Colorado Rockies¡® younger players are making their presence felt down the
stretch.Rookie infielder Ryan McMahon had a pinch-hit home run and Carlos
Gonzalez tripled with the bases loaded during a five-run seventh inning that
carried NL West leading Rockies past the San Francisco Giants 6-2 on Tuesday
night.David Dahl, who played in only 19 minor league games last season because
of a stress reaction in his rib cage after making his major league debut late in
2016, also homered for the Rockies. On Monday, rookie Noel Cuevas had a
pinch-hit two-run single to make the difference in a 9-8 win over the
Giants.Colorado, bidding for its first NL West title, has a lead in the division
in September or October for the first time since 1995. It was the fourth
straight loss for the Giants, who also have lost six in a row to Colorado.¡°It¡¯s
just a really good group, especially the contributions we¡¯re getting from the
young guys,¡± Gonzalez said after the Rockies¡¯ 40th come-from-behind win of the
season. ¡°Yesterday was Cuevas. Tonight was McMahon with a huge home run to tie
the game. After that, we were able to keep the momentum going, getting guys on
and trying to get that big hit.¡±Rockies starter German Marquez had shut down the
Giants since allowing a run in the first inning, striking out 11 over 6 2-3
innings. But with two outs and the bases clear in the seventh, Gorkys Hernandez
snapped a 1-1 tie with his second home run in as many games.That set the stage
for a rally in the bottom of the seventh by the
Rockies
Carlos
Lee Jersey , who batted around after being limited to a run in six strong
innings by Dereck Rodriguez.With one out, McMahon drove an 0-1 offering from
reliever Reyes Moronta (5-2) over the wall in straightaway center for his second
pinch homer of the season.¡°Honestly, I was just trying to get a knock for the
team and get the next guy up there,¡± McMahon said. ¡°It just worked out. Marquez
went out there and pitched so well. He¡¯s been amazing. We were just out there
and we were going to grind through it. This team is pretty resilient. It¡¯s a fun
group to be around.¡±An infield single by Charlie Blackmon ¡ª his third hit of the
game ¡ª and walks to D.J. LeMahieu and Nolan Arenado loaded the bases before
Gonzalez tripled to the wall in center off Ty Blach.Pinch-hitter Gerardo Parra
drew a bases-loaded walk off Sam Dyson to drive in the final run of the inning
to vault the Rockies into a four-run lead.¡°It¡¯s a shame that we can¡¯t hold onto
some of these games, certainly when he¡¯s pitching,¡± Giants manager Bruce Bochy
said of the effort by Rodriguez. ¡°What a nice job he did.¡±Chris Rusin (2-2) got
the final out in the seventh for the victory. Adam Ottavino and Wade Davis each
pitched scoreless innings to finish up.Gregor Blanco singled to lead off the
game and stole second before Joe Panik followed with an RBI single. The Rockies
evened the score when Dahl started the second with a home run, his ninth of the
season.TRAINING ROOMGiants: CF Steven Duggar underwent season-ending surgery
Tuesday to repair a torn labrum in his left shoulder. ¡°All went well,¡± manager
Bruce Bochy said. ¡°He came out of it fine.¡± Duggar suffered the injury a week
ago diving back into second base. He¡¯s expected to be ready in time for spring
training.GIANTS MOVES: RHP Jeff Samardzija (right shoulder inflammation) has
been transferred to the 60-day disabled list and INF Abiatal Avelino had his
contract purchased from Triple-A Sacramento. He is awaiting his major league
debut.ROCKIES MOVES: RHP D.J. Johnson had his contract selected from Triple-A
Albuquerque and is making his debut on a major league roster. INF Garrett
Hampson, LHP Sam Howard and OF Ramiel Tapia were all recalled from Albuquerque.
Hampson, Howard and Tapia all spent time with the Rockies earlier this season.UP
NEXTGiants: LHP Andrew Suarez (6-9, 4.19 ERA) will be seeking a third
consecutive win when he starts Wednesday night¡¯s series finale against Colorado.
He pitched seven innings of two-hit ball as part of the Giants¡¯ 7-0 win over the
New York Mets last time out.Rockies: RHP Antonio Senzatela (4-5, 4.88 ERA) has
gone 2-1 with a 4.24 ERA in three previous starts this season at Coors
Field.