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Oakland A’s Tickets - New Offensive Weapons

Filed Under Baseball 

The Oakland A’s were one of the worst offensive teams in baseball last season, but this year there’s not only hope substantial optimism about the upcoming season’s run production. Adding veteran hitting powerhouses to the batting order, the A’s have made a serious leap in their ability to contend in the American League West. With the Los Angeles Angels having lost ground over the off season, and the Rangers and Mariners still predicted to be a year or two out from contention, the A’s and their fans are feeling good about the season ahead.

First let’s go over what a dismal shape the Oakland A’s were in when we left off at the end of last year. The batting order was dominated by guys like Kurt Suzuki, Daric Barton, Mark Ellis, Bobby Crosby, Jack Hannahan, Jack Cust, Carlos Gonzalez, Ryan Sweeny, Frank Thomas and Emil Brown. The team managed to score a dismal 646 runs, the least in the American League. They similarly finished last in the league in plate appearances, hits, doubles, team batting average, team slugging percentage and total bases. They were second to last in the AL in on-base percentage. And the problem wasn’t just that the A’s were bad at hitting singles and doubles, either. With only Jack Cust’s 33 home runs coming anywhere near a decent clip, the A’s ranked well below average in home runs as well. With the bullpen and rotation doing a better-than-expected job, the A’s were quick to blame the offense for their overall trouble as a team. They finished the season in second to last place in the AL West with an overall record of 75-86.

Matt Holliday, Jason Giambi, Orlando Cabrera and Nomar Garciaparra were all acquired since that awful finish in 2008. Talk about instant upgrade. Holliday alone would have been a reason to get excited, but with a new DH, Cabrera at shortstop and Garciapara coming off the bench in certain situations or providing depth when injuries strike, this lineup could really cause some damage out west. Here’s a little about the new toys the A’s will get to play with on offense this upcoming season. You can see these players when you purchase Oakland Athletics tickets at StubHub.com.

Matt Holliday was a great hitter before 2007, but his runner-up finish in the NL MVP voting the year his club valiantly surged to the World Series made him a superstar. In five complete seasons Holliday has a batting average of .319 (.321 last year), an on base percentage of .386 (.409 last year) and a slugging percentage of .552 (.538 last year). Last season he dipped in home run hitting from 34 in 2006 and 36 in 2007 to 24 last year, but there are many who say he could rebound nicely in Oakland. He could instantly out-swing Jack Cust in the middle of the order.

Jason Giambi’s best years might be behind him, but he can still sell a lot of Oakland Athletics tickets in his move out west from New York. He’s a lifetime .534 slugger, who hit 32 home runs last season with the Yankees.

Orlando Carbrera, although not a power hitter, has been seeing a surge in productivity lately. In the past three season’s he’s hit well above his lifetime average of .274. In 2007 he averaged .301, and if he can do anything close to that he’ll add something to the back of the order.

Nomar has declined since his Boston days, but he can still be effective as a backup. His last full season in 2007, he averaged .283 and in 2006 he averaged .303.

Written by Brent Warnken, sponsored by StubHub. StubHub sells Oakland Athletics tickets, sports tickets, concert tickets, theater tickets and more to just about any event in the world.

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