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2007 Oakland Athletics Season
The Oakland Athletics' 2007 season was their first since 2004 in which they defended a title. The A's were without Frank Thomas (Toronto) and ace Barry Zito (San Francisco), both players who the A's lost to free agency. They filled the space left by Frank Thomas by signing free agent catcher Mike Piazza to a one-year contract worth $8.5 million to be the team's designated hitter. They were also without Ken Macha, their former manager who was fired after four seasons with the team and replaced by Bob Geren, as well as third-base coach Ron Washington, who accepted the managerial position of the Texas Rangers. It was their first losing season since 1998. Offseason * December 6, 2006: Alan Embree was signed as a free agent with the Oakland Athletics. * December 7, 2006: Jared Burton was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds from the Oakland Athletics in the 2006 rule 5 draft. * February 5, 2007: Ricky Ledée signed as a free agent with the Oakland Athletics. Regular season Season ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American League West
The American League West is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. The division has five teams as of the 2013 season, but had four teams from 1994 to 2012, and had as many as seven teams before the 1994 realignment. Although its teams currently only reside along the West Coast of the United States, west coast and in Texas, historically the division has had teams as far east as Chicago. From 1998 (when the NL West expanded to five teams) to 2012, the AL West was the only MLB division with four teams. The current champion of this division is the Houston Astros. In 2013, the Houston Astros went from the National League Central to the AL West. That move gives all six MLB divisions an equal five teams and both leagues an equal 15 teams each. Division membership Current members * Houston Astros - Joined in 2013; formerly from the National League West, NL West (1969–1993) and National League Central, NL Central (1994–2012) * Los Angeles AngelsThe Angels were formerly known as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Catcher
Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catcher is also called upon to master many other skills in order to field the position well. The role of the catcher is similar to that of the wicket-keeper in cricket. Positioned behind home plate and facing toward the outfield, the catcher can see the whole field, and is therefore in the best position to direct and lead the other players in a defensive play. The catcher typically calls for pitches using hand signals. The calls are based on the pitcher's mechanics and strengths, as well as the Batting (baseball), batter's tendencies and weaknesses. Essentially, the catcher controls what happens during the game when the ball is not "in play". Foul tips, bouncing balls in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Santiago Casilla
Santiago Casilla (born July 25, 1980) is a Dominican former professional baseball relief pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2004 to 2018 for the Oakland Athletics and San Francisco Giants. Casilla threw four pitches: a fastball, slider, curveball, and changeup. Casilla originally signed with Oakland under the name of Jairo Garcia, listing his birthdate as 1983. He debuted with Oakland in 2004, pitching briefly for them that year and the next. In January 2006, he revealed his true name and age. 2007 marked the first time he pitched more than four games in a year for Oakland; he an initial boost to their bullpen but missed the latter part of the season with an injury. He appeared in 51 games in 2008, then was allowed to become a free agent after posting a 5.96 earned run average (ERA) in 2009. The Giants signed Casilla in 2010; after starting the season in the minor leagues, he was called up in May and remained with the team for the rest of the season. Casilla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kiko Calero
Enrique Nomar "Kiko" Calero (born January 9, 1975) is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher. Professional career Calero is a graduated from University Gardens High School in Puerto Rico and attended Miami-Dade College Kendall Campus. He was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the 41st round (1142nd overall) of the 1994 Major League Baseball draft, but Calero did not sign with the Tigers. Instead he attended St. Thomas University (Florida) and was drafted again in the 1996 Major League Baseball draft, when he was picked in the 27th round (799th overall) by the Kansas City Royals. Kansas City Royals Mainly a starting pitcher in the Royals minor league organization, he spent 6 years at the Single-A and Double-A levels before finally reaching Triple-A Omaha in . During his minor league career, Calero excelled for the Royals organization. In 1996, he finished fourth in the Single-A Northwest League in ERA. He was also named to the Texas League All Star team in . Through , Cal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Andrew Brown (pitcher)
Andrew Aaron Brown (born February 17, 1981) is a former professional baseball relief pitcher. He has played parts of three seasons in Major League Baseball for the Cleveland Indians and Oakland Athletics. Brown was originally drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the sixth round of the 1999 Major League Baseball Draft. He was traded by Atlanta to the Los Angeles Dodgers on January 15, 2002, in a deal for Gary Sheffield; and from Los Angeles to Cleveland on May 19, 2004, as the player to be named from an earlier deal for Milton Bradley. In 2005, he appeared on the Indians roster for two different stints but never appeared in a gameIn 2006, while with the Buffalo Bisons, he was called up to the Cleveland Indians on August 13. On November 8, 2006, he was traded from Cleveland to the San Diego Padres along with third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff in exchange for second baseman Josh Barfield. On June 28, 2007, Brown was traded to the Oakland Athletics, once again for Milton Bradley. On Ja ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dallas Braden
Dallas Lee Braden (born August 13, 1983) is an American former professional baseball player and television sports commentator. He played in Major League Baseball as a left-handed pitcher from to as a member of the Oakland Athletics and, where Braden pitched the 19th perfect game in Major League Baseball history on May 9, 2010. The following season, shoulder problems were the first of a series of injuries that forced him to retire in 2014 after not throwing a pitch for two and a half seasons. After his playing career, Braden became a television baseball analyst, working for the ESPN network. Early life Braden was born in Phoenix, Arizona. He played Little League baseball in Stockton, California, in the Hoover Tyler Little League. Braden graduated from Stagg High School in Stockton, where he played baseball and ran cross country. His mother, Jodie Atwood, died of cancer during his senior year. After his mother's death, he lived with his maternal grandmother. Braden was fi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jerry Blevins
Jerry Richard Blevins (born September 6, 1983), nicknamed Gordo (Spanish for "fat"), is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Blevins was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the 17th round of the 2004 Major League Baseball draft, and made his major league debut in 2007. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Oakland Athletics, Washington Nationals, New York Mets and Atlanta Braves. He is currently an analyst for SNY. Early life Blevins was born in Tennessee, but moved to Ohio at four years old after his parents divorced. Although his biological father was not present in his life, he came to regard his stepfather, who came into his life when he was a freshman in high school, as a father. Blevins played baseball, basketball, and football and was in the marching band at Arcadia High School in Arcadia, Ohio. He became a fan of the Oakland Athletics during the 1990 World Series, and his favorite baseball players included Jose Canseco and Rickey Henderson, though he ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joe Blanton
Joseph Matthew Blanton (born December 11, 1980) is an American former professional baseball pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Oakland Athletics, Philadelphia Phillies, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Kansas City Royals, Pittsburgh Pirates, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Washington Nationals. After playing college baseball for the University of Kentucky, the Athletics selected him in the 2002 MLB draft and later made his MLB debut in 2004. While pitching for the Phillies, he was a member of the 2008 World Series championship team. Blanton continued to pitch in MLB through 2013, when he retired in 2014. Blanton returned from retirement to pitch in MLB from 2015 through 2017. Amateur career Joe Blanton was born in Nashville, Tennessee, but grew up in Chalybeate, Kentucky. He graduated from Franklin-Simpson High School in 1999. He attended the University of Kentucky and played college baseball for the Kentucky Wildcats, with a 13–12 record from 2000 to 2002, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Texas Rangers (baseball)
The Texas Rangers are an American professional baseball team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Rangers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West division. In 2020, the Rangers moved to the new Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, Arlington after having played at Globe Life Park (now Choctaw Stadium) from 1994 to 2019. The team's name is shared with a Texas Ranger Division, law enforcement agency. The franchise was established in 1961, as the Washington Senators, an expansion team awarded to Washington, D.C., after the city's first AL ballclub, the History of the Washington Senators (1901–60), second Washington Senators, moved to Minnesota and became the Minnesota Twins, Twins (the Washington Senators (1891–99), original Washington Senators played primarily in the National League during the 1890s). After the season, the new Senators moved to Arlington, and debuted as the Rangers the followin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ron Washington
Ronald Louis Washington (born April 29, 1952) is an American former professional baseball shortstop. He played Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Minnesota Twins, Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Indians, and Houston Astros. Washington is currently the Coach (baseball)#Offensive coaches: hitting coach and base coaches, third base coach for the Atlanta Braves. He is also the former Manager (baseball), manager of the Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers, whom he took to the World Series in 2010 World Series, 2010 and 2011 World Series, 2011. Prior to managing the Rangers, Washington Coach (baseball), coached in the New York Mets and Oakland Athletics organizations. He is one of only three MLB players, along with U L Washington (no relation) and Frank White (baseball), Frank White, who were products of the Kansas City Royals Baseball Academy, Royals Academy. Playing career Washington was signed by the Kansas City Royals on July 17, 1970. He spent the next ten s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Manager (baseball)
In baseball, the field manager (commonly referred to as the manager) is the equivalent of a head coach who is responsible for overseeing and making final decisions on all aspects of on-field team strategy, lineup selection, training and instruction. Managers are typically assisted by a staff of assistant coaches whose responsibilities are specialized. Field managers are typically not involved in off-field personnel decisions or long-term club planning, responsibilities that are instead held by a team's general manager. Duties The manager chooses the batting order and starting pitcher before each game, and makes substitutions throughout the game – among the most significant being those decisions regarding when to bring in a relief pitcher. How much control a manager takes in a game's strategy varies from manager to manager and from game to game. Some managers control pitch selection, defensive positioning, decisions to bunt, steal, pitch out, etc., while others desig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ken Macha
Kenneth Edward Macha (; born September 29, 1950) is a former Major League Baseball third baseman and manager. He managed the Oakland Athletics from 2003–2006, including American League Western Division championships in both his first and final seasons with the team, and later managed the Milwaukee Brewers (2009–10). Previously, Macha played for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Montreal Expos and Toronto Blue Jays in a span of six seasons from 1974–1981. He was a first cousin to Hal Newhouser. In the offseason, he lives in Murrysville, Pennsylvania, with his family. Macha frequently appears on Root Sports Pittsburgh as a postgame analyst for the Pirates. Playing career Macha is a graduate of Gateway High School in Monroeville, a suburb of Pittsburgh, and played college ball at the University of Pittsburgh. He was selected by Pittsburgh in the sixth round of the 1972 June draft. He was the Eastern League batting champion in 1974 with the Thetford Mines Pirates. Macha made his major ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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