Originally Published: September 24, 2009
Kiss 'Em Goodbye: Oakland Athletics
The young pitching is coming along, but lineup concerns persist
Insider's series on MLB teams that are out of the playoff race continues with the Oakland Athletics, who aren't looking so cutting edge these days.
Baseball Prospectus' preseason PECOTA projection: 84-78, first place
Current record: 72-79, fourth place
On the plus side, Aaron Sorkin is rewriting the script for a "Moneyball" movie, which might star Brad Pitt as Billy Beane.
To read Buster Olney's take on what went wrong for the Athletics and what's next, plus items from the rumor mill, number-crunching analysis from Baseball Prospectus, a draft recap and whom to watch in spring training, you must be an ESPN Insider.
To continue reading this article you must be an Insider
Kiss 'Em Goodbye on ESPN Insider
Insider and Baseball Prospectus now ask: What went wrong for each MLB team, and what may the future hold? We'll be covering the playoff teams as they're eliminated, and finish off with what the World Series champs need to do to improve (hey, there's always something).
The Champions
The Playoff Teams (as eliminated)
- Detroit Tigers
- St. Louis Cardinals
- Boston Red Sox
- Minnesota Twins
- Colorado Rockies
- Los Angeles Dodgers
- Anaheim Angels
- Philadelphia Phillies
Week of Sept. 14
- Sept. 14: Tampa Bay Rays
- Sept. 15: Chicago Cubs
- Sept. 16: New York Mets
- Sept. 17: Milwaukee Brewers
- Sept. 18: Baltimore Orioles
- Sept. 19: Washington Nationals
- Sept. 20: Kansas City Royals
Week of Sept. 21
- Sept. 21: Pittsburgh Pirates
- Sept. 22: Cleveland Indians
- Sept. 23: Houston Astros
- Sept. 24: Oakland A's
- Sept. 25: Seattle Mariners
- Sept. 26: Arizona Diamondbacks
- Sept. 27: San Diego Padres
Week of Sept. 28
- Sept. 28: Texas Rangers
- Sept. 29: Toronto Blue Jays
- Sept. 30: Chicago White Sox
- Oct. 1: Florida Marlins
- Oct. 2: San Francisco Giants
- Oct. 3: Cincinnati Reds
- Oct. 4: Atlanta Braves
- Rumors: Comeback kids and FA updates
- Olney: Red Sox have MLB's best rotation
- Law: Top organizations | Prospect rankings
- Arangure: Francisco Liriano's big winter
