The Oakland Athletics were baseball's best not too long ago. But just like the Milwaukee Brewers, the A's have gone from a powerhouse squad to having their postseason chances in doubt. The team is 8-17 over their past 25 games and only have a 1 ½ game cushion as a wild card team.
The Angels have increased their division lead over the Athletics by eight games and the Mariners have been gaining ground on them as well in the wild card race. Since August 22, Oakland is 2-5 against Los Angeles and 1-2 against Seattle after being swept by the Braves and losing three out of four against the Royals. The bats have been a bit of an issue, but the team is also focused on the bullpen woes.
Closer Sean Doolittle was placed on the disabled list back on August 24 because of a strained intercostal muscle and the team has missed him dearly. His replacement, Eric O'Flaherty has missed some games as well due to back tightness. Since Doolittle's absence, the bullpen has blown four games: two against the Astros, one against the Angels, and last night against the White Sox. If they want to stay in wild card contention over the Mariners and/or Tigers, they're going to need Doolittle back.
O'Flaherty returned to the mound last night after missing the weekend and gave up the game-tying home run in the ninth inning. Jesse Chavez then surrendered the game-winner in the 12th in their 5-4 loss to the White Sox, further indicating they need Doolittle back. In 54 appearances this season, the All-Star left-hander has a 2.28 ERA and a 0.71 WHIP with 20 saves. His gave up his last earned run on July 6 and blew only two save opportunities this season - one on June 28 against the Marlins and the other on June 30 against the Tigers.
Fortunately for the A's, they received good news yesterday regarding Doolittle's injury status. He threw 20 pitches off the mound and felt really good, and if all goes well, he will throw to hitters on Wednesday and be activated from the disabled list on Thursday, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. They'll need him back so they can have more stability in the bullpen.
Oakland has just 19 games remaining includes a three-game series against the Mariners and another against the Angels. The rest of their games are against struggling teams such as the White Sox, Phillies and Rangers, so their playoff hopes remain in their favor.
