What a contrast in moods around the A’s and Angels right now. The A’s, expected to struggle this season after trading away so many key players over the winter, played relaxed and loose Monday night. Their 5-0 victory over the Angels was one of their best overall games this season. They’re 19-17 and in second place in the AL West, four games behind the Texas Rangers. The Angels? Considered World Series contenders when the season began, they’re mired in the AL West cellar at 15-21. Albert Pujols is hitting .197, and the boo birds are making themselves heard at Angel Stadium.

Who knows how the rest of this season plays out? The smart money still says the Angels will finish above the A’s in the standings. But it’s really something to watch right now, as the A’s are the team carrying the air of confidence when these clubs take the field.

–Tyson Ross was understandably pleased with his outing — six shutout innings with just five hits allowed. And he’s benefiting from a mechanical adjustment he made. In his windup, Ross said he’s swinging his left leg back more and rotating his body away from the plate more before delivering the ball. “It makes me a tick slower to the plate,” Ross said. “My stuff is a little better, and it’s going to make me a better pitcher overall.” He’s allowed just two runs and one walk in two starts at Angel Stadium this season (12 innings).

–A’s manager Bob Melvin said after the game that he wasn’t sure about the status of Brandon Inge and Kila Ka’aihue for tomorrow’s series finale. He wants to see how both injured players respond in batting practice.

–We’ll have one of the nuttier start times of the season tomorrow with a 4:05 p.m. first pitch. That’s very unusual for a West Coast game. It’s being televised on Comcast SportsNet California as usual …

There’s pretty good news on the injury front for the A’s, and really, all talk regarding this team right now has to begin with health, right? After seeing a wave of guys lost to injury on the last homestand – some more serious than others – the A’s have a couple back tonight. Jemile Weeks’ sprained left ankle is doing better and he’s in the leadoff spot at second base. Kurt Suzuki said his left hand feels a little better – he’s behind the plate to catch Tyson Ross. A’s manager Bob Melvin said Suzuki’s thumb is actually what he’s more concerned with right now. Suzuki has taken a couple foul tips off the thumb, but apparently it’s feeling well enough for him to play.

The lineups:
A’s – Weeks 2B, Pennington SS, Reddick RF, Gomes DH, Smith LF, Donaldson 3B, Barton 1B, Suzuki C, Cowgill CF; Ross RHP.

Angels – Trout CF, Izturis 2B, Pujols 1B, Morales DH, Trumbo RF, Callaspo 3B, Wells LF, Aybar SS, Wilson C; Haren RHP.

Third baseman Brandon Inge (groin injury) and first baseman Kila Ka’aihue (right hamstring) remain out. Melvin says Ka’aihue could probably play tonight, but they want to give him an extra day as a precaution. The A’s will be extra cautious with Inge. He spent time on the DL with Detroit earlier this season with a groin injury, but he told me that problem was more on the left side. This one is on the right. At any rate, Melvin said Inge’s all-out style of play makes him susceptible to aggravating it. “He’s max effort all the time, that’s what I worry about,” Melvin said. “That groin, if he tweaks that thing again, now we’re looking at the DL.”

This is an odd seven-game road trip – two against the Angels, two at Texas, and then three just across the Bay Bridge against the Giants. It’s an important stretch though, as the A’s see the division-leading Rangers for the first time. Coming away with a split in these first four against the Angels and Rangers would be a success going into the Giants series. As I write that, Josh Reddick just homered off Dan Haren in the top of the first.

Time for me to get a move on. Enjoy the game …

Ben Enos filling in for Joe Stiglich from the Oakland Coliseum

Just when the A’s start to get something good going, the injury bug rears its ugly head yet again. The latest casualty is uber-hot third baseman Brandon Inge, who will miss today’s game with a slight groin injury. A’s manager Bob Melvin said Inge argued to play, but with what’s gone on lately around these parts when it comes to injuries, the right move was to sit Inge.

So, even though there’ll be bodies on the A’s bench today, the actual list of available subs is pretty much non-existent. Jemile Weeks (ankle) and Kila Ka’aihue (hamstring) are both unavailable today. Kurt Suzuki (hand/thumb) sits today as well, but Melvin said that the catcher is the emergency backup today. Melvin said he would really prefer not to use his starting catcher.

Read the rest of this entry »

The news continued coming after the A’s 3-1 win over the Tigers, when manager Bob Melvin announced he has switched from Grant Balfour to Brian Fuentes as his closer. Fuentes pitched the ninth for his second save of the season. Balfour has carried an 11.81 ERA with two blown saves over his past seven games.

“We’ll give Balfour a bit of a break,” Melvin said, “and it gives me another right-handed arm to use earlier in the game.”

Looking at this switch, I’m not sure it does much to improve or damage the A’s chances in the ninth. Neither Balfour nor Fuentes is a great fit for the ninth in my opinion. Both are more setup men at this point in their careers. The closer situation is definitely the weakest part of what has been, overall, a very good bullpen this season. I still expect we’ll see Ryan Cook get a crack in the ninth before long. Cook threw another scoreless eighth tonight and has yet to allow a run through 16 2/3 innings this season, the most among AL relievers.

How does Melvin’s decision grab you?

–Jemile Weeks said his sprained left ankle isn’t bad. He thinks he might even be available to play tomorrow, but Melvin listed him as doubtful. Kila Ka’aihue also is doubtful with his right hamstring injury. As I wrote earlier today, the DL is not a consideration right now for Ka’aihue.

That’s all for now …

IMPORTANT UPDATE: The A’s made a switch and decided to recall infielder Josh Donaldson from Triple-A Sacramento rather than outfielder Michael Taylor. Basically, had they brought back Taylor, they would have only been able to backdate Yoenis Cespedes’ DL stint to Friday rather than Monday. By opting for Donaldson over Taylor, Cespedes is eligible to come off the DL earlier.
*********

The latest …

The A’s placed Yoenis Cespedes on the 15-day disabled list and recalled Michael Taylor to take his roster spot. Cespedes is eligible to be reinstated May 22.  Here’s a story on it …

Injury updates from the Coliseum …

Yoenis Cespedes was originally in the A’s lineup but he was just scratched after aggravating his hand injury. Kila Ka’aihue, scheduled to play first base, was also scratched with a “lower hamstring, upper calf” injury, according to an A’s spokesman.

We don’t have much more information beyond that, but obviously it’s an unfortunate blow for the A’s, who were ready to welcome Cespedes back to the cleanup spot after a four-game absence because of a strained muscle in his left hand. Cespedes took just two rounds of batting practice before talking with hitting coach Chili Davis and heading back to the clubhouse, so it was clear that something was up. Ka’aihue has been hitting well, so his absence will be felt too.

“(Cespedes) took batting practice and  was still feeling it a bit, so I wanted to be precautionary with it,” A’s manager Bob Melvin relayed through a spokesman. (We’re past the media clubhouse access period at this point).

Cespedes, addressing reporters before batting practice, was asked twice if his hand was full strength and ready to go, and he confirmed it was.  “I feel so happy because I was here doing nothing. It was boring,” Cespedes said.

Here’s the revised A’s lineup:

Weeks 2B

Barton 1B

Reddick RF

Gomes DH

Smith LF

Inge 3B

Suzuki C

Sogard SS

Cowgill CF

*McCarthy RHP

Ben Enos comin at ya, filling in for Joe Stiglich

About two and a half hours before the A’s and Tigers get together for game two of their four-game series and it’s already been a fairly newsy day here at the Coliseum.

For starters, Yoenis Cespedes will not play again tonight as he continues to make his way back from a strained hand. Manager Bob Melvin said he expects Cespedes to take some more soft toss, do some tee work and then hit live pitching in the indoor cage a little later today. Cespedes told reporters “it doesn’t hurt a lot, it hurts some.” Melvin did say he thinks Cespedes still could potentially play tomorrow.

Read the rest of this entry »

A few items from the clubhouse following the A’s 10-6 loss to the Tigers, a night where it was bad to be an Athletic unless your name was Brandon Inge …

–Yoenis Cespedes probably won’t return to the lineup until Saturday at the earliest, manager Bob Melvin said. Cespedes hit off a tee and took soft-toss swings but he did not hit in the batting cage. He needs to do that before he returns.

–Seeing Bartolo Colon struggle against the Tigers is nothing new — he’s 0-7 with a 7.67 ERA against them over his last 12 games (11 starts). What might be a concern is his dip in velocity. “The last couple times it looks like it’s been down a little bit,” Melvin said. The manager downplayed it by saying lots of pitchers experience arm fatigue this time of year, but Melvin also added: “We’ll monitor that.”

Colon simply chalked his night up to bad location. “I made some mistakes in location, and when you make mistakes in the big leagues, you’re going to have trouble.”

–We’re used to singing the praises of the A’s pitching and bashing their offense. But the rotation is not holding its own real well recently. Over the last 11 games, the starters have a 7.21 ERA (47 earned runs in 58 2/3 innings). Obviously the health of Brandon McCarthy’s shoulder is a big storyline for this team, but all five starters flat-out need to pick it up.

–Inge, not surprisingly, was surrounded by reporters after the game. What a tear it’s been recently for him. He’s the second player in A’s history to hit two grand slams in a three-game span (Jimmie Foxx did it back in 1932). And his slam Thursday came against the team that released him just two weeks ago. Inge is taking it all in stride. “It just happens sometimes,” he said. “I’m just trying to have fun. That’s when things go your way.”

There’s no real news to report on the A’s key injured players, and that’s good news for fans. Yoenis Cespedes was scheduled to hit in the batting cage after batting practice (we won’t have access to him again until after the game), and that session will help determine his availability for Friday’s game. Cespedes is not in tonight’s lineup. …

A’s – Weeks 2B, Pennington SS, Reddick CF, Gomes DH, Smith LF, Inge 3B, Ka’aihue 1B, Suzuki C, Taylor RF; Colon RHP.

Tigers – Jackson CF, Dirks LF, Cabrera 3B, Fielder 1B, Young DH, Avila C, Rayburn 2B, Boesch RF, Santiago SS; Scherzer RHP.

A’s manager Bob Melvin said Cespedes might be a pinch-running option tonight, but he’s hesitant to put him in as a defensive replacement because he’d have to take him out anyway if his spot in the order came up. Swinging the bat is the biggest problem for Cespedes, who has a strained muscle in his left hand.

As for right-hander Brandon McCarthy, he threw off the mound today and felt good, so he’s on track to make Saturday’s start as expected. McCarthy stresses that he isn’t really feeling pain in his right shoulder but compared it to “when you feel a tickle in your throat two hours before getting sick.” So the right-hander feels he’ll be fine to pitch Saturday, but added: “I think the next couple starts will be big to see if it is coming on.” This is an issue to keep an eye on, given McCarthy’s history of shoulder problems. He’s usually had at least one extended period per season where he’s been sidelined.

–Max Scherzer is 1-1 in two career starts against the A’s. Last year they got to him for five runs over five innings and hung a loss on him. In a 2010 outing, he struck out a career-high 14 against Oakland. There’s no A’s hitter with any history against Scherzer that’s noteworthy, positive or negative. … Bartolo Colon is 8-9 with a 5.25 ERA lifetime against Detroit, so this isn’t his favorite club to see. The hitter who’s done the most damage against him? Ramon Santiago, who is 11 for 20. Santiago is just a .247 career hitter overall. … Go figure

The latest on Yoenis Cespedes …

He was diagnosed with a strained muscle in the back of his left hand, and A’s manager Bob Melvin lists him as day to day. “We’ll see if he can swing a bat tomorrow,” Melvin said. “If everything feels good, potentially (he could play tomorrow night). If not, maybe the next day.”

Cespedes said he originally hurt his hand during a series at Boston last week, but the pain went away quickly and there was no need for him to miss time. Then he aggravated the injury during batting practice Tuesday. Cespedes said he was relieved the injury wasn’t more serious. “I feel good that it’s just a little thing,” Cespedes said through interpreter Ariel Prieto. When Cespedes was asked if he had a feeling how long it would take for his hand to be ready, Prieto volunteered a “No” answer for him.

In other injury news, Brandon McCarthy said he definitely expects to make Saturday’s start against Detroit, and that he would only join the disabled list if his shoulder doesn’t respond well in that outing. He is scheduled to throw a bullpen session Thursday.