OAKLAND -- It would be fair to credit the Giants for chargingtoward the trade deadline, swinging hard and launching a ball intothe gap.
And it's justifiable to jump the A's for yakking boldly from thedugout before stepping into the batter's box and gazing at everypitch until the third strike sailed past.
The Giants on Tuesday acquired Hunter Pence, a heart-of-the-order bat, while the A's did nothing at all.
But know there is absurd twist to the actions and inactions ofthe Bay Area teams at the stroke of baseball's nonwaiver tradedeadline Tuesday: Oakland still might have the more encouragingAugust and September.
It's completely irrational, yes, but also entirely plausible.
Understand, though, the A's front office underachieved Tuesday,despite their half-baked denials. General manager Billy Beane hadgiven signals he was ready to reinstall his best brain, last seen in2006, which led to a feverish anticipation about what he might do tofortify a roster that has spent the past seven weeks stomping on itslimitations.
Would baseball get another dose of Billy the Kid, the guy whowalked the walk and relished the idea of destroying the competition?Would the A's get Hanley Ramirez? Justin Upton? Chase Headley? Howabout Stephen Drew or Yunel Escobar?
Well, no. Five times no.
What baseball and A's fans got instead was Billy's Shadow, whichleft it to assistant David Forst to explain the lack of results fromthe office of what once was the brashest, most creative executivenerve center in sports.
Forst essentially said the A's like what they have more than whatthey would have gotten, which is universal G.M. code for concedingfailure.
'We had plenty of conversations,' Forst said.
'We wanted to be respectful of the guys here,' he added.
Seriously? We're supposed to believe Billy has gone conservativeout of respect for players who could be replaced by someone better?
Though the A's were baseball's hottest team in July and showtremendous potential in some spots, they also have half a lineup ofhitters lugging sub-.220 batting averages. These deficiencies wereacknowledged by Beane, who while approaching the deadline expressedexcitement about addressing them.
He did not.
This isn't the A's going for it. This is the A's sitting andwaiting, maybe scanning the list of players who might pass throughwaivers, and seeing if it comes to you.
And that's an incredibly long shot, considering the aggressivestances taken by the Rangers and Angels, as well as the White Sox,Tigers and Yankees.
Yet none of those teams lusts for power and influence more thanthe Dodgers, who clearly are obsessed with making a dramaticstatement as quickly as possible. And the Giants, despite gettingPence, will have hard time keeping up -- this season and beyond.
Los Angeles last week added Ramirez, a shortstop who can bat inthe middle of the order. (The A's reportedly were interested inRamirez -- just the kind of swing on which the old Billy might haveconnected -- but allegedly balked at a salary obligation of about$38 million over the next 21/2 years.)
The Dodgers also acquired a leadoff batter, Shane Victorino, andtwo bullpen arms: Brandon League and Randy Choate.
'In some ways, this is a reaction (to the Dodgers),' Giants G.M.Brian Sabean said.
So while the Reds, Braves and Pirates all made late Julyadditions -- all are legitimate contenders for the postseason --Sabean realizes the Dodgers are trying to become the league'sgoliath, trying to blow the Giants off the face of the earth.
That's what the Giants have to contend with. Pence will improvethe lineup, and Marco Scutaro will provide more options for managerBruce Bochy, but without pitching dominance this team has no chanceof getting to the first weekend of October.
And that is the means by which the Giants measure success.Anything short is failure.
The A's, by contrast, would be a stunning success simply if theyremain relevant into September. Unlike the Giants, they are burdenedneither with lofty expectations or the promise of delivering acontending product to fans who consistently buy every ticket.
'These people have really supported this club, and there are highexpectations,' Sabean said.
No such concern in Oakland, where the bar and the attendance andthe urgency are low. The Giants fan will be bitter with anythingless than the number of wins that equals the playoffs, but the A'sfan will be pleased with 82 and third place.
The A's could use the energy provided by a gift from the bosses.They got no such thing. They're OK with that, especially when thenumbers say they're ahead of the curve.
Contact Monte Poole at mpoole@bayareanewsgroup.com. Follow him atTwitter.com/1montepoole.
