Oakland A's Nearing Contention After Holliday and Giambi? Not In My Book

A lot of people are thinking that the Oakland Athletics are going to be in the running for the AL West, in my book the A's will be left running for their lives.

Even with Matt Holliday and Jason Giambi, the Athletics have the worst offense in the MLB. You can't win the World Series using long balls and one ace, just ask the 1990's Seattle Mariners. They need more hitters hitting for average besides Holliday.

The pitching staff has changed drastically in the last year, trading Dan Haren, Rich Harden, and Joe Blanton.

Now they have one ace and four guys who could do better selling hot dogs on a deserted island. The ace is Justin Duchscherer and even he went just 10-8. But his 2.54 ERA is one of the best in the MLB. But don't forget how in his last 10 starts he lost four and won only two.

The A's also have the Angels, Rangers, and Mariners in their division. The Mariners and Angels are contenders after the M's offseason dealings and the Rangers only need to sign Ben Sheets and Oliver Perez to be a very serious contender for years.

Erik Chavez's numbers are going down and many are wondering if he will even hit 20 home runs and bat .240. In my book I am questionable about even a .230, 15 home run season.

Unless the A's can create a blockbuster trade with the Red Sox for young pitching, it looks as if they will not be walking the stairs of the AL West basement.

Ben Brown is a writer for Bleacher report. All the skepticism in this article is based off of facts and Ben is willing to answer any question you write in the comment section of this article.

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