Oakland A's: Was Big Eighth Inning on Tuesday a Sign of Things to Come?

The Oakland A's used a big eighth inning against the Los Angeles Angels on Tuesday night to snap a three-game losing streak.

Sign of Good Things to Come?

Daric Barton blasted a 366-foot homer to right field in the top of the fifth to make it 1-0 A's. However, until the big eighth inning, things were starting to look familiar. The A's hitting was anemic and the Angels had come back to take a 2-1 lead, leaving little hope for a comeback.

Trailing 2-1 heading into the top of the eighth, the A's took advantage of two walks and finally received some timely hitting from the heart of the order. The club hung a four-spot on reliever Kevin Jepson. This would prove to be all of the runs the A's would need as they went on to win 5-3.

Still Not Gonna Cut It

Jemile Weeks was 0-for-3, but he drew a walk in the eighth and scored a run. I've been all over Weeks so far this young season, only because I think he has great potential. I know, potential is a scary word, but it's true. Following Cliff Pennington's walk with a walk of his own showed patience. That's part of what the A's pay Weeks for.

Still, the slick-fielding second baseman is only hitting .184. The A's need a bigger return on their investment on that front.

Coco Crisp will not escape this article without a bit of a pen-lashing as well. However, he did single to center in the eighth, allowing Pennington to score following his one-out walk and tying the game at 2-2.

Crisp finished the game going 1-for-4 with a run scored. Crisp's on-base percentage is above his batting average. Usually this is a good thing, but not when you're hitting .156. His OBP is .208.

Bye Bye Bailey

Josh Reddick is starting to make A's fans forget about losing All-Star closer Andrew Bailey. Reddick was part of their return in the Bailey trade with the Boston Red Sox.

Grant Balfour, the A's new closer, has helped with forgetting Bailey as well, as he has collected three saves in as many opportunities and has a 1.13 ERA.

Reddick is fun to watch. His .286 average and his hose in right field have made me a believer, even after I called him an underachiever a few articles back. The transplant from Boston was 3-for-4 on Tuesday night with a huge double to right field in the A's big eighth inning. 

He also has a little character to his game. How long will it be until we see fans in the stands wearing fake long hair and sporting a mouth piece?

Too Much to Ask?

Timely hitting and good pitching will take you a long way. For a lot of clubs, this is a lot to ask.

But, is it really asking too much from guys like Weeks and Crisp to start getting on base to let Reddick and Yoenis Cespedes do their thing?

Weeks and Crisp have proven in the past they can produce, they just need to do so in the present. So when, or if, this happens, the A's might find that the number on the left is larger than the one on the right when they glance at the standings.

As far as the pitching is concerned, it's getting there. A nice outing by Tommy Milone against Kansas City, two good starts by Bartolo Colon and good enough showings from Tyson Ross and Brandon McCarthy are reasons for optimism.