Oakland A's: QuickTake at 20-Game Mark, Team Showing a Lot of Heart

With four shutouts thrown against them, the Oakland A's are 10-10 and in second place in the American League West.

With a day off today, and a crucial nine game East Coast swing looming, the A's have managed to take the good with the bad and hang tough.

Pitching has been the good, while hitting (or lack there of) has been the bad.  I know, nothing new here.  But this team has a new wrinkle.  This A's club has shown the ability to get up off the mat when things are bad.  Yesterday's extra inning comeback against the Chicago White Sox was proof of the team's resilience.

No Quit in This Team

In early April, in a game against the Kansas City Royals, the A's fell behind 4-3 in the top half of the 12th inning, but came out on top scoring two runs in the bottom half to get the win.  Yes, the A's did have that game gift wrapped for them, due to errors and hit batsmen, but the game was back and forth and hard fought the whole way.

In mid April, after a three-game losing streak, the A's found themselves down 2-1 to the Los Angeles Angels heading into the top of the eighth.  The A's hung a three spot in that inning and went on to win 5-3.

The Angels win spurned a 3-1 series win, and a three-game winning streak.

How are they Doing It?

So far this young season,  the A's seem to be doing things with smoke and mirrors.  The team is hitting .205 as a team, which is dead last in all of baseball.  They have little to no productivity at the top of the order, and their corner infield spots are a mess.  Other than that, everything is fine.

Was the last statement tongue and cheek? Yes, but not completely.  The starting rotation and the bullpen have been strong enough to keep the A's afloat so far.

Beyond Expectations?

There is no team in Major League Baseball with more than 15 wins.  Using this as a benchmark, I would call the A's 10-10 record a win thus far.

I can't speak for A's fans, but did you really expect more out of the A's at the 20-game mark?  I know I didn't.