Oakland Athletics : Seeds Planted for the Future

Names like Hudson, Mulder and Zito have passed through the gates of the Oakland Coliseum, and moved on to other cities.

The drumbeats that were once heard pounding from the left field bleachers for players like Tejada and Giambi are now silent.

The 2008 Oakland Athletics are a team devoid of superstars. Names like Frank Thomas and Mike Sweeney may sound familiar to the fair-weather fan, but these players only wear the green and gold because they are at the end of their major league journey.

They can be found sitting in the dugout on a cool summer night in Oakland, where the attendance is a meager 10,000 fans, observing a team that is about as unfamiliar to most people as Calculus to a third grader.

Many fair-weather Oakland A's fans, who had graced the stadium with their presence when names like Hudson, Mulder, and Zito were winning AL West division championships, don't understand that this 2008 Oakland A's team contains a crop of youngsters eager to make a name for themselves and continue the tradition of winning in Oakland.

The formula for the team's success in the Beane era has always started with great pitching, and this year's squad leads the AL in team ERA.

Smith and Eveland may sound like a law-firm, but Greg Smith and Dana Eveland make up two-fifths of the starting rotation. Both players, who have less than a years experience, sport an ERA of under 4.00.

Ryan Sweeney, whose prospect status in Chicago declined as fast as Barry Zito's fastball, has revived his career in Oakland. Sweeney's story is only in its first chapter—he currently leads the team in hitting.

Newcomer Carlos Gonzalez, the key piece in the Dan Haren deal which turned off a lot of A's fans, can now be found manning center field. He has lightning-quick bat speed reminiscent of Carlos Beltran, and a cannon for an arm. Soon those drumbeats that years back were pounding out a chant for Miguel Tejada could be reappearing for names like Sweeney and Gonzalez.

It's one thing for fans not to attend a ball game when they're rooting for the bottom dwellers of their division, who are playing has-been veterans in the field because they have no other options.

But this 2008 Oakland Athletics team is presently two games out of first place. The A's have the youngsters that can revive Athletics baseball in the Bay Area, and bring back the atmosphere in the Coliseum that was once present during the 20-game winning streak, or the playoff series win against the Minnesota Twins.

To summarize this 2008 team: "They're young, but they can play".