Kuzul

As I first wrote back in July for Bleacher Report, the Oakland Athletics are the best show in baseball. Seriously, if the A's are playing, watch them. Win or lose, it will be a spectacular show.Take the game played today, Sept. 29. It looked like the A's were going to go quietly and let the Seattle Mariners get the best of them. Going into the bottom of the 8th inning, Seattle was up 4-1 and cruising to a win.Jason Vargas pitched seven strong innings and Seattle manager Eric Wedge handed the ball to the bullpen.Then the A's gave whichever fans stuck around for the end a show.First baseman Brandon Moss, whose error led to the first Seattle run, doubled home Coco Crisp to make the score 4-2, but Stephen Drew was thrown out at home on the same hit to end the inning.See, even their inning ending plays are worth ...

The Tsuyoshi Nishioka era in Minnesota is over. The Minnesota Twins announced that the move was requested by the struggling Japanese shortstop, who batted .215, had 50 hits (no home runs) and 19 RBI with two stolen bases. A much-hyped player before coming to America, Nishioka was a standout for the Chiba Lotte Marines in his home country. From 2003-'10, he hit .293, had 911 hits (55 home runs) and 19 RBI with two stolen bases. His play did not transfer to the majors, however, and he requested his release yesterday. Here are a couple takeaways from his career in Minnesota.Begin Slideshow

The hunt for October continues to develop as many playoff spots remain up for grabs as September comes to a close.All three American League divisional races are far from over as teams like the Baltimore Orioles, Chicago White Sox and Oakland Athletics continue to scale the mountain to close the gap between their respective division leaders.In the National League, the race for the NL West and the final wild-card spot have stolen the show, as teams continue to fight hard to snag the remaining spots and a chance at a World Series berth.Here's a look at today's slate of games as team's make a final playoff push. Keep checking back for updated scores and recaps throughout the evening as the games go final. American LeagueToronto Blue Jays 3, New York Yankees 2: FThe Yankees dropped an important one in Toronto as they would have had an opportunity to clinch a spot ...

There has never been a Washington baseball team that played in a major league that won 100 games.The current Washington Nationals franchise never won more than 81 games before the current squad tallied 95 with five to play this year.No other team reached that level, either. The two other 20th century franchises could not pass the century mark.The original Senators won 99 games in 1933, the last pennant winner in DC. The franchise would pass 100 wins in 1965, but by then they had moved and become the Minnesota Twins.The second Senators team won 86 games in 1969. Now the Texas Rangers, they won 96 games last year, the high-water mark for the franchise.A few 19th century teams played in Washington. But neither the Washington Statesmen of the American Association, the Washington Senators or Washington Nationals of the National League nor the Washington Nationals of the Union Association ever cracked ...

The MLB playoffs are only a few days away. Which players are key for their teams' pursuit of the World Series? Not every player to appear in the coming slides will be the best one on his respective franchise. There is a certain amount of expectation of the greats. On many occasions, a team's third- or fourth-best hitters are the ones most responsible for a World Series victory. The same could be said about pitchers. Let’s take a look at the most important player from each of the teams that would be in the playoffs if the season ended today. Begin Slideshow

The MLB playoffs are all about great pitching. If you have a great pitcher or two, you are a force to be reckoned with. There have been plenty of great pitching performances this year, with perfect games and no-hitters. But in the playoffs, you don't need to throw a no-hitter. Consistent domination is the calling card.Here are a few pitchers who will dominate the competition in October.  Aroldis Chapman, RedsAroldis Chapman has had just a terrific season. As the Reds' closer, he has a minuscule 1.55 ERA. The most remarkable stat is the 119 strikeouts in almost 70 innings. Combine that with the fact he only has 21 walks, and Chapman may very well be the best closer in the game.With his high-powered fastball, Chapman makes it tough on hitters. He is poised to continue his great season into the playoffs.The Reds have been one of the better teams in the league this ...

The end of the 2012 MLB regular season has nearly arrived and both leagues have exciting playoff races that are continuing to heat up. The Washington Nationals, Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati Reds and San Francisco Giants have all clinched postseason spots in the National League. The American League remains wide open and any team could still be heading home after October 3. With new playoff rules in place, five teams from each league will make the playoffs as there are two wild cards instead of just one. Competition for those spots will be extremely tight. Here is everything you need to know about this year’s playoff race.   Winning the Division is Important One of the MLB’s primary motivations in adjusting the postseason format was to give division winners a marked advantage in the playoffs over wild card teams. The two wild cards from each league will face each other in ...

If you look at Tim Lincecum’s stats this year, I’m sure you won’t be impressed.The former ace is 10-15 with a 5.15 ERA, and he has lost about all of his pitch command. Lincecum hides the ball with his unorthodox delivery, and he used to hit 95 mph on the radar gun. However, his fastball now tops out at just 92 mph, making it much less effective. Since his fastball is less effective, his off-speed pitches are, too.His fastball used to get him ahead of the count and his changeups used to make hitters whiff. His slider had tons of movement, and hitters would be miles off of the pitch. But now, those pitches aren’t as effective, due to the lack of speed on his fastball.Plus, he hasn’t been locating his fastball, and hitters are pouncing on off-speed pitches left in the zone. But the real problem is that his pitches haven’t ...

Chicago Cubs president Theo Epstein beat out his former team in one key acquisition last offseason when he hired Dale Sveum to be his manager.Sveum was reportedly the preferred choice of Boston Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington, but ownership (particularly team president Larry Lucchino) pushed to bring in Bobby Valentine. Valentine is on his way to getting fired after his first season in Boston, but Sveum looks like he'll be sticking around for a while with the Cubs. Epstein apparently views as him as a long-term solution to provide some stability in the dugout during his rebuilding project.But is Sveum really the best guy for such a job? Has he shown enough in his first season with the Cubs to warrant that sort of commitment from the front office? What is it about Sveum that makes him the right fit for what the Cubs are trying to do over the ...

As we head into the final week of the season, the postseason picture is beginning to gain some clarity, but that in no way means there won't be some fireworks down the stretch as the final slots are hashed-out over the next five games.Whether it's a pitching staff that's got top-line starting pitching, or a pair of sluggers that can intimidate anyone facing them on the mound, every team has something that sets them apart from the rest.We'll know more in a week, but when some of these teams do ultimately enter into the postseason, they'll need to rely on these strengths they've displayed throughout the first 150-plus games of the season.Begin Slideshow