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A's power past Chicago, 10-2
By Morris Phillips July 24, 2010 |
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Don’t look now, but the A’s are hot, and Jack Cust-- resurgent once again--is swinging the hot bat. Cust homered twice as the A’s blew past AL Central leader Chicago, 10-2, on Saturday. Sophomore sensation Vin Mazzaro allowed three hits and two runs through six innings to improve his record to 6-2. The hot player and the club have moved in different directions so far this year, but now, as Oakland attempts to stay close in the AL West, Cust and the A’s are moving in unison at last. In his first 421 games over three seasons with Oakland, Jack Cust established himself as the club’s top power source with 84 homers. He also struck out at an embarrassing rate and struggled to hit for average. So when the journeyman who finally had found a home attempted to make adjustments during spring training and the numbers he produced didn’t reflect an upward trend, GM Billy Beane demoted Cust, who bristled while starting the season at AAA Sacramento. Without Cust, the A’s started fast, maintaining first place in the AL West well into May. At that point, the slugger, who was using his time in Sacramento to remake himself into a more consistent, but less powerful, hitter, was promoted, just as the team’s fortunes started to shrink. Into late June, the A’s continued to struggle, while Cust was raising his average and drastically cutting down on his strikeouts. Now with the A’s on a roll (they’ve won 15 of 23), Cust is starting to show his total game, hitting six homers and driving in runs in nine of the last 10 games. For the season, Cust is hitting .306 after hitting just .231 in 2008 and .240 in 2009. When Cust was demoted he complained that he was making changes to improve his hitting, and his spring numbers suffered because of the adjustments. Now, Cust is showing the changes have made him a better player. “I’ve been able to lay off close pitches and get myself into good hitter’s counts. I’ve been able to make last-minute adjustments with the ball on its way and that means you’re seeing the ball longer,” Cust said. In Saturday’s cakewalk, Cust not only homered twice, but walked three times, in a complete display of his new, disciplined approach. The lefty drew a walk in the first inning as the A’s forced White Sox’s starter Freddy Garcia to throw 44 pitches. Only Juan Pierre’s brilliant catch in the left field power alley with the bases loaded prevented the A’s from stretching their 2-0 lead to five. By the second frame, it was clear that Garcia was losing steam or entered the game fatigued, and manager Ozzie Guillen lifted him after walking Cust for the second time. Repeatedly, the A’s fouled off Garcia’s offerings until they found something to hit. In just 1 1/3 innings, Garcia allowed six hits, three walks and five runs, as his rebound season hit a bump. Garcia entered the game a 9-3 record and was attempting to win for the tenth time for the first time in his last four seasons. Leading 5-2 after two innings, the A’s went on to add a pair of runs in the fourth and the sixth and a single run in the eighth. In the fourth, Cust and Kurt Suzuki homered back-to-back for the A’s and Cust connected again in the eighth. While the A’s offense continues to leave a lot to be desired, the recent surge has elevated them from the majors’ worst home run hitting team as they’ve moved past Seattle and Pittsburgh with 66 in 99 games. In trying to compensate for a lack of power, the A’s have shown a knack for running the bases, leading the AL in triples and are among the leaders in stolen bases, sporting an impressive 79 percent success rate, after swiping a pair of bags on Saturday. The Athletics continued their stellar play during the day, winning for the 23 time in 33 day starts, the best daytime record in baseball. On Sunday, the A’s will look for a rare series win against an opponent with a winning record. The White Sox, who have surged in the Central by winning 29 of 39 will turn to Daniel Hudson (1-0, 5.06 ERA) who will make just his third ever major-league start. The A’s will counter with Dallas Braden, who will get the start in Ben Sheets’ spot. Sheets has been placed on the disabled list with discomfort in his elbow, a troublesome sign for the high priced pitcher who missed the entire 2009 season due to surgery on his right flexor tendon. However, the A’s expect to get Brett Anderson back this week, possibly to start on Friday in Chicago. |
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