News
Braden is Oakland's de facto ace
Oakland (7-11) at Texas (10-10), 11:05 a.m. PT
By Mychael Urban / MLB.com
04/29/09 10:41 PM ET
ARLINGTON -- When a prospect gets a little time in the big leagues, it's often called a "cup of coffee." In 2007 and 2008, A's lefty Dallas Braden got enough cups to fill a super-sized pot. A frequent rider on the proverbial Sacramento Shuttle between Oakland and its Triple-A affiliate in California's capital, Braden had five stints with the A's in 2007 and four last season. Now he's the de facto ace of the big league staff, and it's highly unlikely he'll be back on that shuttle any time soon -- or at all. Braden, the only A's starter with two victories, will take on the host Rangers on Thursday afternoon in the finale of what was supposed to be a three-game series at Rangers Ballpark. It's the finale of a two-gamer now, because Wednesday's game was washed out and rescheduled as part of a doubleheader here May 29. "Don't get me wrong; I love Sacramento. The guys are great, the coaches, the fans, everything," Braden said. "But been there, done that. This is the ultimate challenge, playing up here, and I love the challenge." The A's love the stability that Braden, 25, has brought to a young and largely untested rotation. "He's at the point where he's comfortable with it, and he knows that his stuff is going to be effective if he's doing it the right way," said pitching coach Curt Young. "And I think that's one thing that he's trying to pass along to these young guys. We had a meeting this spring with all the guys, and he brought that up. He talked about that fear factor, and how when it's in there, you don't have much of a chance. "[He said,] 'Get it out of there, and your talent's going to work, and pitching is going to be a lot of fun.'" Pitching matchupOAK: LHP Dallas Braden (2-2, 2.52 ERA)
Despite his shortest outing of the season -- 5 2/3 innings against the Tampa Bay Rays on Saturday -- Braden lowered his ERA to 2.52 and was the A's only starting pitcher with a victory over the team's first 16 games. He's become Oakland's most consistent starter since being moved into the No. 1 slot of the rotation following a Spring Training in which he was originally slated for the back end. He's 0-2 in six games (three starts) with a 5.12 ERA against the Texas Rangers. TEX: RHP Vincente Padilla (1-1, 8.27 ERA)
The Rangers are 3-1 in Padilla's four starts thanks to a couple of game-winning ninth-inning home runs from Michael Young in his last two starts. The Rangers won, 5-4, in Baltimore on Friday while Padilla allowed four runs on seven hits in 6 2/3 innings. His velocity was back up to 96 mph. Left-handed hitters are hitting .390 against Padilla while right-handers are hitting .226 off him. He is 5-1 with a 4.55 ERA in his career against the Athletics. Dribblers ...
Eric Patterson, who was called up from Triple-A Sacramento on Wednesday, was in the starting lineup at second base and likely will get the start Thursday. "He was one of the top hitters in [the Pacific Coast League], so you want to go with the guy swinging the bat well," A's manager Bob Geren said. ... Righty Justin Duchscherer, transferred to the 60-day disabled list Wednesday, played catch for the first time since undergoing elbow surgery a month ago and said everything felt fine. He's working out in Arizona until he's ready to return to the mound. ... Double-A Midland starter Travis Banwart, a 23-year-old righty, improved to 3-0 with a 1.31 ERA with six innings of five-hit work Tuesday. ... Midland infielder Adrian Cardenas hit his Texas League-leading 10th double; he's hit in 15 of the RockHounds' past 17 games. ... Jemile Weeks, Oakland's top pick in last June's First-Year Player Draft, is at extended spring training in Arizona to complete the rehab associated with the hip flexor injury that ended his first season as a pro. He'll likely head to Class A Stockton when the rehab is complete. ... Radio play-by-play man Ken Korach will miss Thursday's game to attend a memorial service for Glen Gondrezick, with whom Korach called UNLV basketball games. Korach will re-join the team Friday in Seattle. Tickets
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• KTRB 860, KDYA 1190 (Español) Up next
• Friday: Athletics (Dana Eveland, 1-1, 5.95) at Mariners (Carlos Silva, 1-2, 6.14), 7:10 p.m. PT
• Saturday: Athletics (Trevor Cahill, 0-2, 5.40) at Mariners (Jarrod Washburn, 3-1, 3.42), 6:10 p.m. PT
• Sunday: Athletics (Josh Outman, 0-0, 5.23) at Mariners (Chris Jakubauskas, 1-3, 5.23), 1:10 p.m. PT
Mychael Urban is a national writer for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
