Josh Willingham Providing The Power

While the A’s offense has been rather inconsistent this season, the team’s offensive production is beginning to pick up. Oakland’s offense ranks 24th in baseball in batting average (.241), 25th in on-base percentage (.307), 27th in slugging (.351), and 24th in runs (191). The A’s are, however, riding a bit of a hot-streak, winning four in a row following a sweep of the Orioles, and the offense is a big reason for the team’s recent success.

Josh Willingham, acquired by Oakland during the offseason in a trade with the Nationals, has been providing some much needed “pop” to an Oakland offense that ranks 28th in home runs (29). Willingham, who has gone deep twice over his last three games, leads Oakland regulars with 9 home runs this season. “The Hammer” also leads the team in RBIs with 35, and while he’s gotten off to a slow start, like the A’s lineup, he’s beginning to turn things around.

Billy Beane and the rest of Oakland’s front office made a nice move in picking up Willingham from Washington during the offseason, as Willingham is easily the team’s biggest power hitter this season. Willingham is hitting .244/.328/.446 this season, but in his past 10 games, the A’s outfielder is hitting .273 with 3 HR and 10 RBIs. So, despite his slow start to the season, Willingham appears to riding a mini hot-streak.

Timely hitting by Oakland’s offense has been a major reason why the team is currently riding a four-game winning streak, and of course, the team’s pitching has been solid as well. Finding consistency on offense will be a challenge for Oakland over the course of the season, but if guys like Willingham, David DeJesus, Coco Crisp, and Kurt Suzuki continue to swing the bat well, Oakland could have a legitimate shot at capturing a division title this year.