Reeling A’s Drop 10th Straight

That’s 10 straight, A’s fans.

Bob Melvin’s debut as new Oakland A’s manager was a 9-4 loss in Chicago to the White Sox. Thursday night was yet another unspectacular showing from the A’s offensively and defensively. Aside from Hideki Matsui’s two-run homer, the A’s lineup was quiet as usual, and Trevor Cahill lasted just 2.2 innings.

Oakland’s new manager shuffled the lineup card a little bit, and opted to move SS Cliff Pennington into the No.2 spot behind speedy OF Coco Crisp. Connor Jackson played at first-base for struggling Daric Barton, and hit in the No.3 spot behind Jackson.

The offense didn’t do much against Chicago ace, Mark Buehrle, who went 7 solid innings against the reeling A’s. Then again, it seems everyone is having success against Oakland these days, as Thursday’s loss was Oakland’s tenth straight loss. Yes, that’s right. They’re 0-10 over their last 10 games.

While the offense has been stalling and the defense sloppy, the A’s starting rotation has hit a bit of a rough patch as well. Starter Trevor Cahill lasted just 2.2 innings, throwing 74 pitches in the outing in which he allowed 6 earned runs, 8 hits, and three walks. With the loss, Cahill is now 0-4 since starting the season 6-0.

Collectively, the A’s opened their new chapter under manager Bob Melvin on a relatively low note. Not much going on offensively, and the pitching wasn’t effective at all. While some seem to think that the firing of Bob Geren is an indication that the A’s front office still thinks the team has a shot at winning in 2011, I think given the team’s injuries are too great to overcome this year. As I’ve grown accustomed to saying, there’s always next year…

Welcome, Bob Melvin.