Oakland A’s: Three storylines for series against Astros
By David Hill
A chance for revenge
Mike Fiers may be looking forward to this series more than anyone else on the Oakland A’s.
After all, it was Fiers that blew the lid off the Astros’ trash can, exposing AstroGate to the world. Houston’s success over the past three years has been tainted, with three managers and Jeff Luhnow having been fired for their roles. The players, however, received absolutely nothing in terms of punishment.
While a great deal of animosity was hurled towards the Astros, Fiers also received the brunt of anger. Several figures around the league called him a snitch, and he received threats from Astros fans. It is also worth wondering if he would have said anything had the Astros not used the trash can to great effect against him last year, scoring nine runs on nine hits, including five homers, while recording three outs.
Those questions notwithstanding, Fiers has a possible opportunity to shut everyone up. He can take his vengeance on the mound by silencing the Astros lineup, showing everyone that his rough outings last year were caused by RubberMaid. And, if the A’s advance, that revenge will be particularly sweet.
Mike Fiers blew the cover off of AstroGate. Now he could have a chance to help end their 2020 season as well.