It had been 43 years since the Oakland A’s had lost 100 games in a season.
That was the goal again this year. No matter how bad things had gotten, no matter how many players they sent away or how cheap ownership was, they managed to evade that 100th defeat.
Oakland A’s finally succumb to inevitability
Well, so much for that streak. The force of nature that is Shohei Ohtani held the A’s without a hit for seven innings, ending his night by allowing two hits and a walk, striking out ten over eight shutout innings. Yes, the A’s rallied to score two runs in the ninth, but it was too late at that point as they eventually fell for the 100th time this year.
Now there is a new goal – avoid losing 100 games in consecutive seasons. That has never happened since the franchise moved to Oakland; in fact, that 100 loss season in 1979 had been the only time they reached triple digits in that column during their run in the Bay Area until this season. The last time the A’s lost 100 or more games in consecutive years happened in 1964-65 when they were in Kansas City.
There is reason to hope that the A’s can avoid that fate. There are some intriguing players that have already found their way to the majors or are on the cusp. With the likes of Shea Langeliers, Conner Capel, Jordan Diaz, and Ken Waldichuk having gotten some experience, and Ramon Laureano, Cole Irvin, Paul Blackburn, and a strong bullpen, the A’s have a solid core. It is possible that the A’s can, at minimum, win 63 games next year.
If nothing else, this season has been a learning experience. The younger players have been thrown into the fire, manager Mark Kotsay has learned how to handle losing, and the team will eventually be stronger for it. Unfortunately, that also meant a 43 year long streak has come to an end.
It had been 43 years since the Oakland A’s had lost 100 games in a season. That streak came to its inevitable end on Thursday night.