Oakland A's

Athletics Eliminated From AL Playoff Contention With Loss to Mariners

A's eliminated from playoff contention with loss to Mariners originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea

For the first time since the 2017 season, the Athletics will not continue on to the playoffs. 

With their 4-2 loss to the Seattle Mariners on Wednesday, along with the Boston Red Sox's 6-0 win against the Baltimore Orioles earlier in the day, the A's officially have been eliminated from postseason contention. 

The A's now are 85-74 after having a .600 winning percentage last season, and winning 97 games the previous two years before in 2019 and 2018.

Oakland won its first AL West title last season since 2013, and expected to make it two in a row this year.

But as former A's like Marcus Semien and Liam Hendriks starred for other teams, with Semien hitting 44 home runs for the Toronto Blue Jays and Hendriks recording 37 saves for the AL Central-champion Chicago White Sox, the A's fell to the AL West's third-best team -- behind the Mariners and the Houston Astros.

Matt Olson and Chris Bassitt both made the All-Star Game for the first time this season. Olson has turned into one of the best first basemen in baseball, both offensively and defensively. Bassitt was the glue to this team on and off the field, overcoming a terrifying scene on the mound

But Elvis Andrus couldn't come close to the production Semien had this season in Toronto, Matt Chapman hit for power but more inconsistencies, and the A's rank near the top in blown saves while being in the middle of the pack in converted saves. 

Too often this season, the focus wasn't even on the field. It was on an eventual field, with the A's hopes of building a waterfront ballpark in Oakland and threatening to relocate elsewhere if those plans don't come to fruition. 

Now, they face major questions regarding the present and the future, both on and off the field, while competing in a division full of stars and teams on the rise.

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