A four-run deficit? No problem.
Friday night in Toronto the A's saw the Blue Jays' five runs, and raised them seven--all unanswered. The result? A big 8-5 road win for the Athletics who improved to 5-5 on the young season.
After finishing near the bottom of the league in runs scored last year, A's general manager Billy Beane gave his lineup an offseason makeover, adding veteran sluggers like Jason Giambi and Matt Holliday to lead the way.
Seven unanswered runs were exactly what he had in mind. But if Friday's game is any indication, the G.M. didn't have to look that far for a bat afterall.
Instead it was the guy Beane worked so hard to replace who came to the rescue. With the Athletics trailing 5-1 in the fourth inning, Bobby Crosby came to the plate with the bases loaded, and promptly cleared them with a triple to the left-center field gap. Three runs scored, and suddenly Oakland was back in the game.
The go-ahead run came in the seventh, and at least this one was courtesy of a new guy. Holliday's RBI double put the A's ahead, and that's where they would stay.
Of course, while a comeback win is exciting, it isn't a habit the A's want to get into. But at least this season the team knows it has a lineup capable of overcoming a rough start. Even if the hero du jour just happened to be in last season's lineup as well.
