There is one stat that demonstrates how fundamentally unsound the Rangers are this year: 7-24 in one run games. Lots of reasons: bad bullpen, lack of plate discipline, lousy baserunning, carelessness in the field, etc.
I was in HS and college in the Bay Area when the A's hit their peak, with 3 WS titles from 72-74. Their forte was winning the close games, even though they weren't an offensive juggernaut. Great pitching combined with a high baseball IQ is what led to those titles.
I haven’t even paid attention to baseball this year. Mainly because between the Tigers and Rangers, well, I don’t need to tell you.
Although I kind of jumped on the Orioles bandwagon, I’d love to see them make the playoffs.
But “Chicks dig the long ball”.