Oakland's One Shining Moment in 2009

Being an Athletics fans recently has not been a very promising prospect the last few years. Last year they finished 24.5 games out of first place in the West Division. They also dumped a bunch of salary in trading away their top three starting pitchers Dan Haren, Rich Harden, and Joe Blanton. In 2007 they finished 18 games out of first place and and lost pitcher Barry Zito and Frank Thomas (4th place in 2006 MVP voting) to free agency. Since their 2006 playoff run to the AL Championship Series they have consistently traded away and ignored re-signing high priced veteran talent in favor of acquiring young, cheap players to build up an impressive farm system. In the current economics of Major League Baseball this is one of the few ways for a small market team like Oakland to compete. In 2009 the A's had an approximate payroll of $63 million. Slightly less than the to the 2009 salaries of New York Yankees Alex Rodriguez, Mark Texeria, and CC Sabathia ($69 million combined).

It's hard to be patient as a fan. You want your team to win right now, every year. That's why the NFL is so popular; every year going in there is a legitimate chance that your team will compete for the playoffs. For God's sake the Arizona Cardinals were in the Super Bowl last year. And I guess technically its possible in the MLB. The Tampa Bay Rays ($31.8 million payroll in 2008) made an appearance in the 2008 World Series after winning a division title over the New York Yankees ($218 million) and Boston Red Sox ($155 million). Oakland is now using Tampa Bay's template to build a contender 2-3 years in the future.

We finally got to see a glimpse of that future last night in Boston. The A's trail in the West eleven games out of first place and nine games under .500. Their season was basically over before July 4th. The offseason trade of Matt Holliday from the Rockies and the free agent signings of veteran position players Jason Giambi and Orlando Cabrera has done little to improve the anemic offense that has plagued the team since '06. The only reason to follow the team this year is the development of their talented but youthful pitching staff.

Brett Anderson, a 21 year old baby-faced Texan, making his 15th start of his rookie season dominated the Boston Red Sox in their home park. Anderson stole the spotlight from Nomar Garciaparra who was making his first return to Boston since being traded away in 2004. Pitching a complete game 2-hitter, Anderson shut down one of the top offensive teams in one of the most batter-friendly parks in the majors.

Brett Anderson's stat line for the game:

9 IP 2 H O ER O R 9 K 2 BB

ESPN.com gave Anderson a game score of 90, which ranks as the third best-pitched game in the American League this year. He became the first rookie to shut out the Sox in Fenway since Jim Abbot in 1989. It's the A's first complete game since Justin Duscherer threw one last July.

Anderson, 21, along with Dallas Braden, 25, and Trevor Cahill, 21, make up the core of Oakland's young starting staff. Along with top prospect Michael Ynoa, 18, and minor leaguers Dana Eveland, 25, Gio Gonzalez, 23, and Josh Outman, 24, they make up a deep pool of pitchers for the A's to build on. If they can develop or add some offense and cultivate their pitching prospects correctly, there is reason for hope in the Athletic Nation. Just not right now, but maybe later.