Well this is a bit of a turn-up.
I’ll need to briefly break the fourth wall to explain.
I am IRL an Oakland fan but chose the Buccos for this one because my plan is to do a full minors save of the A’s from 1968 once I’m done here and I just wanted to learn the ropes a bit before doing so.
Since beginning this save, however, it goes without saying that my team has hit the skids IRL. Now I assure you, I don’t mind the losing. If it is done the right way a la Beane and Co, that is. But Fisher is an evil man—Finley reincarnate, only way worse, and I can no longer abide what is happening there. So I have made my mind up that, if they move out of Oakland, I will not go with them and will switch my allegiances to the Buccos, who have always been my NL team, just ahead of the Amazins.
Anyway, it’s pretty funny that now I’m managing Pittsburgh here against Oakland as this is playing out, is all. Now, back to the important stuff.
Two high-quality and evenly-matched squads meet here in what should be a hellraisin’ series with plenty of noise about it. The A’s had three 20-game winners this season – the all-conquering Vida Blue, Catfish Hunter and Rick Wise – but also had their fair share of bullpen problems just like us. And, just like us, they will be missing a key member of their lineup with Sal Bando out for them (and Gene Alley for us, of course).
The two groups are incredibly similar in their makeup, with the power edge slightly in the A’s favour with Boog Powell and Reggie Jackson just a force to be reckoned with and if they light up our BP as is very much on the cards then we better have made sure to have built a lead when they do because they’ll put a crooked number on you before you’ve even realised it has happened.
But we of course also have a top-notch offence and, despite the high-quality rotations doing battle, I expect this to be one of the higher-scoring World Series on record. If we can just get our relievers to hold fast then we are in this up to our eyeballs; if not, we may as well give them the trophy now and save everyone the bother.