Free Falling A’s Drop Sixth Straight

After dropping Saturday’s contest against the Boston Red Sox, the Oakland Athletics are in full free falling mode. The A’s on Sunday dropped their sixth-straight game, and the team’s mounting frustration is beginning to mound.

Bob Geren’s squad currently sits 7.0 games back of the first-place Texas Rangers, and while it’s still early June, things are not looking too good right now for the green-and-gold. The A’s young pitchers have definitely hit a brick wall, as the team’s starters are now 1-4 with an 8.29 ERA over their last seven starts.

Entering the season, many expected Oakland’s talented young rotation to carry the team for most of the season, but the team’s recent free-fall has people questioning whether or not Oakland is really a contender this season.

The rotation took hits when Dallas Braden was lost for the remainder of the season, and when starters Brandon McCarthy and Tyson Ross landed on the disabled-list. The A’s depth has been tested early on this season, and while Billy Beane spent an entire winter addressing Oakland’s pitching depth, the team is having trouble keeping its players healthy.

Oakland hopes to have McCarthy, who has begun throwing again, back soon, but the team isn’t holding its breath. Injuries have always troubled the A’s, and 2011 looks like an injury-plagued season in the making.

While injuries have hurt Oakland this season, the offense hasn’t been producing the type of numbers necessary to keep up with the big bats in Texas. The A’s haven’t seen much out of 3B Kevin Kouzmanoff, 2B Mark Ellis, or 1B Daric Barton, and the lack of production from their infielders has hurt Oakland this year.

Geren’s A’s haven’t been particularly fun to watch this season, as the team has battled inconsistency all season long, and if this six-game losing streak is any indication of what’s in store for the remainder of the season, A’s fans should put their hopes for a post-season appearance on hold.

Oh well, perhaps next year will be the year?