Remember these guys?

Heading into the season, many believed that Oakland’s pitching staff would be enough to keep the team in contention throughout most of the year.

Unfortunately for the Athletics, early injuries to starting pitchers Dallas Braden and Brett Anderson helped to derail the A’s hopes for playoff contention this year.

Earlier this year, I praised Oakland’s strong starting rotation, even dubbing them the “Fab Four.”

In retrospect, however, Oakland’s starting staff fails in comparison Oakland’s driving force during the early 2000′s: “The Big Three.” In comparison to the original “Big Three,” Oakland’s new “Big Three,” (forget about the Fab Four reference, for now) which consists of youngsters Trevor Cahill, Gio Gonzalez, and Anderson, hasn’t accomplished very much.

Cahill and Gonzalez both displayed remarkable growth last year, posting 18 and 15 wins respectively, but they haven’t been as sharp this season.

Cahill, who went 18-8 with a nifty 2.97 ERA last year, is just 9-13 with a 4.26 ERA in 29 starts this season. It’s been a huge regression for the young righty, who was considered the ace of the staff last year.  (more…)