Losing Sucks

Losing your keys sucks.  Losing a bet sucks too.  Losing a loved one sucks the most.  But losing weight and your virginity isn't that bad.  Unfortunately... this post won't be covering either of those areas today.

Today's post is about my favorite baseball team, the Oakland Athletics, and their depressing loss to the Cincinnati Reds in the 1990 World Series.

Brian over at Collecting Cutch is hosting a contest on his blog.  He's looking for bloggers to make a post about a year your favorite team didn't win the World Series.  Within your post, he'd like you to talk about why that year's roster stood out to you and who were your favorite players that weren't superstars.  In addition he wants us to talk about any players who went on to have hall of fame careers.

I went with the 1990 Athletics, because that season they entered the postseason with the best record in baseball and swept the Boston Red Sox in the ALCS to get to the World Series.  Everything about that team looked primed to win it all.

Sadly, they were swept by Chris Sabo, Billy Hatcher, Jose Rijo, and company.

But I still have fond memories of that team.

2018 Topps Diamond Icons Autographs #AC-RH

Rickey Henderson won the AL MVP Award that season when he led the MLB in offensive WAR, on base percentage, runs created, and runs scored.  He also represent one of three guys on this roster who would eventually get an invitation to Cooperstown.

2004 Topps Retired Signature Edition Autographs #TA-DEC

2016 Archives All-Star Signature Buybacks (1991 Bowman) #231

Dennis Eckersley and Harold Baines are the other two.

2016 Topps Legacies of Baseball Tenacity Autograph #TA-JC

2016 Topps Legacies of Baseball Tenacity Autograph #TA-MM

The Bash Brothers combined to hit 76 home runs that season and drove in 209 runs.

2007 Topps Co-Signers Solo Sigs #SS-DH

2012 Archives Fan Favorites Autographs #FFA-CL

2018 Arhives Fan Favorites Autographs #FFA-TS

Henderson, Baines, McGwire, and Canseco were surrounded by guys like Carney Lansford, Dave Henderson, Terry Steinbach in the lineup which made them one of the scarier hitting teams in the league.

But their pitching wasn't too shabby either.

2013 Archives Fan Favorites Autographs #FFA-BW

2003 UD Sweet Spot Classic Greats Signature #CG-DSt

Bob Welch won the AL Cy Young Award that year.  Dave Stewart won the ALCS MVP Award for his performance against the Red Sox.  These two guys won a total of 49 games between them that season, while the aforementioned Eck earned 48 saves.

2017 Five Star Heart of a Champion Autograph #FSHC-RH

As for my favorite player on the team, that title goes to Rickey.  However Brian wants us to tell him our favorite player who isn't considered a superstar.

2007 UD Sweet Spot Classic Signatures #SPS-CL

I'd say Carney Lansford fits that description.  He wasn't a superstar (only made the all-star team once), but he was the A's clubhouse leader on all of those World Series teams.  Plus the guy could hit.  In ten seasons with the Athletics he had over 1,300 hits.

It's been almost three decades since the A's have gone back to the World Series and until they do... the 1990 Oakland Athletics will leave a sour taste in my mouth.  That team was so talented, but much like the 1988 team, they just couldn't finish the job.  Damn.  Losing sucks.

Well that's it for today.  A huge shout out to Brian for this interesting contest and Blog Bat-Around idea.

Happy Thursday and sayonara!