American League

Sporting News, The, June 11, 2001

Oakland

26-28: T 2nd

Zito is trying to be too fine when hitters have two strikes

LHP Barry Zito is struggling to find the consistency he displayed as a rookie. His troubles often come when he gets two strikes on batters. Sometimes, Zito's out pitch, his curveball, isn't on. He says he must stop taking the big bender for granted. But more often, Zito is trying to be too fine with two strikes, especially since he joined the league leaders in strikeouts.... SS Miguel Tejada got his first start of the season batting cleanup last week, which leads to a question: Why isn't he there more? He bats righthanded, a consideration because No. 3 hitter Jason Giambi is a lefty. Tejada has a tendency to try to do too much when batting fourth. When he slumps, it usually is because he overswings. Manager Art Howe would like to see Tejada stick to his normal approach when he hits fourth instead of swinging for the fences.

SCOUTING REPORT: RHP Chad Bradford is a submariner with a tough slider and a circle changeup. Because of his delivery, Bradford essentially twists his hand to the left on each pitch, turning the ball over--almost a screwball-type action. With his sinker, Bradford gets a lot of groundballs, so he often comes into games when the A's need a double play or must avoid a fly ball. Because of his elaborate delivery, Bradford has difficulty holding runners close. Unlike most relievers, he does not employ a slide step with men on base.

SEE A DIFFERENT GAME: When LF Johnny Damon hit his fourth homer of the year last week, it appeared he hit the shot one-handed because his one-handed follow-through is so extreme. But as batting coach Thad Bosley points out, several A's have similar high, one-handed follow-throughs, it's just that Damon's is more pronounced. The one-handed follow-through maximizes the time the bat remains on the ball, especially in the case of Damon, who says he is not very loose through his shoulders. Letting go with his right hand after he makes contact is much more comfortable for him. --Susan Slusser

Dugout Signals

Jason Giambi's recent stints at DH are due to others' injuries, When the team is shorthanded, manager Art Howe refers to have the more versatile Olmedo Saenz or Robin Jennings at first. In the event of other injuries, Howe can move them and doesn't have to lose his DH.

BATTERS          AVG     G   AB     R    H   HR

Ja. Giambi( )    .362   54   185   36   67   14
(*)Jennings( )   .289   16    38    4   11    0
Long( )          .284   54   218   28   62    6
Chavez( )        .273   51   194   28   53    6
Menechino        .270   42   152   28   41    7
Tejada           .262   54   210   32   55   13
(*)Wilson        .250    4    12    3    3    1
Saenz            .237   41   139   15   33    3
Hernandez        .233   48   163   16   38    2
(*)Byrnes        .222    7     9    3    2    0
Damon( )         .217   54   226   32   49    4
Piatt            .207   35    92    8   19    0
Bellhorn(#)      .184   16    38    7    7    0

BATTERS          RBI   OBP       SB    K   BB      E

Ja. Giambi( )    47    .506(a)    0   30   52(a)   1
(*)Jennings( )    4    .300       0    4    1      0
Long( )          31    .332       3   33   17      3
Chavez( )        25    .333       2   47   16      4
Menechino        26    .390       1   28   27      7
Tejada           35    .335       5   25   19      5
(*)Wilson         3    .333       0    4    1      1
Saenz            11    .321       0   32    8      1
Hernandez        14    .300       0   19   13      2
(*)Byrnes         0    .300       1    0    0      1
Damon( )         21    .286      12   23   23      3
Piatt             6    .299       0   26   13      2
Bellhorn(#)       2    .262       0   16    4      2

GRAND SLAMS: Ja. Giambi, Tejada (1)

PITCHERS       ERA    W-L    IP     H    R   ER

Bradford       2.75   2-1   19.2   23    6    6
Magnante( )    3.06   0-0   17.2   20    8    6
Mulder( )      3.27   7-2   74.1   67   28   27
Mecir          3.45   2-5   31.1   26   12   12
Isringhausen   3.74   1-1   21.2   23    9    9
Hudson         3.97   5-3   79.1   69   36   35
Tam            4.00   0-1   27.0   27   14   12
Zito( )        5.35   3-5   69.0   76   45   41
Lidle          5.37   0-4   52.0   51   32   31
Mathews        5.49   0-0   19.2   26   13   12
Guthrie( )     5.79   3-1   18.2   21   13   12
Heredia        7.04   3-5   53.2   79   44   42

PITCHERS       HR       K   BB   SV   AVG.

Bradford        3      17    4    0   .295
Magnante( )     3       7    4    0   .294
Mulder( )       4      52   19    0   .238
Mecir           2      26    9    1   .232
Isringhausen    2      22    8    9   .261
Hudson          9      64   29    0   .235
Tam             3      18   14    2   .267
Zito( )         7      75   26    0   .274
Lidle           9      37   20    0   .258
Mathews         2      17    9    1   .310
Guthrie( )      3      19   10    1   .292
Heredia        14(a)   29   19    0   .341

SHUTOUTS: Mulder(1)

COMPLETE GAMES: Mulder(1)

(*) Rookie

( ) Lefthanded

(#) Switch hitter

League leaders in bold

Statistics provided by STATS Inc. through Saturday, June 2.