2015 Oakland Athletics

2015 Oakland Athletics / Franchise: Oakland Athletics / BR Team Page

Record: 68-94, Finished 5th in AL Western Division (2015 AL)

Managed by Bob Melvin

Coaches: Mike Aldrete, Darren Bush, Scott Emerson, Mike Gallego, Marcus Jensen, Tye Waller, Ron Washington and Curt Young

Ballpark: O.co Coliseum

History, Comments, Contributions

The 2015 Oakland Athletics started the season on a strong note on April 6th, as pitcher Sonny Gray held the Texas Rangers hitless through the first seven innings before surrendering a lead-off single to Ryan Rua in the 8th. The A's went on to win the game, 8-0, as Gray and Evan Scribner combined on a one-hitter. The A's had lost on opening day for ten straight years heading into the game, but they got off to a quick 2-0 lead when newly-acquired Ben Zobrist hit a two-run homer off Yovani Gallardo in the bottom of the 1st, and were off and running from that point on. The A's had been busy during the off-season, as their starting line-up that day featured, in addition to Zobrist in left field, DH Billy Butler, 1B Ike Davis, 3B Brett Lawrie and SS Marcus Semien.

The A's played decently for the first couple of weeks, with a record of 8-8 on April 22nd, but began to tread water after that. With a defense leading the major leagues in errors, they began a terrible losing streak that saw them drop 13 of 15 games starting on May 6th. The streak began with an embarrassing 13-0 loss to the Minnesota Twins and on May 21st, they were shut out, 3-0, by the Tampa Bay Rays to fall to 14-29. In that game, they lost reliever Edward Mujica, acquired a couple of weeks earlier in hopes of patching a leaking bullpen, to a fractured thumb. They had the worst record in the majors at that point, and they were already 13 1/2 games back of the division-leading Houston Astros, a complete reversal of fortune for the two teams compared to the previous three years. A sign of how poorly they had played was that when they beat the Tampa Bay Rays, 7-2, on May 24th, it marked only the second time all season that they had managed back-to-back wins.

Awards and Honors

• All-Stars: Sonny Gray and Stephen Vogt

Further Reading

• Mike Bauman: "A's emerge from roster churn with tremendous pitching depth: After a busy offseason, Beane has club in prime position once more", mlb.com, March 24, 2015. [1]
• Richard Justice: "A's proving themselves with hot streak: Team has gone through tough times before, is shaping up to be club Beane envisioned", mlb.com', June 25, 2015. [2]
• Jorge L. Ortiz: "Reality check: A's had to become sellers at deadline", July 24, 2015. [3]
• Jorge L. Ortiz: "A's manager Bob Melvin won't be fall guy for terrible season", USA Today Sports, September 9, 2015. [4]

2015 MLB season by team